A new facility for wind power is underway in Egypt’s Ras Gharib, a focal region for renewable energy in the country due to its powerful winds. The project is estimated to increase the country’s wind energy capacity by 18 percent. The plant hopes to produce clean, reliable power at a competitive market price to sell to the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC). By 2020, the state hopes to reach its clean energy goal of 20 percent renewable energy.

Being built in cooperation with Lekela Egypt and the New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA), the plant should be fully operating in 2021 and produce more than 1,000GWh per year, ridding Egypt’s air of more than 550,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions every year.

The Minister of Electricity, Mohamed Shaker, said, “Reform policies in the energy sector have allowed officials to address the crisis of frequent power cuts in Egypt and generate more than 28,000MW of electricity reserves in the past five years.”

He went on to reiterate the importance of clean energy not only for the good of the ecosystem, but also for the livelihood of Egyptians. “Energy is one of the most important means to achieve people's aspirations towards a better future and the main driver of economic and social development projects in Egypt,” said Shaker. By how much do you think the project will help diversify Egypt’s energy sources? Let us know in the comments below.