International fund for climate friendly projects Green Climate Fund (GCF) has pledged $150 million to support African Development Bank's (AfDB) flagship project Desert to Power (DtP) through which the latter aims to develop 10 GW solar PV capacity in the Sahel region.
This 10 GW capacity is to be developed through public, private, grid and off-grid projects by 2030, benefiting Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Nigeria, Senegal and Sudan along with the G5 Sahel nations of Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger. The last 5 nations are part of the DtP initiative.
GCF has committed this money to the Desert to Power G5 Financing Facility, an umbrella fund through which G5 Sahel nations can access support to develop this capacity in the region. AfDB aims to mobilize $996 million over the project's 7-year implementation period.
The 5 Sahel nations validated the DtP initiative in September 2021 (see AfDB's Desert To Power Initiative Moves Forward).
The bank's Vice President Dr. Kevin Kariuki called it a shot in the arm for the initiative, while GCF Deputy Executive Director Javier Manzanares said, "The Desert to Power G5 Sahel Facility has the potential to make an enormous difference in people's lives across the Sahel by tapping into the immense potential of solar energy, generating cheaper, reliable, and low-emission electricity."
AfDB said the facility will be implemented under 3 components comprising grid investments and storage solutions to de-risk solar IPPs; concessional finance and guarantees for new solar IPPs to add more than 500 MW solar, and technical assistance to support the creation of a clear and predictable environment for private sector solar investments and development of adequate capacity of national institutions in G5 Sahel nations.
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