UAE to set up big energy projects in Caribbean region
ABU DHABI, September 25, 2017
The UAE has announced the first five projects under the $50 million UAE-Caribbean Renewable Energy Fund across Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Dominica, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines.
Announced in January 2017, the fund is a partnership between the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (Mofaic), which leads the initiative, the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development, ADFD, which provides the grant financing, and Masdar, which is responsible for technical management and international competitive project tendering.
These projects are aimed at significantly reducing energy costs in the region, as well as improving resilience to natural disasters, such as Hurricane Irma, said a statement from ADFD.
The projects represent the first funding cycle. The fund aims to announce projects with up to 16 Caribbean countries over the next two to three years.
"We are honoured to open this new chapter in the growing UAE-Caribbean relationship," remarked Reem bint Ibrahim Al Hashimy, Minister of State for International Cooperation.
"The two oceans between us are not the barrier they once were, and we are bringing fresh eyes and enthusiasm to each other’s markets and aspirations. We are especially pleased to join forces under the UAE-Caribbean Renewable Energy Fund, which can simultaneously drive achievement of the Paris climate agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals."
The fund is one of the largest grant renewable energy initiatives in the Caribbean region.
The projects, selected through months of joint due diligence between each country and Masdar, aim to enhance local expertise in the renewable energy sector and pave the way for further deployment, as well as immediately cut energy costs and improve energy security.
The Caribbean region has strong potential for solar, wind, geothermal and waste-to-energy solutions, which can redress its challenging electricity and transport costs, among the highest in the world.
Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, the director-general of ADFD, said: "Renewable energy has been at the heart of UAE-Caribbean partnership, and ADFD is proud to continue investing in high-impact and innovative projects through the fund."
"The renewable energy sector stimulates economic growth and employment, drives low-carbon innovation, and capitalises on environmentally-friendly resources, making it an integral part of both ADFD’s and the Caribbean countries’ visions for long-term growth," he noted.
"This fund is another example of our government’s keenness to boost bilateral relations between the UAE and the Caribbean island countries," he added.
Masdar CEO Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi said the Caribbean islands have vast untapped renewable energy potential which can provide far-reaching benefits in terms of costs, resilience and, ultimately, to drive sustainable economic and social development.
"Masdar has tremendous experience in delivering impactful clean energy projects in remote and challenging locations, and this has been invaluable during the due diligence process to help us identify innovative, commercially-viable projects which respond to the needs of the local community," noted Al Ramahi.
"We are now looking forward to leading the implementation phase of these first five projects, in continued close collaboration with government bodies and other local stakeholders," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
