10 MW solar power plant to be built in Cambodia

Singaporean solar firm Sunseap is building a 10 megawatt MW solar power plant in Cambodia which will provide a quarter of the energy needs of the city of Bavet.

The $9.2 million solar farm is being funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector in Asia, and also a private investor.

The move represents an important step towards the Cambodian government’s target to provide grid-quality electricity to 100 per cent of all the villages by 2020 and 70 per cent of all the rural households by 2030.

Frank Phuan, Founder and Director of Sunseap Group, said: “While electricity consumption in Cambodia has increased significantly over the years, almost half of the country’s population currently has no access to stable, affordable electricity.”

Currently, only just over half (55 per cent) of Cambodia’s population of 16 million has access to a reliable electricity supply, and the country’s energy consumption is expected to grow by more than 18 per cent annually, in step with an economy that is expanding by 7 per cent a year.

The Sunseap project is expected to be fully operational by August 2017, and will be Cambodia’s first solar-powered electricity source to be connected to the national grid.

In addition to providing thousands of people with electricity, the solar project is expected to reduce the country’s greenhouse gas emissions by 5,500 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent each year.

Phuan said: “Through this partnership, people in rural Cambodia will gain access to a precious commodity that many in the urban developed world take for granted.”

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