YEREVAN

Armenia will commission its largest utility-scale solar power plant, aimed at helping the country reduce its reliance on imported fuels, in 2024, Karen Asatryan, head of the Renewable Resources and Energy Efficiency Fund, said.

Asatryan told reporters that the 55-megawatt solar power plant, the first-of-its-kind in the country, would help boost Armenia’s supply of renewable energy. It will be located in the Mets Masrik municipality, Gegharkunik province.

The project, which includes the development, construction and operation of a 55 MW power plant and a 9-kilometre transmission line,is the first competitively tendered solar-photovoltaic project in Armenia. The facility will produce enough clean energy to supply more than 20,000 homes and avoid the emission of over 40,000 tonnes of carbon annually.

The Masrik-1 solar plant is expected to generate more than 128 gigawatt-hours of electricity annually at a competitive tariff of 4.19 cents per kilowatt-hour. The electricity will be sold under a power purchase agreement to Armenia’s Electricity Networks, a utility responsible for the distribution of electricity.

Currently, nearly 70 percent of Armenia’s electricity generation depends on imported fossil fuels. As the country’s demand for electricity grows, renewables are expected to provide a sustainable and low-cost alternative source of energy. The Masrik plant is designed to set an example for the rest of the Caucasus.

The solar plant is being constructed by Fotowatio Renewable Ventures (FRV), part of Abdul Latif Jameel Energy and a leading global developer of renewable energy projects.

The project is supported by the International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the European Union.

The financial institutions will extend up to $38.4 million financing structured in different tranches of debt. Armenia’s Ameriabank will provide a loan facility to finance the company’s VAT needs.

Separately, Armenia announced a tender for the construction of a 200-megawatt Aig-1 solar power plant in Aragatsotn province.

HydroChina Corporation, Gazprom Energoholding LLC and Abu Dhabi Futures Energy Company CJSC have passed the tender’s pre-qualification round.

Asatryan said that the winner of the tender would be announced within few months.