Abu Dhabi's Masdar completes 50% stake acquisition in US renewables project

The clean energy company bought the stake in the Big Beau project in California from EDF Renewables North America

The Big Beau Project is among eight green energy projects that Masdar and EDF Renewables North America have agreed to partner in. Photo: Masdar

Abu Dhabi's Masdar, one of the world’s fastest-growing clean energy companies, has closed the deal to acquire a 50 per cent stake in a US-based combined solar and battery storage project.

The move to buy the share in California-based Big Beau project from EDF Renewables North America is aimed at further expanding its presence in the US renewables market, Masdar said on Wednesday.

Comprising a 128-megawatt photovoltaic solar plant and a 40MW/160 megawatt-hour battery energy storage system, it is among eight green energy projects where Masdar and EDF Renewables are partners.

“Big Beau and the other projects that we are operating with EDF Renewables are already making an active contribution to US clean energy targets, highlighting the strength of the UAE-US relationship that the recent Pace [Accelerating Clean Energy] announcement seeks to build on,” Dr Sultan Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, Cop28 president-designate and chairman of Masdar, said.

In January, the UAE and the US announced the allocation of $20 billion to fund 15 gigawatts of clean energy projects in the US, the world’s largest economy, by the end of 2035.

The development of the clean energy schemes will be led by Masdar and a consortium of US private investors, under the Accelerating Clean Energy (Pace) agreement between the two countries.

“If we are to keep the objective of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees alive, we need to see countries coming together in concerted action — one of the key areas of focus for the upcoming Cop28 in the UAE,” Dr Al Jaber said.

“Partnerships between companies like Masdar and EDF Renewables are also vital in ensuring we hold back emissions, not progress.”

Masdar is active in more than 40 countries and has invested or committed to invest in projects worth more than $30 billion.

Established in 2006, Masdar has grown to take a leadership role in the global clean energy sector and has also helped to drive the UAE’s economic diversification and climate action agenda.

It aims to grow its capacity to at least 100 gigawatts of renewable energy globally by 2030. The largest share of this capacity will come from wind and solar technology.

Beyond the initial goals, Masdar also seeks to develop more than 200 gigawatts of renewable energy.

In 2020, Masdar and EDF Renewables agreed to work together in 1.6 gigawatts of clean energy projects.

That includes three utility-scale wind projects in Nebraska and Texas, totalling 815MW, and five solar projects in California with 689MW capacity. Two of the projects also include 75MW battery energy storage systems.

All of the portfolio projects are operational, and combined they are displacing more than 3 million tonnes of emissions per year, Masdar said.

“EDF Renewables’ partnership with Masdar enjoys a successful history and today we celebrate another project to add to the growing portfolio,” said Tristan Grimbert, president and chief executive of EDF Renewables.

“Decarbonisation of the energy sector will take the combined effort of developers, offtakers, and investors alike working in collaboration towards ambitious goals.”

Masdar remains committed to growing its activities in the US over the coming years and it sees the world’s biggest economy as “an extremely important strategic market”, Mohamed Al Ramahi, chief executive of Masdar, said.

“I look forward to growing our presence in the US as a developer and independent power producer, as part of our targeted global expansion of reaching at least 100 gigawatts by the end of this decade.”