ADB to support first distributed renewable energy system in Mongolia
EconomyUlaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ The Asian
Development Bank’s (ADB) Board of Directors has approved a USD 40 million loan
to develop a 41 megawatt (MW) distributed renewable energy system—a
first-of-its-kind in Mongolia using a variety of renewable energy technologies
to supply power and heating in the remote and less-developed western regions of
the country.
The project will also be co-financed by USD 14.6
million grant from the Strategic Climate Fund (SCF) under the Scaling Up
Renewable Energy Program in Low-Income Countries, one of the Climate Investment
Funds designed to support scaled-up deployment of renewable energy solutions to
increase energy access and economic opportunities, and a USD 6 million grant from the
Japan Fund for the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JFJCM), which supports the adaptation
of advanced low-carbon technologies in ADB-supported projects.
“A clean, reliable, and sustainable energy sector
is needed to boost economic growth in western Mongolia while addressing the
need to reduce carbon and air pollutant emissions,” said ADB Principal Energy
Specialist for East Asia Mr. Shigeru Yamamura. “The 41 MW renewable energy
system that the project will finance will not only make the energy sector less
carbon intensive, but also help the country’s efforts in meeting its commitment
under the Paris climate agreement to reduce carbon emissions by 14 percent by
2030.”
The Upscaling Renewable Energy Sector Project will
help develop a 40.5 MW distributed renewable energy system using solar
photovoltaic and wind powers with advanced battery storage technology and
energy management systems to supply clean and reliable electricity to
geographically scattered local towns in western Mongolia, which rely on
high-cost and high-carbon-intensive electricity imports from neighboring
countries. Meanwhile, the project will also showcase a 500-kilowatt thermal
shallow-ground heat pump system, which will supply pollutant-free space heating
in public buildings. This system could be scaled up in the future and,
ultimately, help mitigate local air pollution during winter.
The distributed renewable energy system financed by
the project will help connect more than 258,313 people in the project areas to
clean and reliable electricity and heat supply, while a total of 87,968 tons of
carbon dioxide emissions annually will be avoided by 2023.
The project will also help enhance the ability of
the local electricity utilities and related agencies to manage a stable
electricity supply. In addition, it will help build a foundation for
future private renewable energy investment in western Mongolia by supporting
preparation of long-term renewable energy investment plan.
The total cost of the project is USD 66.22 million,
with the Government of Mongolia contributing USD
5.62 million. It is expected to be completed
by 2023.
The Government of Mongolia has been making efforts
to increase renewable energy use since 2000. However, the share of renewable
energy in Mongolia’s energy mix remains low at 12 percent. ADB’s assistance for
this project will help the government meet its goals under its State Policy on
Energy, 2015–2030, which aims to raise the share of renewable energy to 20
percent by 2023 and 30 percent by 2030.
Source: adb.org