Haiti

With ‘shovel-ready’ projects across India, Africa and Latin America in line for a mix of grants, cheap loans, equity investment and financial guarantees from this year, the two bodies hope to trigger $20 billion in total funding and bring reliable power to a billion people.

The president of the Caribbean island has announced several ground-mounted PV plants will be tendered, along with 60 MW of thermal power generation capacity. The projects are part of a plan to provide the nation with universal access to electricity during Jovenel Moïse’s five-year term in office.

The French non-governmental organization, which provides solar kits to refugee camps and disaster affected communities, won the energy category of the 12th Zayed Sustainability Prize. The award will bank Electriciens sans frontières $600,000.

The government of the Caribbean island is planning two solar parks with large scale storage with the help of the Inter-American Development Bank and the United States Agency for International Development. Inter-American is seeking technical help with tendering the projects.

The islands of the Caribbean have been focusing on the deployment of storage solutions, minigrids and microgrids in response to the damage their power systems suffered during the 2017 hurricane season. But with the opportunities, there are also challenges.

The government of Haiti and the World Bank have put in place a financial instrument to provide access to capital for companies active in clean off-grid energy solutions. The aim is to power 200,000 households over 10 years.

The new measure is included in the finance act for 2017-2018, which was approved by the Haiti Parliament in early September.

At an international PV conference held in the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince, companies were demanding improvements to the political framework for the development of solar power in the country. Additionally, calls were made for low interest loans for private individuals, to cover initial investment in a PV system.

A smart-grid project combining PV generation and battery storage has been unveiled in Haiti. The project is the result of collaboration between the Biohaus Foundation and relief organization NPH Germany. The project will substantially reduce the nation’s reliance on diesel generators.