Cairo-based Hassan Allam Utilities, Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar) and Infinity Power have signed two power-purchase agreements with the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC) for the development of two solar projects with a combined capacity of 1,200MW.

The first solar project to be located in Wahat will have a capacity of 900MW. The second solar plant located in Benban will have a capacity of 300MW and include a battery energy storage system (Bess) plant capacity of 720 megawatt-hours (MWh).

Egypt Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology of UAE Sultan Al-Jaber witnessed the signing of the PWPAs.

In a statement, Hassan Allam said the facilities "are expected to play a critical role in reducing carbon emissions, supporting Egypt’s sustainability ambitions, and increasing the supply of clean energy in Egypt".

It will also be the first development to come on stream in the broader strategic partnership between Hassan Allam Utilities, Masdar and Infinity Power, which is looking to develop close to 11,000MW of renewable power generation capacity in Egypt.

In May, the team signed a land access agreement with the Egyptian government for a planned 10,000MW onshore wind farm project in Egypt.

The agreement gives the consortium access to a 3,025-square-kilometre area in West Sohag and enables the consortium to conduct the required development studies that will help advance the project to the construction phase.

The agreement followed an initial memorandum of understanding signed by the consortium and Egypt's New & Renewable Energy Authority in November 2022, and a land agreement announced in June of last year.