Manah-1 solar plant crosses 1 TWh mark

MUSCAT, SEPT 12
Oman’s recently launched 500 MW solar power project at the Wilayat of Manah in Al Dakhiliyah Governorate marked a major milestone over the weekend, celebrating the generation of 1 trillion watt-hours (1 terawatt-hour) of clean electricity — underscoring the growing role of renewables in meeting the country’s energy needs.
Wadi Noor Solar Power Company, which owns and operates the project — also known as Manah-1 Solar — said the 1 terawatt-hour milestone covers all generation from the start of trial production in January this year up to this weekend.
In the process, around 6 million MMBtu of natural gas — the amount a conventional gas-fired power plant would have required to generate a similar volume of electricity — was saved, while approximately 480,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions were avoided, the company noted in a statement.
To mark the achievement, senior representatives of Manah-1’s principal investors — EDF Renewables (France) and Korea Western Power Co Ltd (KOWEPO), each holding a 50 per cent stake — visited the plant. The delegation included Olivier Bordes, Managing Director of EDF Power Solutions Middle East and Sumit Shikar, Business Development Director, EDF Renewables.
“Together, we proudly celebrated achieving one trillion watt-hours of clean energy generation — a remarkable milestone that showcases the positive impact of our efforts in building a sustainable future”, said Eng Yahya al Rawahi, CEO of Wadi Noor Solar Power.
Manah-1 was inaugurated on January 27, alongside a similar-sized facility, Manah-2, giving the complex a combined clean energy generation capacity of over 1 gigawatt (GW). Manah-2 is owned by Sembcorp Jinko Shine Co — a joint venture between Sembcorp Utilities (80 per cent) of Singapore and Jinko Power Technology (20 per cent) of China.