The consortium led by ACWA Power has reached commercial operation for the integrated utility system serving The Red Sea destination in Saudi Arabia, with the Project Commercial Operation Date certified between Marafiq Red Sea for Energy Company and The Red Sea Utilities Company. The project company, Marafiq Red Sea for Energy Company, was formed by ACWA Power with SPIC Huanghe Hydropower and Saudi Tabreed and has entered a 25-year concession to develop, operate and maintain the utility infrastructure.

The scheme is the first Saudi giga-project to operate a complete multi-utility system entirely on renewable energy off-grid and is intended to support sustainable tourism by supplying electricity, potable water, wastewater treatment, district cooling and waste management. Energy infrastructure includes a 340 megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic plant paired with a 1,227 megawatt-hour battery energy storage system described as the world’s largest off-grid battery.

The battery enables continuous supply day and night and currently supports hotels, Red Sea International Airport, logistics, electric vehicle fleets and community infrastructure. When fully operational the renewable system is expected to produce up to 760,000 megawatt-hours of clean electricity annually and could help avoid about 600,000 tonnes (t) of carbon dioxide emissions each year.

The wider network includes three seawater reverse osmosis desalination plants and a sewage treatment facility processing 16,000 cubic metres of wastewater per day, with treated water reused for irrigation and to support wetland habitats. A resource recovery waste management facility and a district cooling network with capacity of 32,500 refrigeration tonnes are also part of the scheme.

The project represents an investment of approximately Rs1.84 bn (billion (bn)), supported by about Rs1.33 bn in senior debt, and aligns with Saudi Vision 2030 for sustainable infrastructure. Construction by EPC contractor SEPCO III recorded more than 30 million (mn) safe working hours without a lost-time injury, and environmental monitoring was implemented to protect marine and terrestrial ecosystems. During the 25-year concession the scheme is expected to support local suppliers, build engineering capability and provide employment while delivering renewable powered utilities for The Red Sea destination.