EDF wins Israeli PV tender with bid of $0.019/kWh – SPE

EDF Renewables, a unit of French energy giant EDF, has won the Israeli government’s latest tender to build and operate a new 100 MW solar power plant, according to a statement from Israel’s Ministry of Finance.

The company made a bid of ILS 0.07/kWh – the lowest price ever recorded in an energy tender in Israel. The previous lowest bid ever on the Israeli market was also submitted by EDF for a 40 MW solar power plant in Ashalim, a small community in southern Israel’s Negev desert. This plant sells electricity to the grid at a rate of ILS 0.08/kWh.

“The tender results show that emissions reduction and achieving sustainable energy targets go hand in hand with reducing electricity prices, which is great news for Israeli citizens,” said Accountant General Yehli Rotenberg.

Ministry of Energy Director General Yossi Dayan said the outcome of the tender demonstrates the ability of renewable energy to reduce electricity production costs. Dayan claimed that these reductions can help reduce the cost of living.

The new PV plant will be built near the southern village of Ashalim under a public-private partnership (PPP) agreement. The plant is expected to be operational in the first quarter of 2027, according to an earlier statement from the Israel Electricity Authority.

The facility will be the fifth solar project built by the French company in the region. In 2018, it also completed the Pduyim (14 MW), Mefalsim (13 MW) and Kfar Maimon (7 MW) solar projects, which the Israeli authorities had selected in a tender in 2017.