Tafilah is a Governorate in southern Jordan, with its capital At-Tafilah located 183 kilometers southwest of Amman. It is to be the location for Jordan’s first large-scale renewable energy venture in Jordan, to be known as the JWPC Tafila WindFarm.
Over 75% of the finance is coming from some interesting sources- within a framework of the Collaboration Agreement between the International Finance Cooperation (IFC) and the European Investment Bank (EIB), the financial contracts were signed on 27 November by all the parties concerned: These are the Jordan Wind Project Company PSC (JWPC) – the projectcompany incorporated in Jordan by the sponsors’group, comprising the Euro-Mediterranean fund InfraMed, Masdar of Abu Dhabi and EP Global Energy Ltd of Cyprus (EPGE);and a consortium of lenders comprising theIFC, the EIB, the Eksport Kredit Fonden (EKF), the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID), FMO, and Europe Arab Bank (EAB). The EIB will be financing just over 25% of the investment, despite Jordan being in the Middle East and obviously outside Europe.
This financing will be going towards the construction and development of a 117 MW wind farm plus the associated electrical facilities required in the Tafilah Governorate in Jordan. The farm will be equipped with 38 turbines and the project will add to the reinforcing of the country’s total power capacity yielding a 3% increase in power generation. It will help reduce Jordan’s heavy energy import dependency while developing renewable energy generation and giving much-needed energy security. Once built, the Tafilah wind farm will be a significant milestone in the country’s objective of diversifying its generation mix towards renewable energy. Once fully commissioned and operational, this wind farm will account for almost 10% of the country’s renewable energy target by 2020 (1 200 MW).
EIB Vice-President Philippe de Fontaine Vive said:
“the EIB is proud to contribute both its financing and its technical expertise acquired across the European Union for all sources of renewable energy. This project is in line with the objectives of the European Union and the strategic objectives of the EIB mandate in the region in terms of environmental sustainability and climate change mitigation in relation to energy demand. It provides a strong and green signal for the future in terms of technology, economic and energy development and job opportunities.”
The investment is part of IFC’s efforts to demonstrate to other investors the potential of the country’s renewable energy sector, as well as reduce their greenhouse emissions. The investment is also part of a wider IFC effort to increase the use of renewable energy in the Middle East and North Africa, where strong winds and long periods of sunshine make wind and solar energy viable. Jordan aims to have renewables account for 10 percent of electricity generation by 2020.
