IFC Financing Solar Projects In Panama

• Panama's Banco General will support the development of green buildings and solar energy projects in the country
• It will do so from $50 million it has secured as a loan from the IFC as agreed upon in April 2020
• IFC will also offer its advisory services to Banco General to promote knowledge sharing and capacity building in the construction sector

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is supporting the development of green buildings and solar energy projects in Panama with a loan of $50 million. The proceeds will be given to Banco General, S.A. of Panama.

The IFC loan was agreed upon in April 2020 and will be disbursed this year. It is an effort to promote green finance for the private sector in the country, said the IFC. Part of the World Bank Group, the IFC will also offer its advisory services to Banco General to promote knowledge sharing and capacity building in the construction sector.

With the IFC's support, Banco General can in turn support its developer clients in the implementation of the former's certification for green buildings, called EDGE.

Marcelo Castellanos, manager of the Financial Institutions Group for IFC in Latin America and the Caribbean, explained that a portion of the loan will be used to finance climate products in Panama, which he says is 'a market that until now has been mainly limited to large-scale projects and has great potential to continue expanding in the country'.

This loan from the IFC follows $150 million it approved at the end of last year for Banco General for mortgage lending for low and middle-income families in Panama.

Located between Colombia and Costa Rica in Central America, Panama has hydroelectric as major source of power generation. The Renewable Energy Capacity Statistics 2020 by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) shows till 2019, Panama's total renewable energy capacity was 2,332 MW of which 1,788 MW was hydropower while solar energy's share was 242 MW.