Cabo Verde has secured US$13.3 million in funding from the World Bank to accelerate its energy transition, reports the official Inforpress news agency.

Made available through the International Development Association, the funding will go to Cabo Verde’s Renewable Energy and Improved Utility Performance Project to accelerate the clean energy transition and achieve universal electricity access on the archipelago.

Although Cabo Verde currently provides reliable electricity to nearly the entire population, achieving 98-percent energy access, there are some areas where infrastructure needs to be improved to achieve universal access by 2030. The renewable energy transition is expected to take longer, with goals of 50-percent renewable energy by 2030 and 100-percent renewable energy by 2040.

Increasing the share of renewables, Finance Minister Olavo Correia told Lusa, will help insulate the country from volatile fossil fuel prices, lower energy costs and strengthen the economy.

The operation, co-financed by the Canada Clean Energy and Forest Climate Facility and the Global Infrastructure Facility, will support four key objectives: increasing renewable energy generation, mobilising private capital, expanding electricity access and strengthening ongoing reforms in the energy sector.

Funding will support the development of 68 MW of new solar and wind generation, as well as 12 MWh of battery storage, through a combination of public investments on smaller islands and private sector participation. It will bring online the newly established, government-backed risk mitigation facility that is expected to mobilise US$108 million in private capital. It will also advance universal access through 1,800 additional household connections and last-mile electrification.

The operation will also help to strengthen and consolidate reforms and institutional capacity – particularly for the newly created entities resulting from the demerger of state-owned water and power company Electra – which is critical to improving financial performance, operational efficiency and reducing commercial losses.

“With this new operation, we are investing in a cleaner, more affordable energy future for Cabo Verde,” said Indira Campos, World Bank Group Resident Representative for Cabo Verde, noting that “itwill drive job creation in the energy transition, with a strong focus on closing the gender gap in the sector.”