Maersk Group could acquire half of Egypt’s Zafarana wind farms

CAIRO - 1 August 2023: Danish Maersk Group is in talks to potentially acquire half of Zafarana state-owned 545-MW wind farms in the Red Sea Governorate, after the government initially approved ownership in principle, according to multiple local media outlets.

The purpose of the acquisition is to use the energy generated from the wind farm in the production of green fuels.

The company is communicating with the New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA), and now the government representatives are negotiating bid opportunities. If acquisition plans are successful, Maersk would acquire assets producing 270-MW, which account for eight projects that make up Zaafarana farm.

The government currently owns 50 percent of the Zafarana wind farm and the rest are owned by multiple international entities. The farm was funded through multiple investments and loans from Germany, Denmark, Japan, and Spain, and NREA loaned from National Investment Bank.

Maersk is an active investor in Egypt. In 2022, they invested $15 billion in a clean fuel project as part of the government's plan to position Egypt as a hub for green energy. Also, along with Scatec Norwegian company, they proposed requests to allocate a piece of land in the Gulf of Suez area to establish 320-MW wind stations to generate their green hydrogen plan and clean fuel projects, which were approved by the Cabinet last May.