African countries with the most expensive privately owned solar projects

With the solar push, private developers have seized the moment to develop the continent’s most impressive solar.

African nations like Morocco, South Africa, Egypt, and Algeria are turning to solar systems as an alternative to solve their energy issues. 

Across Africa, the clean energy revolution is being powered not just by governments and development banks, but increasingly by private companies investing billions of dollars into solar energy infrastructure. 

The involvement of private players is reshaping the energy landscape.

But which African countries are attracting the biggest private solar investments, and what are these huge investments? 

The list includes economic heavyweights and emerging clean energy hubs, where stable regulatory frameworks and abundant solar resources have lured major investors.

In these nations, billion-dollar projects are no longer a rarity—they’re part of a broader strategy to transition away from fossil fuels and create resilient power grids.

In this article, Energy in Africa discusses the top seven expensive solar projects on the African continent and the private players that have backed them. 

7. Ilanga CSP1 – South Africa

Ilanga CSP 1 is a 100 MW power plant in the Northern Cape Region of South Africa which came into operation on 30 November 2018. 

The plant produces enough clean energy to serve around 100,000 South African households, and avoids the emission of over 340,000 tons of carbon dioxide each year.

The project is owned and developed by Karoshoek Solar One, a consortium consisting of Emvelo Energy, Karoshoek Solar One, Grazigystix and HCI. 

The project incurred a total cost of $724.57 million. 

6. Redstone Concentrated Solar Power Plant– South Africa

Sitting on a 648-hectare patch of land, the Redstone Concentrated Solar power plant is a 100MW plant, equipped with a 12-hour thermal storage system capable of delivering clean and reliable electricity to nearly 200,000 households during peak demand periods, even after sunset.

With a cost of $830 million, it is South Africa’s largest renewable energy project. 

The project was developed by ACWA Power.

It received financial backing from several institutions, including the African Development Bank, ABSA Bank, and the Development Bank of Southern Africa.

Others are CDC Group, Nedbank Limited, the Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank, the German Investment and Development Company, Investec Bank, and Sanlam Life Insurance.

5. Kathu Solar Park  – South Africa

The 100MW Kathu Solar Park in South Africa has a total generation capacity of 100MW and is also equipped with a parabolic trough and molten salt storage technology.

Located in the town of Kathu, 600 km South-West of South Africa’s national capital, Pretoria.

The project was developed by ACCIONA and Engie consists of Engie and cost approximately $830 million to build.

After coming into commercial operations in 2019, the plant supplies clean energy to 179,000 homes in the Northern Cape Province and prevents the emission of six million tonnes of climate warming CO2 into the atmosphere.

4. Xina Solar One – South Africa

Xina Solar One is a 100 MW concentrated solar power plant in South Africa.

With a total project cost of $908 million, the solar project is one of the most expensive projects of its kind in Africa. 

The solar component of this power station is complemented by molten salt thermal storage technology.

This allows the plant to deliver full power for an additional 5.5 hours after sunset.

As a result, it can supply energy during South Africa’s peak demand hours.

The project was developed by a consortium of private companies, led by XiNa Solar One Ltd. This special-purpose company was established by XiNa CSP South Africa (Pty) Ltd, a subsidiary of Abengoa Energia S.A.

Other members of the consortium included the Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa (IDC), the Public Investment Corporation, and a Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) company.

The energy generated at Xina Solar One is sold directly to Eskom, South Africa’s state power utility, under a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA).

The plant is capable of supplying electricity to 95,000 South African households while avoiding the emission of 348,000 tonnes of CO2 per year.

3. Masdar-ZESCO Project – Zambia

The Masdar-ZESCO project is a joint venture project which will see Masdar developing a 2000MW solar farm in Zambia. 

The project will be developed in phases, starting with an installation of 500 MW. While the project is yet to kick off, it will be located at Ngabwe District in Zambia’s Central Province.

At a cost of $2 billion, the project will be developed by Masdar, also known as Abi Dhabi Future Energy Company and will be managed by state power utility, ZESCO Limited. 

2.  Noor Ouarzazate Solar Complex – Morocco

The three-plant Noor-Ouarzazate CSP complex has a total installed capacity of 500 MW, supplying power to 1.1 million Moroccans.

After coming into operation in 2018, the plant lowered carbon emissions by 760,000 tons per year.

With a total cost of $3.9 billion, the solar project is the second most expensive one of its kind in Africa after the Benban Solar Park in Egypt.

The project was developed through a public-private partnership involving the Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy (MASEN) along with ACWA Power, Sener Ingenería y Sistemas, and others. 

1. Benban Solar Park – Egypt

At top of the list is Egypt’s Benban Solar Park which is the largest of its size on the African continent.

Following its launch in 2018, there have been over 41 solar power plants that have gone into operation at the site. 

Some of the companies involved in the park’s development and operation include Scatec, ACWA Power, Globeleq, EDF Renewables, Alcazar Energy, among others.

The park itself has a total combined generation capacity of 1.8 gigawatts (GW).

The project has an estimated construction cost of $4 billion, making it the most expensive solar project on the continent.