The Gulf of El Zayt Wind Farm is a 200MW wind project to be constructed on the west bank of the Gulf of Suez in the Gulf of El Zayt, Egypt. It will be constructed on a site located approximately 12km west of Ras Shukeir in a coastal arid zone between the Gulf of El Zayt and Zafarana.

Planned to be one of the biggest wind farms in Africa, the project will be built on an area of 35km² and is expected to be commissioned in the second half of 2017.

The project was proposed by Egypt’s New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA) and will be built through funds provided by the European Union, Germany’s KfW Development Bank and the European Investment Bank.

It is expected to generate approximately 800GW a year, which will be enough to meet the power needs of approximately 500,000 people. It will also offset 400,000t of carbon dioxide emissions a year.

Gulf of El Zayt wind farm make-up

The wind farm will consist of 100 Gamesa G80-2.0 wind turbines of 2MW each, in rows that will be perpendicular to the direction of the wind. The turbines will be approximately 110m high and spaced between 200m and 300m in a row.

The turbines will be installed in rows, spaced at 1km, from south-west to north-east direction. The selected location receives favourable wind with an expected load factor of approximately 45%.

Egyptian wind project transmission

The project will include the construction of a 22/220kV substation and will be interconnected to the main transmission line corridor by means of a new 220kV overhead line. The internal grid of the wind park will also feature underground cables.

A state-of-the-art bird protection measure will be featured involving a radar-based shut down on-demand system.

Power cable trenches will be located along the rows of the turbines at a depth between 1m and 1.5m. Plastic pipes to hold control cables will be placed inside the trenches on top of the power cables. The power cables will be connected to a central substation.

Contractors involved with the Gulf of El Zayt wind project

Grontmij will provide project management, project and conceptual design, electrical grid, foundations, access roads, infrastructure tendering and inspection during the guarantee period, as well as building facilities for the workforce. Grontmij will also assist in the development of a high-voltage connection, a transformer station and facilities for the labour force.

Gamesa Corporation has been contracted to deliver 100 G80-2.0MW turbines and provide turbine assembly, erection and start-up services as well as operation and maintenance services for five years.

Financing for the Gulf of El Zayt wind farm

The €340m ($370m approximately) project is co-funded by Germany’s Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) Bank, the European Commission (EC) and the European Central Bank (EIB).

KfW is the leading donor with a contribution of €191.5m ($209m), while EIB will loan €50m ($54m) and the EU will provide a grant of €30m ($33m).