The new EBRD funds – which are also backed by the Turkish Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources and a 1.9 million grant from the European Union – will benefit renewable energy and energy efficiency projects in Turkey including solar, hydropower, wind, geothermal, waste-to-energy and energy efficiency as well as water saving and waste minimization projects, said an EBRD press release.
Furthermore, the funds are extended through investment in investment grade rated senior US dollar-denominated notes issued under Akbanks Diversified Payment Rights (DPR) programme, an established market instrument used by Turkish banks to raise long-term funding in the capital markets, added the EBRD.
In regards specifically to PV, the EBRD is involved in financing solar PV projects in Turkey either directly or indirectly and it does so via various financing schemes. One of these schemes is the TurSEFF programme, a credit line to Turkish banks for on-lending to SMEs that wish to invest in energy efficiency or renewable energy projects.
In fact, as of February 2016, the TurSEFF program had financed 45 MW of Turkeys 300 MW installed solar PV capacity, while another 104 MW that had been financed by TurSEFF was already under construction, an EBRD spokesperson told pv magazine recently.
MidSEFF financing
The new $110 million of funding will come through the Mid-size Sustainable Energy Financing Facility (MidSEFF), which now totals 1.5 billion.
Noel Edison, director of financial institutions at the EBRD, said: We are impressed with the response to the previous two rounds of financing we offered to Akbank under our MidSEFF programme. The lender has financed eight projects, helping to create 73 MW in additional renewable capacity. The bank has a strong pipeline for further successful renewable energy and resource efficiency investments by Turkish corporates.
These projects do not include solar, however the EBRD spokesperson told pv magazine that the bank is also planning to finance two 20 MW and 7 MW PV projects through the MidSEFF programme.
Throughout the ups and downs of Turkeys solar PV market, the EBRD has been instrumental in supporting solar PV development via both assisting the Turkish Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources to develop the countrys first National Renewable Energy Action Plan and by financing solar PV projects in Turkey. Almost half of the EBRD's total portfolio in Turkey is in sustainable energy.
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