TotalEnergies Greenlights Battery-Backed Wind Project in Kazakhstan

TotalEnergies SE and its local partners have agreed to proceed with a $1.2-billion onshore wind plus battery energy storage system (BESS) project capable of powering 1 million people in Kazakhstan.

Targeted to reach capacity 2029, the Mirny project in the south of the Central Asian country is designed to produce 100 terawatt hours over 25 years. The government will buy 100 percent of the generation, the French energy giant said in a press release.

TotalEnergies said the Mirny consortium also executed a common terms agreement with a group of lenders. The syndicate included China Construction Bank Corp, Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH, Development Bank of Kazakhstan JSC, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, QNB Group, Société de Promotion et de Participation pour la Coopération Economique, Société Générale and Standard Chartered Group.

TotalEnergies expects around 75 percent of the budget to come from external financing.

"We are delighted to launch one of Kazakhstan's largest renewable energy initiatives to date, thereby contributing to the country's target of increasing the share of renewables in electricity generation to 15 percent by 2030", said TotalEnergies senior vice president for renewables Olivier Jouny.

The project, located 350 kilometers (217.48 miles) from Almaty and 750 km from Astana, consists of a 1-gigawatt wind farm with 150 turbines and a 600-megawatt-hour BESS to be supplied by TotalEnergies’ Saft Groupe SAS, according to TotalEnergies.

It owns 60 percent of Mirny. KazMunayGas JSC and Samruk-Energy JSC, both state-owned, each hold 20 percent.

Masdar JV

Earlier TotalEnergies and Abu Dhabi Future Energy Co PJSC (Masdar) signed a deal to create a joint venture (JV) comprising their onshore renewable energy portfolio in Kazakhstan and 8 other Asian countries.

Valued $2.2 billion, the JV is to be equally owned by state-owned Masdar and TotalEnergies. It would be headquartered in Abu Dhabi and supported by about 200 workers from both partners, said a joint statement April 2.

"As electricity demand accelerates across Asia, this partnership brings together capital and expertise to deliver renewable energy at the scale and speed required", the companies said. "Once the transaction is closed, the JV will act as both companies’ sole vehicle for developing, building, owning and operating onshore solar, wind and battery storage projects in Azerbaijan, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea and Uzbekistan.

"The JV will have a portfolio capacity of 3 GW of operational assets and 6 GW of assets in advanced development that are expected to be operational by 2030. Each partner will contribute assets of comparable value".

"Asia will be the main driver of global electricity demand growth this decade, and this collaboration with TotalEnergies will accelerate our progress across the continent, unlocking new opportunities to deliver the competitive, reliable energy solutions that our partners and customers need", said Masdar chair Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, who is also the United Arab Emirates minister of industry and advanced technology.

The transaction needs to clear regulatory approvals and other conditions, the statement said.

To contact the author, email jov.onsat@rigzone.com