Total, Abengoa and Masdar to build UAE solar plant

The CSP, named Shams 1, would be the largest in the world and would qualify for carbon credits under the United Nation's Clean Development Mechanism CDM, Masdar said.

Shams 1 is already registered with the CDM, Masdar said.

The UN mechanism allows developing countries to sell emissions reduction from their energy-intensive industry to help rich countries offset their own contribution to climate change.

The plant would offset the equivalent of 175,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year, Masdar said.

The 100 megawatt plant would cost around $600 million to build, Masdar said at a news conference.

Investment in the plant would match the equity stake taken by each partner, Masdar Chief Executive Sultan al-Jaber told reporters. Abengoa and Total would each hold a 20 percent stake, with Masdar holding the remaining 60 percent.

Work would begin on the plant in the third quarter this year, and it would take two years to complete, the company said in the statement.

The plant would have 768 parabolic trough collectors, to be supplied by Abengoa, Masdar said.

Abu Dhabi has said it wants to meet 7 percent of total energy needs through renewable sources by 2020.

Masdar is a government-owned initiative established by Abu Dhabi to prepare the emirate for a future energy industry less reliant on oil and gas. Abu Dhabi leads the United Arab Emirates, the world's third-largest oil exporter.

Masdar is already involved in projects aimed at reducing carbon emissions in the UAE and Bahrain, and aims to establish a carbon capture and storage network in the UAE.

This is the second UN CDM project registered by Masdar. The first was a smaller 10 MW solar plant in Abu Dhabi.