The MoU covers activities, transactions, relationships, contracts and works related to developing solar farms with a primary focus on the MENA region

by TMR / pic source: Gading Kencana FB

GADING Kencana Sdn Bhd, one of the largest solar farm operators in Malaysia, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with March Global LLC of Saudi Arabia, to collaborate in developing solar farms in the Middle East, Africa and the Asean region.

The agreement signed in conjunction with the Dubai World Expo 2020 involves an investment value of up to US$1 billion (RM4.18 billion) to develop solar farms in the developing countries of the above regions by 2025.

The MoU covers activities, transactions, relationships, contracts and works related to developing solar farms with a primary focus on the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.

Gading Kencana, in a release yesterday, stated the MENA region was chosen because it has great potential in renewable energy (RE) exploration in line with current global developments that want to reduce dependence on conventional energy sources.

“This MoU is also a recognition that Malaysian companies have the expertise in the field of RE, especially solar, and are able to play a role globally through such cooperation,” said Gading Kencana MD Prof Dr Datuk Muhd Guntor Mansor Tobeng.

Muhd Guntor added the first collaborative effort between Gading Kencana and March Global is to develop a solar farm in Khulais, Saudi Arabia with a capacity of 100 megawatts.

After Saudi Arabia, the venture partners plan to explore the investment potential in Ghana and several countries in North Africa.

For the Asean region, he said Gading Kencana and March Global plan to develop solar farms in Vietnam.

“This MoU will enable Malaysian companies such as Gading Kencana to step onto the international stage by taking advantage of developments in the global RE sector which has seen strong growth in the past two years, with new generating capacity reaching almost 280 gigawatts (GW) by 2020, about 45% higher than 2019, marking the highest year-on-year increase since 1999, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA),” he added.

The global electricity consumption capacity from RE sources is projected to increase by more than 60% between 2020 and 2026, reaching more than 4,800GW. Very high capacity additions will be the “new normal” in 2022.

“With RE contributing 90% of new power capacity expansion, according to the IEA, local Malaysian companies also need to quickly seize the opportunities that are open globally through partnerships with international companies such as March Global to explore new potential in the country. the country is developing,” Muhd Guntor added.