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ACWA Power is a company that provides electricity and desalination. Its energy portfolio includes solar (Photovoltaic PV) and Concentrated Solar Power (CSP)), geothermal, wind, waste-to-energy (WtE) and clean coal.

Background
Headquartered in Saudi Arabia, ACWA Power maintains regional offices in Dubai, Istanbul, Cairo, Rabat, Johannesburg, Hanoi and Beijing. It invests in, develops, co-owns and operates a portfolio of 32 plants on three continents, with the capacity to generate 18GW of power and produce 2.5 million m3/day of desalinated water. ACWA Power and its subsidiary operating companies employ 2,850 people in projects in 12 different countries.

As of 2014, 8% of ACWA Power’s energy portfolio was in renewable energy. ACWA Power has expressed an intention to increase its investment in renewables : of the new bids and projects still in the financing stage announced in 2014 US$7.4 billion of US$15 billion were in renewable energy. ACWA Power’s tender for construction, at a tariff of 5.98 USD cents/kWh, was the cheapest world solar energy tender ever offered.

Structure
ACWA Power’s current ownership includes: eight Saudi private sector business houses, two Saudi government investment entities, namely Sanabil Direct Investments Company (a subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund) and the Saudi Public Pensions Agency, and the International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group.

ACWA Power’s board of directors is chaired by Mohammad Abdullah Abunayyan and Paddy Padmanathan serves as its CEO and President.

History
In 2002, the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia increased the role of the private sector in the Saudi economy by opening up the production of electricity and desalinated water to the private sector to own and operate.

The company was founded in its current form in 2008 and succeeded ACWA Power Projects, a joint venture between ACWA Holding (representing the Abunayyan Holding Company and Al-Muhaidib) and the MADA Group for Industrial and Commercial Development founded in 2004 to take advantage of these new private sector investment and operation opportunities in the Saudi Arabian market.

From 2004-2011, ACWA focused primarily on Saudi Arabia, and was awarded contracts for the Shuqaiq and Marafiq Integrated water and power plants. . The company began its current phase of international expansion in 2011 with the acquisition of Central Electricity Generating Company (CEGCO) Jordan  and the signature of a joint development agreement for the Kirikkale Combined Cycle Gas Turbine project in Turkey, which subsequently won backing from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). The company has since expanded throughout the world, although its core holdings remain the MENA region.

Noor II, II, III, Ouarzazate, Morocco

 * In 2012, a consortium led by ACWA won a €634m euro contract to build a solar power plant near Ouarzazate, Morocco - called Noor I.
 * In October 2013, a consortium led by Spain's Abengoa, Engie Energy International (formerly International Power) and ACWA had been pre-selected for the 200MW Noor II construction tender. The three groups were also pre-qualified for the 100MW Noor III tender.
 * In 2015, ACWA were awarded a €1.7 billion contract for two further solar power projects, Noor II and Noor III, in Morocco.
 * Noor I was inaugurated in February 2016 and will generate 160 MW of electricity. The second two phases currently under construction will generate a further 580 MW.

Nam Dinh, Vietnam

 * In June 2014 a consortium including ACWA Power and Korea's Taekwang Power Holdings Company Limited signed an agreement to develop the Nam Dinh 1 IPP Project in Vietnam.
 * In January 2016, the consortium signed a $2.2 billion investment agreement with Vietnam for the Nam Dinh 1 thermal power plant. The $2 billion coal fired power plant will generate 1,200MW upon completion.

Hassyan, UAE

 * In September 2014 ACWA was shortlisted to build the Hassyan 1,200MW clean coal power plant as part of a $20 billion investment by the UAE Government that aims to help to diversify Dubai's energy mix by 2030.


 * In October 2015, a consortium including ACWA and China's Harbin Electric were selected to build and operate the $1.8 billion plant.

Chosen in November 2014, as part of a consortium including China’s Harbin Electric to build and operate the US$1.8 billion, 1,200 MW Hassyan clean coal power project in Dubai. Two additional phases, to be constructed by 2020 and 2021 will bring the plant’s capacity to 3,600 MW.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum Solar Park, Dubai

 * In January 2015 a consortium of ACWA Power and Spain's TSK were selected by Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) as the preferred bidder to build a solar power plant in the emirate.

Awards
ACWA Power won the following awards in 2014:
 * The Acquisition International Fund awards: Energy Investment Firm of the Year – Saudi Arabia
 * MEED quality awards: Angus Hindley Award for Project Excellence