Saudi Arabia to set up SR188m solar plant in Bangladesh

Saudi Arabia has signed an agreement in Dhaka to set up an SR188 million solar plant in Bangladesh.

The agreement was signed between the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) and the Riyadh-based Alfanar Energy, which is a 100 percent subsidiary of the Alfanar company.

FBCCI Secretary General Hussein Jameel and Alfanar Energy Project Coordinator Mohammed Irfan inked the accord in the presence of Bangladesh Ambassador Golam Moshi and Mushabab bin Abdullah Al-Qahtani, who was heading the Council of Saudi Chambers team.

Bangladesh Embassy Commercial Counselor Mohammed Abdul Hassan, who returned from Dhaka on Tuesday, told Arab News that the plant, which will be located in the port city of Chittagong, is expected to produce 40MW to 100 MW of power in Bangladesh. He said the project will be completed within six months.

He said that the visiting Saudi and Bangladeshi officials also discussed details of other big projects including a paper mill, a cement factory and a factory for Diammonium Phosphate (DAP).

The counselor said the two-way trade between the two countries is estimated at $1 billion, which is in favor of the Kingdom, whose exports had reached $750 million.

In a statement to Arab News, Mushabab Al-Qahtani stressed the keenness of the Saudi business sector to strengthen trade and investment ties with the Bangladeshi business sector and build partnerships that boost economic relations between the two countries.

During the Bangladeshi-Saudi Economic Forum, organized by the FBCCI in Dhaka, Bangladeshi Trade Minister Tufail Ahmed called on Saudi investors to establish a “special economic zone” in his country to boost trade and investment between the two countries and benefit from the safe investment climate there.

Alfanar Energy is a developer and IPP in the renewable field across the technologies including PV, CSP, wind, biomass, geothermal, waste to energy and IWP in the water sector. It has a current pipeline of 800 MW investment projects spread across Europe, East Africa and South Asia. Established in 1976, it is currently the region’s leading player in the energy sector, EPC business, design and development, and has built facilities in the Middle East and 17 other countries. Its turnover in 2016 exceeded $2.15 billion.