UAE - Mubasher: Cuba's solar photovoltaic plant, funded by Abu Dhabi Fund for Development (ADFD), has increased its capacity to 15 megawatts from 10MW.
The grid-connected project currently supplies an estimated 10,000 homes with electricity, according to a press release on Sunday.
Inaugurated in Cuba in 2019, the project helps the country to move forward in its objective to generate 24% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030.
Cuba's solar photovoltaic plan falls under the second cycle of the ADFD-IRENA project facility, which has selected and supported 32 renewable energy projects in developing countries.
The project's funding is part of the ADFD's commitment of $350 million to support renewable energy uptake in developing countries through seven annual selection and funding cycles, starting in 2013.
A concessionary loan of $15 million was granted by the ADFD to increase the capacity of the solar PV plant.
Besides the solar PV project, ADFD has allocated $20 million to a second 14.3MW solar PV project in Cuba, which will have additional 4MW battery storage capacity.
The Director General of ADFD, Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, said: "This particular project serves as a model for other island nations in terms of conserving natural wealth, tackling climate change, and achieving energy security."
Meanwhile, Cuba’s Vice Minister of Energy and Mines, Tatiana Amarán Bogachova, remarked: "Cuba signed agreements at COP21 in Paris and the renewable energy projects, especially the one funded by ADFD, has helped us to keep our commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions."
