The government has signed agreements for a 15MW solar photovoltaic (PV) project across several islands, marking the largest solar PV agreement signed in the Maldives to date.

The Ministry of Environment said the Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) and Implementation Agreement were signed under the Accelerating Renewable Energy Integration and Sustainable Energy (ERIS) project.

The PPA between China’s Sinosoar Hybrid Technology and the State Electric Company (STELCO) was signed by Sinosoar Country Manager Cao Shomin and STELCO Managing Director Dr Ali Azwar.

The Implementation Agreement between Sinosoar and the ministry was signed by Cao Shomin and Environment Minister Ali Shareef.

The project will be implemented over 20 years under a design, build, finance, own, operate and transfer model, with private-sector investment, the ministry said.

It was awarded through competitive tendering and will be supported by a risk-mitigation framework with financial and technical assistance from the World Bank’s International Development Association, the Climate Technology Fund, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency.

The 15MW project will be divided into two lots.

The ministry said the project would increase the solar power capacity installed under the ARISE and ASPIRE projects to 34MW. This represents around 30 percent of the Maldives’ total installed renewable energy capacity of 110MW as of last year.

The project is expected to save 15 million litres of imported diesel annually and reduce government expenditure by MVR 180 million a year, according to the ministry.

The initiative is also expected to contribute towards the national target of meeting 33 per cent of the country’s energy needs through renewable sources.