Arab Finance: ENGIE, Aeolus SAS, and Orascom Construction have reached financial close on the 900-megawatt (MW) Shokeir wind farm near Ras Shokeir in Egypt’s Gulf of Suez, as per an emailed press release.
Aeolus holds a 40% stake in the Shokeir Wind Energy consortium, followed by ENGIE with 35% and Orascom Construction with 25%. The partners are developing the facility under a build-own-operate (BOO) model, backed by a 25-year power purchase agreement with the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC).
Work began in June 2026, with grid connection planned across three phases. The first 300 MW phase is expected to enter commissioning in January 2028, with the full 900 MW capacity due in summer 2028.
The development will bring the partners’ combined operational wind capacity in Egypt to around 1.8 gigawatts, roughly double their current portfolio. Their two existing BOO wind farms have a combined capacity of 912.5 MW, and both began operating ahead of schedule.
“We are delighted to achieve financial close for the Gulf of Suez Wind Farm III together with our trusted partners ENGIE and Orascom Construction. As our third wind power investment in Egypt and, at 900 MW, the largest renewable energy project undertaken by the Toyota Tsusho Group to date in terms of generation capacity, this represents another important milestone in our long-term commitment to Egypt,” Hideharu Toba, President of Aeolus, said.
Alongside its investment and development responsibilities, Orascom Construction will carry out all civil and electrical balance-of-plant works and supply certain locally sourced components.
Osama Bishai, CEO of Orascom Construction, said: “Achieving financial close on this large-scale wind farm marks another important step in the growth of our renewable energy and concessions platform. This is our third project with ENGIE and Aeolus, extending a successful partnership that pioneered the Build-Own-Operate model for wind power in Egypt. We are proud to build on this track record to help meet Egypt’s growing electricity needs and renewable energy ambitions.”
Non-recourse project financing comes from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation, Société de Promotion et de Participation pour la Coopération Economique S.A., Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappij Voor Ontwikkelingslanden N.V. (FMO), Société Générale, Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, and KfW IPEX-Bank GmbH.
Nippon Export and Investment Insurance is providing coverage for the commercial lenders’ financing, while HSBC Bank Egypt serves as the working capital facility bank and onshore security agent.
Separate equity bridge loans are being provided by KfW for ENGIE, Mizuho for Aeolus, and FMO and British International Investment for Orascom Construction.
Once in operation, the facility is expected to produce enough clean electricity for more than 1.4 million Egyptian households and cut annual carbon emissions by approximately 2 million tons, supporting Egypt’s renewable energy and decarbonization goals.
Rik De Buyserie, CEO and Country Manager of ENGIE North Africa, said: “Reaching financial close for this 900 MW project marks a major milestone for ENGIE. The project will become our largest onshore wind farm worldwide and demonstrates ENGIE’s ability to develop and deliver large-scale renewable energy projects in strategic markets.”
