November 27th, 2025 | Egypt
UAE Alcazar to break ground on 500MW Egypt wind farm in mid-2026
Egypt, 27.11.25: Dubai-based independent sustainable infrastructure fund manager Alcazar Energy Partners expects to break ground on the onshore Niat wind farm in Egypt in mid-2026, with total construction costs budgeted at $600mn, CEO Daniel Calderon tells fDiIntelligence.
AEP entered a binding share sale and purchase agreement with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy, which signed a build, finance and operate agreement for Niat with the Egyptian government in March 2025, on November 20. The transaction now awaits green light from the Egyptian authorities and financial closing with the lenders that AEP has lined up for the financing package.
“Upon completion, AEP Energy will assume full ownership and operational responsibility for the project,” reads a statement published by AEP. “Siemens Gamesa, which initiated and advanced the project, will continue as a strategic partner during the final stages of development and is anticipated to provide turbine technology and related services under the partnership framework.”
AEP expects Niat, which is located along the Suez Canal, to produce up to 2.5TWh of electricity per year. That implies a 57 per cent capacity factory, which stands out as a relatively high level compared with similar developments around the world. According to figures from the International Renewable Energy Agency, the peak capacity factor for utility-scale onshore stands in the mid-50s, with the global weighted average at 34 per cent in 2024. For Africa specifically, the weighted average factor is 44 per cent, Irena figures show.
As part of the agreement signed with Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy, AEP will deploy 100 units of 5MW turbines supplied by the German company, Calderon confirms. Construction of phase one is expected to complete in 23 months, phase two in 26.
Niat will sell its electricity to state power company Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company, which will pay $0.03 per kwh over 25 years, with the majority of it payable offshore in US dollars, Calderon clarifies.
AEP will finance the development with $450mn in debt — the company is negotiating a 22-year maturity and a spread of about 300 over the US dollar secured overnight financing rate as key features of the financing package, with the European Fund for Sustainable Development Plus fund expected to provide guarantees — and the remainder in equity.
All things considered, CEO Calderon expects the development to generate a return on investment in the “low teens”.
Egypt aims to generate 42 per cent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030 and more than 60 per cent by 2040. Excluding hydropower, the country had 4.9GW of renewable installed capacity at the end of 2024, from 0.9GW in 2015, Irena figures show. Wind power accounted for 2.2GW, and solar power for another 2.6GW. Despite the recent increase in installed capacity, renewable energy still accounted for less than 13 per cent of total electricity in the country in 2024, Irena figures show.
Marquee projects have kick-started the country’s renewable energy development, in particular, the 1.65GW Benban Solar Park, one of the biggest of its kind worldwide, which came online in 2019, and the 650MW Gulf of Suez Wind Farm II, Africa’s largest wind farm, which came online in June 2025.
AEP itself was involved as an equity investor in the Benban Solar Park, where it delivered a combined capacity of 256MW. The company also signed an agreement with the Egyptian government in November 2024 to develop 2GW of onshore wind in the country.
Overall, investors from the Gulf have been instrumental in the development of Egypt’s renewable energy projects, accounting for $20.8bn of the $33.4bn of foreign direct investment committed to wind and solar development in the country since 2015, according to figures from fDi Markets.
About Alcazar Energy Partners
Alcazar Energy Partners (“AEP”) is an independent infrastructure fund manager focused on investing in and developing utility-scale renewable energy assets in growth markets. Since 2014, AEP have successfully managed two investment vehicles: AEP-I, which mobilised appr. USD750 million in wind and solar assets, and AEP-II, which closed at USD490 million in May 2024 and will mobilise c.USD2 billion in growth markets. In doing this, AEP has brought together blue-chip public and private investors across North America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East, with 80% of investors holding AAA or AA ratings, to create financially attractive investment opportunities in growth markets. AEP now has a cumulative renewable energy portfolio of more than 4GW.
For more information, visit https://alcazarenergy.com
About fDi Intelligence
fDi Intelligence — a specialist division of the Financial Times — is the world’s leading provider of data and analysis on foreign direct investment. We track cross-border investment trends across more than 200 countries, using our proprietary databases, expertise, and global reach to provide transparency for corporate investors and government agencies. In 2025, fDi Intelligence monitored thousands of greenfield projects, leveraging real-time market data and benchmarking tools to help stakeholders identify growth opportunities and create sustainable economic impact in a rapidly evolving global landscape.
For more information, visit https://www.fdiintelligence.com
Media Contact:
H/Advisors Dubai: AlcazarEnergy@h-advisors.global
