DUBAI: French power giant EDF plans to increase its renewable energy developments in Saudi Arabia and the UAE by at least 5 gigawatts of capacity. “The Middle East is a strategic area for EDF Renewables, and ultimately for EDF Group. We have currently secured 4 GW of projects in the Middle East and Africa, and the region has a pipeline of five additional GW to come,” Olivier Bordes, EDF Renewables Middle East’s CEO and Managing Director, said. EDF’s portfolio consists of 14 GW of renewable operational (wind and solar capacities) assets worldwide, and the Middle East is one of the large contributors to the business in the upcoming years. Projects already under construction include the Dhafra PV2 solar plant in Abu Dhabi, which has a power capacity of 2 GW, and is the largest single site PV (photovoltaic) project in the world, contributing to the UAE’s shift to sustainable renewable energy. Another development is EDF’s first PV project in the Kingdom - a 300 MW photovoltaic plant in Jeddah. “Strong partnership is a key factor for success. We have partners to develop our low-carbon solutions in the region, particularly in the UAE and in KSA,” said Bordes. He added, “the Middle East program has ambitious targets. One of the main challenges is to continue to accelerate development to reach the energy transmission targets.” EDF recently won a stake at the $3.6 billion project to develop and operate a transmission system alongside ADNOC and TAQA. A first-of-its-kind sub-sea transmission network to decarbonize the offshore production of ADNOC, supporting the UAE’s ‘Net Zero by 2050 Strategic Initiative.’ EDF Group is covering all the value chain, energy generation, transmission and distribution, and energy services, such as district cooling and energy efficiency. “We believe that the best energy is the one that is not consumed” stated Laurent Clement, CEO and Managing Director of EDF Middle East. He added, “The energy mix in the GCC region is evolving quickly to low-carbon generation, with the massive integration of renewable energy. As an example - the objective of 60 GW in KSA in 2030, or the starting of Barakah nuclear power plant in the UAE in addition to their massive renewable objectives in 2030,” said Mr. Clement.