French Loan to Finance South African Eskom Wind Project

South Africa’s Eskom has secured a $100 million credit facility from French development finance group Agence Française de Développement for financing a wind power project.

The loan will be used to finance Eskom's 100-megawatt Sere Wind Project in Vredendal in South Africa’s Western Cape region.

Eskom CEO Brian Dames said, "This is an exciting time in Eskom's history with the first large scale introduction of two critically important renewable energy projects, including wind and concentrated solar power, in its fleet. This demonstrates our commitment to reducing our carbon footprint and making the transition to a cleaner energy mix," Johannesburg’s SouthAfrica.info website reported.

Eskom Finance Director Paul O' Flaherty added, "Eskom values the relationship we have built with the AFD and we hope in the near term to conclude another facility with the bank for Eskom's planned 100-megawatt concentrated solar power plant in the Northern Cape."

The Agence Française de Développement is a bilateral international development finance underwritten by the French government intended to finance development according to France's Overseas Development Assistance policies, which has a presence in more than 60 countries, having been operating in South Africa since 1994 through its Johannesburg regional office in the capital.

By. Charles Kennedy, Deputy Editor OilPrice.com