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DESALINATION-
Jubail 3B desalination plant in Saudi enters commercial operations: Saudi Water Partnership Company (SWPC) began operating its SAR 2.6 bn (USD 692 mn) solar-powered Jubail 3B Independent Water Desalination Project, according to a statement. The plant was developed by a consortium led by France’s Engie, along with Saudi Arabia’s Nesma Co, and Ajlan & Bros.
About the plant: The Jubail 3B plant will use reverse osmosis technology to produce 570k cbm of potable water daily to provide water to 2 mn people in Riyadh and Qassim, Trade Arabia wrote. The facility will also include storage tanks with the capacity to hold a day’s worth of desalinated water. The project — which is being developed under a 25-year build-own-operate contract — reached financial close in October 2021 after the bid was awarded to the Engie consortium.
REMEMBER- Acciona will handle the solar plant: Renewables and water treatment company Acciona is planning to build the 61 MW solar photovoltaic project that will power the desalination plant, which will help the plant cut down on conventional power consumptions. The plant is expected to be fully operational in 2024 and will produce potable water within the next few months.
GREEN FINANCE-
Miga issues EUR 18.45 mn guarantee for Tunisian solar plants: The World Bank’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (Miga) has released a EUR 18.45 mn guarantee to Japan’s Aeolus for its investment in Norwegian renewables developer Scatec’s 60 MW Sidi Bouzid and Tozeur solar projects in Tunisia, according to a press release. This comes a week after the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the French development agency, Proparco, said they would lend Aeolus — a subsidiary of Toyota’s investment arm Toyota Tsusho Group — and Scatec EUR 25 mn for the construction of the two solar plants.
REMEMBER- Aeolus signed a partnership agreement with Norwegian renewables developer Scatec to jointly develop and own the latter’s EUR 79 mn Sidi Bouzid and Tozeur solar projects earlier this month. Under the agreement, Aeolus acquired a 49% ownership stake. The tender for the plants entered its final stages back in May. Scatec was awarded a 20 year power purchase agreement with the option to extend 10 years from the Tunisian state utility firm Société Tunisienne de l’Electricité et du Gaz.
DEBT WATCH-
Polinas Plastik gets EUR 25 mn from EBRD to decarbonize packaging production: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has approved a EUR 25 mn loan for Turkey’s flexible packaging producer Polinas Plastik to help reduce emissions from the firm’s production line, according to a statement. The loan will go towards investments that will help make the firm’s production more energy and resource efficient, as well as integrating solar into the energy mix. The financing will also fund a new production line for biaxially oriented polypropylene film and new machinery that will allow for the production of fully recyclable packaging materials that incorporates both recycled and biobased content.
INVESTMENT WATCH-
ICIEC + JBIC partner to boost renewables projects: The Islamic Development Bank’s (IsDB) Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC) and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) have signed an MoU to enhance trade and investment between ICIEC member states and Japan, with a focus on climate action and renewable energy, according to a press release. The partnership aims to leverage ICIEC’s insurance services and JBIC’s financial facilities to support projects particularly in Central Asia.
IsDB has more in the works: IsDB pledged USD 250 mn to Irena’s Energy Transition Accelerator Financing platform during COP28, for which ICIEC is offering de-risking products in developing countries. The lender also plans to invest USD 4.5 bn in as many as 57 sustainable and infrastructure projects across member states this year. It also signed a joint financing agreement worth USD 60 mn with Tunisia to support SMEs in various sectors including renewable and low-carbon energy in May, and signed a USD 150 mn financing agreement for Tajikistan’s Rogun hydropower plant in June.
JBIC has projects in the region: JBIC extended a USD 3 bn green finance loan to the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) to support the company’s decarbonization efforts and green initiatives last month. The lender also extended a USD 12 mn loan to Mitsui & Co. for its 1 mn ton low carbon ammonia production Al Ruwais ammonia plant with Ta’ziz in June, and is among the financiers of the 500 MW Gulf of Suez wind plant in Egypt.
