Renewable Energy Guarantees Program

The objective of the Renewable Energy Guarantees Program Project for Ethiopia is to increase renewable energy generation capacity through private sector participation in Ethiopia. There is one component to the project, the first component being Metehara Solar IPP. The REGREP first phase consists of IDA guarantee support to the Metehara Solar IPP (100 MW), which is the most advanced IPP transaction. The Metehara Solar IPP is expected to be operational by 2021. Under the IPP project, a consortium led by Enel Green Power (EGP) will be investing approximately US dollar 120 million in the construction of the solar PV plant, with an estimated US dollar 35 million of private capital mobilized. The power purchasing tariff, which has not yet been made public, is consistent with solar auction results observed in other SSA countries around the same time. The facility will generate approximately 280 GWh per year. This output will be sold under a 20-year PPA to EEP that covers all the energy generated by the plant. The IPP project’s location is in the Oromia region, almost 200 km east of the capital Addis Ababa, an area that enjoys high levels of solar radiation. The power plant will cover an area of 250 ha. USAID’s Power Africa Transactions and Reform Program (PATRP) provided transaction advisory assistance to the GoE and EEP for the development of the Metehara Solar IPP. PATRP supported EEP in its efforts to identify a qualified developer through a competitive bidding process to design, construct, own, operate, maintain, generate, and sell the energy produced. The RFP was first issued in May 2016 and revised in December 2016. The deadline for bid submission was in February 2017. The tender attracted more than 60 bidding companies. Five consortia submitted their offers. The bidding process has been completed and the Letter of Intent signed with the awarded consortium, led by EGP, in July 2018. Commercial agreements, geotechnical studies and surveys, implementation and...