Masdar, a subsidiary of Mubadala Investment Company and one of the world’s leading renewable energy companies,the company has inaugurated Cibuk 1, the largest utility-scale commercial wind project in Serbia and the Western Balkans.
The launch of the €300 million ($330 million) project, built on an area 50km away from the capital, Belgrade, was attended by Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, Minister of Mining and Energy Aleksandar Antic and other high-level government officials from both Serbia and the UAE, including Dr Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, Mubarak Saeed Al Dhaheri, UAE Ambassador to Serbia, and Khaled Al Qubaisi, CEO of Aerospace, Renewables & ICT for Mubadala.
Construction over a 37-sq-km site, Cibuk 1 comprises 57GE Renewable Energy’s 2.75-125 onshore wind turbines, said the statement from Masdar.
With a capacity of 158 megawatts, the wind farm will supply sustainable, emissions-free power to 113,000 homes and displace more than 370,000 tonne carbon dioxide per year. That is the same amount of carbon sequestered by more than 6 million trees, it added.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Dr Al Zeyoudi said: "Through its compelling business case, renewable energy has established itself as the new power generation technology of choice. With funding of $309 billion, 2018 saw the addition of 171GW to the global renewable energy generation capacity."
Cibuk 1 was explored by Vetroelektrane Balkana, a Serbian company which is wholly-owned by Tesla Wind, a joint venture between Masdar (60%), the Taaleri SolarWind I fund, managed by Finnish renewable energy infrastructure fund manager and developer Taaleri Energia (30%), and German development finance institution DEG – Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH (10%).
"The rise in the uptake of renewables is driven by its increasing cost efficiency as well as growing calls for sustainability around the world. We are delighted to share that the UAE’s renewable energy projects that are operational and underway have a joint capacity of 11.4GW, including 8.4GW within the country and 3GW abroad," he stated.
The Minister commended Masdar for its strong dedication to building a renewables-powered future in the UAE and further afield.
The inauguration of Cibuk 1 marks a turning point in the development of renewables in Central and Eastern Europe, one of the fastest growing emerging markets for clean energy.
The project helps Serbia’s pledge to create 27% of its domestic power needs from renewable energy sources by 2020, while support to decrease its dependence on coal-fired power generation. Cibuk 1 also generate 400 local jobs during construction and delivered 50km of new roads in the surrounding area.