The renewable energy branch of Larsen and Toubro’s (L&T) Power Transmission and Distribution business has secured an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for a solar photovoltaic (PV) plant in Saudi Arabia.
The contract was awarded by ACWA Power and the Water and Electricity Holding Company, the latter being a subsidiary of the Public Investments Fund of Saudi Arabia (PIF).
With a power purchase agreement (PPA) in place, the 1.5GW Sudair project is claimed to be the largest solar PV plant in Saudi Arabia and one of the largest in the world.
The solar facility will be developed in the Riyadh Province on 30.8km² of land and feature solar modules with associated single axial trackers and inverters.
The project had been given to PIF and ACWA Power as part of Saudi Arabia’s National Renewable Energy Program (NREP).
L&T managing director and CEO Sekharipuram Narayanan Subrahmanyan said: “L&T has been a provider of EPC services for several green projects in recent years.
“Securing this project is a major milestone in our clean and green energy path to fight the climate crisis that the world faces.”
L&T Utilities whole-time director and senior executive vice-president T Madhava Das said: “KSA aims to become a pioneer in renewable energy and we are happy to be a part of this journey.
“We have been building efficient power transmission and distribution networks with modern substations and transmission lines in this region for more than two decades.
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“This [project] is yet another recognition of our capabilities to construct mega projects to speed and scale”.
The project is part of the 70% share of Saudi Arabia’s 58.7GW solar energy target capacity assigned to PIF. The Renewable Energy Project Development Office is to undertake competitive tendering for the remaining 30%.
In 2019, L&T was given two contracts for thermal power projects in India. The first was from National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) and the second from THDC India.