Support will be given by MICA to guarantee the two 5MW Ejuva solar plants in Namibia
World Bank and Investec Bank confident in the future of solar in Namibia
An Total production capacity at both plants of 25.8GWh at the Ejuva One and Two plants, MIGA – a member of the World Bank Group – has announced its first guarantees in Namibia of up to $18 million.
Part of the $15 million coverage comes from non-shareholder loans being provided by South Africa’s Investec Bank Ltd., and a further $3 million of cover provided for an equity investment by CIGENCO SA. Around 90% of the equity, and 95% of the loans – both provided in South African Rand are covered by the guarantees.
Fourteen bids under the Interim Renewable Feed-in Tariff (REFIT) have been awarded and will be sold at a price equivalent to NAD1.37 ($0.11)/kWh to NamPower.
Small power plants such as Ejuva One and Two can meet this challenge by bringing power generation and distribution closer to the end users.
The purpose of the REFIT programme is to boost and develop the Independent Power Producer market as well as small-to-medium size renewable energy projects.
Local capacity will be developed through a mandatory 30% local ownership of IPPs by previously disadvantaged Namibians.
These first privately-developed solar plants will most certainly pave the way for future larger projects in the country. Namibia a country with a lot of green energy potential and a new approach to harvesting clean energy.
Sources: www.esi-africa.com