Sierra Leone: Solar project raises funding from DFIs
Development finance institutions British International Investment, FMO, and Proparco, together with fund manager Frontier Energy announced a co-investment of over $52 million for Planet Solar.
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Development finance institutions British International Investment (BII), FMO, and Proparco, together with fund manager Frontier Energy announced a co-investment of over $52 million for Planet Solar, a greenfield 50MW solar power project in Sierra Leone, developed by Frontier Energy and Planet One.
The renewable energy potential in Sierra Leone is abundant, primarily in hydropower, wind and solar resources. However, it remains underutilised while up to 80% of the country’s electricity is generated from fossil fuels.
Commenting on the transaction, Chris Chijiutomi, managing director and head of Africa at BII said, “We are delighted to help bring clean and reliable energy to underserved regions in Sierra Leone. Our investment in Planet Solar highlights our commitment to climate finance and accelerating progress towards net-zero emissions by 2050. We look forward to the transformational potential of this project as a beacon to unlock more long-term capital to advance the country’s energy sector and support a more sustainable future.”
“Access to energy is a key enabler and driver of inclusive, sustainable, and resilient economic recovery and growth. We are therefore thrilled to support Planet Solar, the first large-scale grid-connected solar independent power producer in Sierra Leone. We thank our co-investors and Planet Solar for the cooperation, supporting vital services to households and businesses in the country,” commented Jaap Reinking, head of the private equity department at FMO.
“We are thrilled to announce our support to Planet Solar, as this transaction is fully in line with our climate change mitigation strategy in Africa. This is Proparco’s first investment in Sierra Leone. We are all the more proud since Planet Solar’s projects are expected to increase the country’s installed electricity capacity by 30% thereby underpinning Sierra Leone’s development of electrical infrastructure,” added Tibor Asboth, deputy head of private equity for Africa and the Middle East at Proparco.
Commenting on the transaction, Lars Tejlgaard Jensen, investment director and partner of Frontier Energy stated, “The 50 MW solar project in Sierra Leone stands as a testament to the project development and delivery capabilities of Frontier and Planet One. Despite challenging conditions, we have delivered on our joint commitment to provide stable, clean and reasonably priced power. The project will benefit urban and rural consumers as well as commercial and industrial entities, thereby fostering robust growth in economic activities across several regions.”
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