CAIRO: Egypt has extended a deadline for bids for the construction of the country's 250-megawatt wind farm along the eastern coast of the country by one month, the state-run news agency MENA reported on Sunday. Environmental observers say the move will give companies a better opportunity to engage in the process and understand what will be needed in order to develop the massive farm. Electricity Minister Hassan Younes was quoted by MENA saying that the extension was meant to give companies more time to prepare necessary documents. “We are excited about these prospects and are looking forward to using the wind farm to bolster the electricity needs in the eastern part of the country, especially the resorts,” said Mahmoud Ismail, the head of Egypt’s Environmental Affairs Agency (EEAA). Egypt announced the project's sale for the wind farm on a build-operate-own (BOO) basis this past May 9 and local and international companies had been invited to submit the proper qualification documents by July 21 for short-listing. Now, they have an additional month to prepare a proposal. According to Reuters, the project developer would be required “to design, finance, construct, own and operate the power plant for 20 to 25 years, and would sell the power produced during that period to the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company.” Younes had said in June a total of 72 international companies had expressed interest in the tender. Egypt, which is a gas and oil producer, has been developing wind power along its Red Sea coast in the east of the country. It aims to generate 12 percent of its power from wind farms and a total of 20 percent from renewable sources by 2020. Officials say Egypt's combined oil and gas reserves will last the most populous Arab country for roughly three more decades, pushing the drive for more renewable energy. BM
