KHOBAR, Saudi Arabia, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Jordan has awarded Saudi Arabia's ACWA Power a contract to develop a 61.3 megawatt peak (MWP) photovoltaic project, which will generate enough electricity for 12,000 households, the Saudi firm said on Monday.

ACWA Power gave no value for the contract but said in a statement the 42 fils per kilowatt hour it submitted was the lowest for solar energy ever presented for a Jordan-based project.

MWP is a measuring unit for the maximum output of a photovoltaic power plant.

The project in Risha, eastern Jordan, will be completed in the first quarter of 2019.

ACWA, a water and power plant developer, will also finance, build, own and operate the project, which will be the eighth power plant built by the company in Jordan, it added.

The company operates in 11 countries across the Middle East and North Africa, Southern Africa and South East Asia.



(Writing by Reem Shamseddine; editing by Sami Aboudi and Susan Thomas) ((Reem.Shamseddine@thomsonreuters.com; +966503335202; Reuters Messaging: reem.shamseddine.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))