Two Pacific island nations - Tuvalu and Kiribati - have inaugurated individual solar photovoltaic power plants funded by the UAE and developed by Masdar.
The first inauguration took place in Tuvalu on Tuesday and was attended by Dr Mohammed Al Qubaisi, director of the energy affairs division in the Directorate of Energy and Climate Change at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Tuvalu's Prime Minister Enele Sosene Spoaga, and Tuvalu's Governor-General Otinielu Tauteleimalae Tausi.
"As a strong supporter of COP 21 as well as the energy-related sustainable development goal adopted by the United Nations, Masdar's efforts to limit the impact of climate change, including our commitment to broaden access to clean energy for a greater number of people, are clearly demonstrated through the delivery of the solar plants of Tuvalu and Kiribati," Dr Ahmad Belhoul, chief executive of Masdar, said.
Enele Sosene Sopoaga, Prime Minister of Tuvalu, said the Solar Space Creation Project could not have come at a better time as the price of fuel has soared in recent years.
"This project would contribute approximately 40 per cent towards the Tuvalu Electricity Corporation peak demand which could save more than 200,000 litres of diesel fuel per annum, about eight per cent of the annual fuel consumption of the Fogafale Power Station." Development of the 500 kW solar and water protection project on Tarawa, Kiribati, was started in December 2014, and completed in August this year. It will officially be inaugurated later this week. The republic, comprising 33 coral atolls, lies in the Central Pacific, and has a population of more than 100,000 - half of whom live on Tarawa atoll where the capital, South Tarawa, is situated.
"The renewable energy to be delivered through the solar and water protection plant in Tarawa helps the country overcome not only the constraints of natural fuel resources, but also eases access to large numbers of individuals and families to sustainable electricity provision," Waysang Kumkee, Minister for Public Works and Utilities of Kiribati, said. The projects form part of the UAE's support for economic and social development of Pacific island nations, while also showcasing the viability of sustainable clean energy development models.
The projects also aim to reduce the Pacific island nations' dependency on imported diesel, freeing up essential financial resources for other developmental projects.
Of the projects being delivered under the UAE-Pacific Partnership Fund, several have already been delivered or are currently under construction and further projects in Marshal and Solomon islands are under construction as planned, with yet another project for the Federated States of Micronesia to be signed shortly.
