UAE Business: Masdar achieves financial close on 500MW Uzbek wind farm – Gulf Digital News

UAE Business: Masdar achieves financial close on 500MW Uzbek wind farm – Gulf Digital News

Masdar, one of the world’s leading renewable energy companies, said it has achieved financial close on the 500-MW Zarafshan wind project, the first utility-scale wind farm for Uzbekistan.

An Abu Dhabi-based company, Masdar had entered into bilateral agreements with the Government of Uzbekistan in 2020 to develop, build and operate the Zarafshan wind farm, the largest renewables project in Central Asia.

The project is expected to attract foreign direct investment of more than $600 million, and is part of Uzbekistan’s effort to meet 25% of its electricity needs from renewable sources by the end of the decade.

The announcement was made following a ceremony to mark the occasion, held in Uzbek capital Tashkent. Jamshid Khodjayev, Deputy Prime Minister, and Minister of Investments and Foreign Trade, gave the keynote address at the event, which was attended by Masdar Chief Financial Officer Niall Hannigan; Shukhrat Vafaev, Deputy Minister of Investments and Foreign Trade and Sherzod Khodjaev, Uzbekistan’s Deputy Minister of Energy, and other officials.

Lauding the deal close, Vafaev said: "Uzbekistan is aiming to derive 25% of its energy from renewable sources by 2026, and we are grateful to Masdar and financial institutions who are contributing to this goal through solar, wind, and other renewable energy