ADFD bolstering the renewable energy sector in Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone, 29 Jun 2014
“Solar Park Project Receiving AED 33 Million” <br />
ADFD bolstering the renewable energy sector in Sierra Leone
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Abu Dhabi, 29th June 2014 – Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD) has signed a loan agreement with the government of Sierra Leone, by which ADFD will provide more than AED 33 million in financing to the “Solar Park Freetown” project in Sierra Leone.
The agreement was signed by His Excellency Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, Director General of ADFD and HE Dr. Kaifala Marah, Minister of Finance & Economic Planning in Republic of Sierra Leone.
The loan will establish a solar power plant in the city of Freetown which will generate 6 megawatts (MW) of clean, renewable electricity. <br />
The project will work to shore up the national economy and have a positive social impact. The project will encourage a partnership between the public and private sectors in the renewable energy field, providing job opportunities in construction, operations and maintenance works. ADFD pay special attention to support renewable energy projects, which represent an important factor to achieve sustainable development.<br /><br />
In this regard, Abu Dhabi Fund for Development in 2009 committed concessional financing of up to AED 1.285 billion ($350 million) over seven cycles for renewable energy projects in developing countries, AED 183 million for each cycle. The selected projects are recommended or endorsed by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). The IRENA/ADFD Project Facility is born out of this commitment.
At the end of 2013, ADFD agreed to fund six projects recommended by IRENA in Ecuador, Maldives, Mali, Samoa, Mauritania and Sierra Leone, with a total value of AED 150.6 million ($41 million). The 6MW grid-connected solar PV project will support Sierra Leone’s initiatives for energy transition, improve grid stability and support the capital’s grid expansion.
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“We aim to help communities in developing countries achieve the highest levels of progress. We hope to be a partner and strong contributor in achieving sustainable development through offering concessional loans and administering government grants to finance development projects that affect vital sectors including renewable energy; an important pillar to achieving sustainable development,” H.E. Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, Director-General of ADFD, said.<br /><br />
“We believe in supporting developing countries and help them deploy renewable energy as a substitute to traditional energy that has negative effects on humans and the environment. We believe in the importance of encouraging investment in renewable energy and that’s why we launched this initiative" added Al Suwaidi. <br /><br />
Commenting on the project, HE Dr. Kaifala Marah, Minister of Finance & Economic Planning in Republic of Sierra Leone said “the solar energy project for the city of Freetown will provide electricity to many rural villages using solar energy developed technologies which will lead to improvements of the social and economic conditions for the people in the Freetown area."
The Minister of Finance & Economic Planning in Republic of Sierra Leone also expressed his high esteem for the efficient role the Government of Abu Dhabi and the ADFD are playing in promoting development in his country by funding such vital development projects. This is helping them to overcome the difficult economic conditions by improving the performance of the main economic sectors, leading to advancing sustainable development in his country. <br /><br />
Previous relations between ADFD and Republic of Sierra Leone include an AED 20 million loan to finance the “Toke – Lumley” road project in 2012. This major infrastructure project was designed to support the economic and social development in the peninsula of Freetown by linking it with the capital and the other areas of the country.
