Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC) has issued a request for proposal (RfP) for the establishment of the 140 MW Al Sila wind power project in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. This RfP was sent to 16 companies and consortiums that qualified during the expression of interest round conducted in October 2024.

Responses to the RfP are expected by the second quarter of 2025. The new wind project is anticipated to double the wind generation capacity in Abu Dhabi, increasing it from 120 MW to 240 MW. The project will be integrated with existing wind initiatives at Sila, Sir Bani Yas Island, and Delma Island.

The project scope includes the development, financing, construction, operation, maintenance, and ownership of the wind facility and its associated infrastructure. The successful developer or consortium will have ownership of up to 40% of the project entity, with the remainder being held indirectly by the Abu Dhabi government. The developer will also enter into a power purchase agreement with EWEC, structured as an energy purchase agreement, where EWEC will only compensate for the net electrical energy supplied by the plant.

In 2024, EWEC acquired 75 square kilometers of land in Al Faya, Al Khazna, Al Zarraf, and Al Sila to facilitate the development of both solar and wind energy projects, totaling 4.5 GW of solar power and 140 MW of wind power in Abu Dhabi. These solar initiatives are part of EWEC’s plan to reach 10 GW of installed solar capacity by 2030 and 18 GW by 2035.

The company is also tasked with achieving a 60% clean energy target as outlined in the Abu Dhabi Department of Energy’s Clean Energy Strategic Target 2035 for electricity production in the region. Earlier in January, EWEC had issued another RfP for the 1,500 MW Zarraf solar project, and in 2024, it announced the start of a 1.5 GW solar project in Al Ajban, being developed in collaboration with EDF Renewables Middle East, Masdar, and Korea Western Power.