Finance Minister Tito Mboweni has declared the 4th Annual Meeting of the New Development Bank (NDB), which was held in Cape Town for the past three days, a resounding success.
Three of the five new projects approved for funding by the bank’s board of directors are South African. The five projects bring the NDB’s project portfolio to more than $9.2 billion.
The Finance Ministry in a statement said the three South African projects are separate from the loan agreements that the NDB signed on Monday with Eskom and the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA).
The loans are targeted for renewable energy projects.
For Eskom, the loan will be used for renewable energy integration and a transmission augmentation project. Under the agreement, the NDB will provide a sovereign-guaranteed loan to Eskom amounting to $180 million. The project will integrate a total of 670 MW of renewable energy onto the Eskom grid.
“Once the NDB’s board of directors approves a project for funding, the bank’s management and the entity to be funded enter into negotiations, which culminate in the signing of a loan agreement.
“The three new projects that were approved by the NDB board are for Eskom, the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), and the Trans-Caledon Tunnel Authority (TCTA),” said the ministry.
The NDB will provide a $480 million project loan to Eskom for an environmental protection project for the Medupi Thermal Power Plant (TPP).
The proceeds of the bank’s R1.150 billion (approx. $80 million) loan will be on-lent by the IDC to renewable energy sub-projects, contributing to the reduction in carbon dioxide emissions, improvement of South Africa’s energy sector mix, as well as the increase of energy efficiency of the economy.
The Trans-Caledon Tunnel Authority (TCTA) received a R3.2 billion ($220m) loan from the NDB for the implementation of Phase II of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project and financing the construction of water transfer infrastructure.
“The project will augment the water supply in the Vaal River Basin, home to South Africa’s most economically important province, Gauteng. Three other provinces (the North West, Mpumalanga and Free State provinces) will also directly benefit from an increased water supply,” said the ministry.
One of the other major outcomes of the annual meeting was an in-principle agreement to expand the membership of the NDB beyond the founding members.
“Negotiations in this regard are ongoing, with an announcement on the way forward expected by the end of the year,” the ministry said. – SAnews.gov.za
