BRINGING RELIABLE ELECTRICITY TO THE CARIBBEAN COAST OF NICARAGUA
3,980 households with new access to the electricity network.
Parts of the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua are characterized by high poverty levels and limited access to basic services. At the time of project inception, electrification rates in the au- tonomous regions of the north and south Caribbean coasts of Nicaragua were low at 42 percent and 48 percent, respec-
OPEC Fund loan in support of PNESER, targeting specifically the coastal regions, started in 2017. The project was complet- ed in 2021.
The scheme included the construction of substations and transmission and distribution lines to connect 3,980 new households to the electricity network. It also installed electricity meters and high-efficien- cy light bulbs in households. Another 5,970 households benefited by regu- larizing their electricity connections. As a result, the elec- trification rate rose to 95.5 percent and 97.2 percent in the autonomous regions, respectively, leading to significant improvements of the living conditions of about 50,000 people. One of them is Julio, a 10-year-old boy who ap- proached the OPEC Fund country manager when he visited one of the villages covered by the project. Julio described how, thanks to the project, he was now able to go to school instead of working as a bicycle courier (taking electronic devices in need of charging to the nearest town with elec- tricity 10 km away).
tively. The lack of reliable access to en- ergy not only affected people’s quality of life and education opportunities but also limited the economic growth and productivity potential of these regions.
In 2015, the OPEC Fund approved a US$10 million loan to the government of Nicaragua to support the electrification of the two autonomous regions along the Caribbean coast as part of its National Program for Sustainable Electrifica- tion and Renewable Energy (PNESER) with US$517 million investment volume. The OPEC Fund had supported PNESER previously with a US$16 million loan co-financed with other multilateral and bilateral development institutions (Central American Bank for Economic Integration, Inter-American Development Bank, European Investment Bank, Export–Im- port Bank of Korea, Japan International Cooperation Agen- cy, Latin America Investment Facility and Nordic Fund). The program not only significantly extended the country’s electricity network but also boosted the share of renewa- ble energy in Nicaragua. Disbursements under the second
The success of the project prompted the OPEC Fund to ap- prove in 2017 another US$10.5 million loan in support of the second phase of the coastal electrification program.
44
Powered by FlippingBook