SoftBank, Saudi Arabia announce massive solar power project

TOKYO — SoftBank Group Corp. Chief Executive Masayoshi Son is announcing a $200 billion solar power project in Saudi Arabia.

The project is in co-operation with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, a partner in the SoftBank Vision Fund, set up in 2016.

The fund has already invested in companies in the U.S., India and Europe. The deal announced Wednesday is the first major one in Saudi Arabia.

Son said the ample sunshine and land, as well as engineers and workers, make the foray into solar there lucrative.

He said the project will create 100,000 jobs, reduce Saudi Arabia’s dependence on oil for its electricity, which it can sell internationally instead.

The solar panels will be imported at first, but the project will later include a panel manufacturing site, according to Son.