Solar plants of 40 MW to start working in Gaza by April - report

US renewable energy firm Samaha Group will build three solar parks in the Gaza Strip that will provide the self-governing Palestinian territory with 40 MW of new power generation by April at the earliest, Reuters reports.

The photovoltaic (PV) facilities will be constructed at three locations for a total cost of around EUR 50 million (USD 59m), Samaha Group’s technical director Volker Gutjahr told the news agency. The project is called "Turn on the lights in Gaza", as officially announced at a ceremony on Tuesday.

The US company’s local partner in the project is Arab Orient Technology Services. The parties have already received the green light from the Energy Authority of the Palestinian Authority, according to Wail Elawoor, CEO of Arab Orient Technology Services.

First deliveries of equipment for the PV scheme are expected to arrive in March through the Israeli Mediterranean port of Ashdod, Gutjahr said, as cited by Reuters.

The Gaza Strip is suffering severe power shortages after the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas cut payments for Israeli-supplied power to the territory in June.

(EUR 1.0 = USD 1.180)

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