The Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (Apicorp) has signed an agreement with Shuaa Energy 3 sponsored by Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa), ACWA Power and Gulf Investment Corp, to provide $70.5 million in financing for the fifth phase of development of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai, UAE.

Part of a larger project finance facility amounting to $420.2 million provided by a number of local, regional and international banks, the funds will be used in the development, construction, ownership, operation and maintenance of a $564 million 900MW state-of-the-art solar photovoltaic (PV) plant.

Phase 5 of the development of the Park, the single-site solar park in the world, is expected to power 270,000 homes and offset 1.18 million tonnes of CO2 emissions annually. It also marks a crucial milestone for Dubai as the city aims to reduce its reliance on imported natural gas by achieving 7 per cent of installed capacity from solar energy by 2020 and 25 per cent by 2030.

The power generated from the plant will be sold to Dewa, which owns 60 per cent of the Shuaa Energy 3.