By Staff Writer
Nairobi, Kenya — The African Development Bank has approved up to $110 million in financing for a 300-megawatt wind power project in Ethiopia’s Somali Region.
The bank’s board approved the financing package on July 15 to support the development of the Aysha Wind Project, which the bank described as Ethiopia’s first wind-based Independent Power Producer.
The African Development Bank will also help mobilize an additional $381.1 million in debt financing from other development finance institutions to support the project.
The bank’s $110 million financing package includes up to $80 million from its own resources, $20 million from the Clean Technology Fund and $10 million from the Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa.
The project, which has an estimated cost of $508 million, is being developed, owned and operated by UAE-based AMEA Power. The company will oversee the design, construction, operation and maintenance of the 300MW wind farm near Aysha.
The project will also support the construction of a five-kilometer transmission line and upgrades to the existing Aysha II substation.
Under a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement, Ethiopian Electric Power will be the sole buyer of electricity generated by the project. The state-owned company will also take ownership of the completed transmission line.
The Aysha Wind Project is expected to generate approximately 1,189 gigawatt-hours of clean electricity annually. The African Development Bank said the project would help diversify Ethiopia’s energy mix and strengthen the country’s energy security.
Once completed, the project is expected to become Ethiopia’s largest wind power plant.
The project is also expected to create up to 1,525 direct jobs during construction and 30 permanent operations jobs. The bank said an estimated 35,645 indirect jobs could also be created through supply chains and wider economic growth supported by the additional electricity capacity.
In 2019, the bank contributed funding for the Ethio-Djibouti railway project the details of which are available here.
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African Development Bank doesn’t have this money ever