Egypt and the UAE are cooperating to secure land for the biggest wind farm in Africa – and one of the largest globally – at an estimated value of $10 billion.

Three UAE companies – Masdar, Hassan Allam Utilities and Infinity powers – attended a Cairo signing of the deal with Egypt’s New and Renewable Energy Authority.

The project is slated for a capacity of 10-gigawatts (GW) and will produce upwards of 47,790 GWh of clean energy annually, reducing around nine percent of Egypt’s yearly carbon emissions and saving it five billion dollars in natural gas costs per year.

This project will also help reach Egypt’s goal of reaching 42 percent renewable energy sourcing by 2030.

The signing was attended by Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly, Egypt’s Minister for Electricity and Renewable Energy Mohamed Shaker, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology Sultan al-Jaber, and the CEOs of Masdar, Infinity Power and Hassan Allam Holding Hassan.

The official spokesperson for the Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy Ayman Hamza announced in December that Egypt is building one of the largest wind farms in the world, as part of projects that were signed at the COP27 Climate Summit in Sharm el-Sheikh.

During a telephone interview on the al-Hayat channel Hamza said that the summit witnessed four agreements, including a wind farm with a capacity of 10 gigawatts at a cost of $12 billion.

The Emirati Masdar, one of the world’s fastest-growing renewable energy companies, along with its Infinity Power joint venture with Infinity, Egypt’s main renewable energy developer, and Hassan Allam Utilities, signed an MoU in November to develop a 10-gigawatt (GW) onshore wind project at Egypt’s Gulf of Suez.