Saudi firm gets EBRD loan to build Uzbek wind farm

By BBC Monitoring

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is providing a $19.3m loan to Saudi Arabia's ACWA Power Wind Karatau for the construction of a 100-MW wind farm in Uzbekistan's autonomous republic of Karakalpakstan, the privately-owned news website Gazeta.uz reported on 17 May.

The project will be co-financed by the German development financial institution Deutsche Investitions und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (DEG) and the French development agency Proparco, the report said.

"The new generators, with a total capacity of 100 MW, are expected to generate over 300 gigawatt hours of electricity from renewable sources annually, preventing the emission of more than 178,000 tonnes of CO2 per year into the atmosphere," it added.

The EBRD has so far financed the development of renewable energy capacities in Uzbekistan with a total volume of 2,700 MW. But the wind farm to be built in Karakalpakstan's capital Nukus is going to be its first financing of wind energy projects put out to tender in cooperation with Uzbek authorities, the website noted.

"The closing price [of the tender] was a record low for Central Asia, proving the commercial viability of private wind power generation and bringing Uzbekistan closer to realising its renewable energy potential," the report quoted an EBRD official as saying.

The project is also aimed at supporting the participation of young women in the renewable energy sector of Uzbekistan. ACWA Power Wind Karatau is the locally registered subsidiary of Saudi Arabia's ACWA Power, the website added.

Source: Gazeta.uz website, Tashkent, in Russian 1504 GMT 17 May 23