Australia invests SBD$15.4m in off grid renewable energy in SI & region

AUSTRALIA’S SBD15.4 MILLION INVESTMENT IN OFF-GRID RENEWABLE ENERGY IN SOLOMON ISLANDS AND ACROSS THE PACIFIC

The Australian Government has today announced three new business partnerships to support small-scale, off-grid renewable energy in remote and rural areas in Solomon Islands as well as another six across the Pacific and Timor-Leste.

The Off-Grid Renewable Energy Partnerships in Solomon Islands include:

• Securing access to renewable energy on Solomon Islands’ Savo Island| Partnership between Archipelago Energy and the Australian Government in Central Province

• Energising Solomon Islands’ Malaita community with affordable solar power | Partnership between Superfly, Mai-Ma’asina Green Belt, Save the Children Solomon Islands and the Australian Government in Malaita Province

• Powering Solomon Islands’ Vavanga community with affordable renewable energy | Partnership between Pelena Energy and the Australian Government in Western Province.

A partnership between Superfly, the Good Samaritan Hospital and the Australian Government to generate energy security for essential healthcare in Solomon Islands in Guadalcanal Province was announced in February 2024.

The four Solomon Islands’ partnerships represent a SBD8.1 million investment, including over SBD5.6 million by the Australian Government, with the remaining investment by partners through cash or in-kind contributions.

Launching the projects, the Australian High Commissioner, H.E. Mr Rod Hilton, said: “Solomon Islands has the highest number of off-grid partnerships across the Pacific, which demonstrates the importance that communities place on access to reliable, affordable sources of electricity.”

“A new element of the Solomon Islands-Australia partnership, the projects announced today have the potential to deliver transformative benefits by enabling rural and remote communities to access reliable, renewable energy to power up their homes, workplaces, healthcare services, schools and community spaces. They are also expected to deliver blueprints for scaling these approaches to benefit even more communities.”

The Off-Grid Renewable Energy Partnerships are part of the Australian Government’s Pacific Climate Infrastructure Financing Partnership (PCIFP) initiative to expand Australia’s climate investments by partnering with businesses to deliver reliable and sustainable renewable energy to remote and rural communities in the Pacific and Timor-Leste.

Australia is investing SBD15.4 million in 10 partnerships across six countries in the Pacific and Timor-Leste, with partners contributing SBD8.6 million in cash or in-kind contributions.

Find out more about the partnerships here: https://thebpp.com.au/

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