CIF agrees $28m financing to boost Zanzibar’s energy sector
The $8.5 billion Climate Investment Funds (CIF) has approved a financial package of $28 million to support sustainable energy development in Zanzibar.
The investment, channeled through CIF’s Clean Technology Fund, will support the development of a privately financed grid-scale solar photovoltaic power plant, designed to offset the area’s relatively carbon-intensive electrical grid; the installation of an energy storage system to better integrate variable sources of renewable energy into the electrical grid, helping meet Zanzibar’s growing demand for electricity; and the provision of technical assistance to support the transformation of the electricity sector.
The funding is expected to be part of a larger financing package under preparation aimed at supporting Zanzibar’s energy sector. The initiative should to prevent the equivalent of nearly 1.5 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions and benefit a million people.