Ayla Oasis Development Company (Ayla) has signed a Power Wheeling agreement with the Electricity Distribution Company (EDCO) to provide renewable energy to cover the consumption of its various components in Aqaba.
Under the agreement, electricity will be generated by a 2.6MW photovoltaic plant to power the desalination and operational requirements for the Ayla Golf course, a world-class golf course Designed by Golf Hall-of-Famer Greg Norman, it is the first 18-hole green in Jordan as well as one of the top three eco-friendly golf courses in the world and poised to attract major international tournaments. The generated power will also cover other operational requirements throughout the master-planned Ayla Project.
At the signing ceremony, Engineer Sahl Dudin, Managing Director of Ayla, presented a brief overview of the company’s projects to Engineer Hassan Thunaibat, General Manager of EDCO.
On this occasion, Engineer Dudin said: “This agreement will ensure adequate power supply from renewable sources for a number of special services run on the golf course, such as desalination of water used for irrigation with capacity to desalinate about 3,000 cubic meters per day, distribution of water across the premises, as well as pumping of desalinated water into the water features, golf academy and maintenance facilities. The energy generated will also power other units operating inside the 1,200 acre course that aims to become Jordan’s first golf course built in line with international specifications, in addition to the adjacent facilities and services including the District Cooling Plant of the Marina Village.”
Engineer Thunaibat added that the agreement articulates EDCO’s commitment to ensuring the sustainability of the national power through utilizing renewable energy sources. This comes in line with the national strategy that aims to increase the share of renewable energy in Jordan’s energy mix to 10 per cent by 2020.
Ayla completed the construction, testing, deployment and operation of renewable energy systems using solar panels under the supervision of EDCO, and the project was connected to the grid on 2 April 2016. The project comes in less than a year after the completion of a 3.2 MW Net Metering photovoltaic power plant that covers the energy requirements for the seawater circulation of Ayla’s lagoons.
In this regard, Engineer Dudin stressed the importance of cooperation with EDCO and the Electricity and Minerals Regulatory Commission EMRC and the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, as well as the roles of supporting green energy initiatives. He also emphasized the impact of national investment projects such as Ayla that leads by example in exploring solutions for resolving energy investment challenges in the Kingdom.
Ayla Oasis Development Company is a pioneer in sustainability initiatives and is the largest producer of clean energy in Jordan within its boundaries to support its power needs through 6MWp of installed photovoltaic power plants.
