By Anthony Areh
The Sustainable Use of Natural Resources and Energy Finance (SUNREF) has launched 81 million dollars technical assistance facility for the development of green energy projects in Nigeria, an official said on Thursday.
SUNREF is a green financing line for businesses developed by the French Development Agency (AFD) and instituted with a €70 million grant funded by the AFD and the European Union Infrastructure Trust Fund (EU-ITF).
MS Ogechi Adiukwu, SUNREF Nigeria Programme Officer, who made the disclosure on Thursday in Abuja, said the project had an investment grant for renewable energy and energy efficiency projects.
According to her, SUNREF Nigeria programme which is composed of a 70 million dollars low-cost debt financing and an 11 million dollars grant facility, seeks to improve access to energy through improved access to affordable finance for renewable energy technologies.
“It seeks to ensure energy efficient initiatives that will improve lives, increase economic opportunities and support various sectors such as industry and agriculture.
“Through this grant, SUNREF Nigeria programme will provide technical assistance and support to the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN),”
she said in a statement.
“It partners with banks like Access Bank and the United Bank for Africa (UBA) and companies in Nigeria toward the development of energy efficiency and renewable energy projects.
“In Nigeria, where access to energy is far from universal, limited energy security and rising energy prices will likely continue to challenge the growth of Nigerian businesses in the near future.
“As a result, increasing the development of green energy is a key condition to a sustainable economic growth by ensuring reliable access to energy as well as enabling businesses and households to seize opportunities of the ecological transition.”
She quoted Ms Inga-Elisabeth Hawley, the Senior Director, Environment and Energy at WINROCK International, as saying that they were delighted to be appointed to implement the technical component of the SUNREF programme.
