Shafaq News/ On Friday, the Southern Electricity Production Directorate of Iraq held a crucial meeting with French energy giant TotalEnergies to discuss the final stages of adding 1,000 megawatts of solar power to the national electricity grid.
The Ministry of Electricity's media office stated that Mahdi Saleh Mazkour, Director General of the Southern Electricity Production Company, led an extensive meeting with TotalEnergies to finalize preparations for the construction of a 1,000 MW solar power plant in the Ertaoui area of Basra governorate.
Mazkour emphasized "the importance of accelerating the project's implementation," highlighting "the critical role of solar energy in diversifying renewable energy sources."
"This initiative is part of a broader strategy by the Ministry of Electricity to increase production capacity nationwide while adhering to environmental standards and meeting the growing energy demand," Mazkour noted.
On June 30, Haider Mohammed Makiya, Chairman of the National Investment Commission, signed the investment license for the solar power plant project with TotalEnergies. During the signing ceremony, Makiya remarked that this project marks the first investment opportunity for a solar power station under the government's plan to diversify renewable energy sources. He stressed that the project will integrate solar energy into the national grid.
In April, TotalEnergies announced that it had signed contracts for the land and connection networks for the Ertaoui solar power plant. The project includes constructing a 180-kilometer transmission line connected to Basra's electricity distribution network and installing a secondary distribution station.
TotalEnergies stated that the plant would be one of the largest clean solar energy facilities in the Middle East and North Africa, providing clean electricity to over 350,000 homes.
The project is expected to be completed in four phases by 2025.