Masdar signs agreement with Portuguese utility company

23 January 2014

Partnership will develop large-scale renewable energy projects

Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar) has signed a framework agreement with Portugal’s largest utility company to develop large-scale renewable energy projects.

The partnership between Masdar and Energias De Portugal (EDP) will also aim to promote renewables as a source of foreign aid. The agreement between the two firms was signed on 22 January.

In 2013, Masdar commissioned 750MW of clean energy capacity to the global grid, completing projects in the UAE, the UK, Mauritania and Seychelles. In March, the state-owned energy company opened its Shams 1 solar power plant in Abu Dhabi, which is the largest concentrated solar power plant (CSP) under operation in the world.

The 100MW grid-connected plant will generate clean energy that will power 20,000 homes in the UAE. The facility was officially inaugurated by Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan, president of the UAE and ruler of Abu Dhabi.

The Shams 1 scheme covers a total area of 2.5 square kilometres and contains more than 258,000 mirrors mounted on 768 tracking parabolic trough collectors. The solar system concentrates heat from direct sunlight onto oil-filled pipes, which then enables the Shams 1 plant to produce steam. The steam drives a turbine and generates electricity.

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