The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) Board of Directors has approved €19.6 million in financing for the Cabeólica Phase II Expansion Project in Cabo Verde.
Building on the success of the original Cabeólica project commissioned in 2012, Phase II will add 13.5 megawatts of wind generation capacity and 26 megawatt-hours of grid-connected battery energy storage.
The expansion is expected to generate 60 gigawatt-hours of clean energy annually, eradicating expensive thermal generation and reducing carbon dioxide emissions by an estimated 50,000 tonnes annually.
The financing comprises a loan of approximately €12.6 million from the African Development Bank and €7 million in concessional loan financing from the Bank Group-managed Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA).
This initiative marks the country’s first renewable energy project aimed at integrating wind power generation and battery energy storage systems at scale.
Commenting on the initiative, Wale Shonibare, director for Energy Financial Solutions, Policy, and Regulations at the African Development Bank, said,
“This project is a testament to Cabo-Verde’s long-term vision to decarbonize its power sector and enhance its resilience. It also demonstrates how private sector investment, facilitated by catalytic concessional financing, can deliver cost-effective, sustainable energy solutions for small island economies.”
Daniel Schroth, AfDB’s director for Renewable Energy and Efficiency added that the project will improve energy security, stabilise the national grid, and lower electricity generation costs at Cabo Verde.
The project directly aligns with the AfDB’s High-5 priority to ‘Light Up and Power Africa’ and supports its ten-year strategy focused on bolstering universal access to sustainable, affordable electricity across the continent.
