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Tozeur solar project is under development: Tunisia has broken ground on a TND 135 mn, 50 MW solar plant in Tozeur developed by Norway’s Scatec and Toyota subsidiary Aeolus, according to a statement published on Thursday. The project is set to begin production by the end of 2025, the statement notes.
What’s next? Scatec — which 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 — is developing two EUR 79 mn solar projects in Sidi Bouzid and Tozeur in partnership with Aeolus. The Norwegian company will handle Engineering, Procurement & Construction, Asset Management, and Operations & Maintenance services.
The latest developments: Aeolus and Scatec signed a partnership agreement last month to jointly develop and own the solar projects in Tunisia last month. Aeolus acquired a 49% ownership stake in the projects under the agreement. The projects also reached financial close in parallel to signing the partnership agreement, a statement noted at the time.
EBRD is backing the projects: The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the French development agency Proparco are lending the developers EUR 25 mn for the projects. The EBRD’s financing package includes a EUR 12.5 mn loan, a EUR 8.2 mn concessional tranche from the Bank’s Clean Technology Fund (CTF), and another EUR 4.6 mn tranche from its Global Environment Facility.
Part of a bigger plan: Tunisia has set a national strategy to develop solar plants with a combined capacity of 500 MW across the country, with a target to have clean energy sources comprise 35% of its electricity mix by 2030, and its unconditional emissions reduction target to slash 27% — 35 mn tons of CO2 — by 2030 compared to 2010 levels.
