The UAE-Pacific Partnership Fund disburses USD 50 million in grants for renewable energy generation projects in Pacific island countries. The Fund was launched at the Pacific Energy Summit in Auckland in March 2013. Project agreements between the UAE and ten Pacific countries – Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu – have been concluded to date, with Micronesia to sign in mid-2015. The Fund responds to identification of renewable energy as a key growth enabler at the 2012 Pacific Leaders’ Meeting of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). All six forms of renewable energy are eligible, and the Fund is designed to accommodate diverse project types and structures. Feasibility studies for the generation capacity, as well as operation and maintenance capacity-building programs, are included in the grant. Project funding is untied, using competitive international tenders, with a view to engaging quality local contractors.

Countries apply directly to the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which then works with them to scope and implement the project, leveraging the technical expertise of Masdar, the UAE’s clean energy investment vehicle.

Training for future operators of the generation assets are included in the grant, alongside ongoing technical support for two years. Additionally, countries must be involved throughout the design and implementation process, increasing capacity to identify, prioritize, site, and build renewable energy projects.

Countries apply directly to the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which then works with them to scope and implement the project, leveraging the technical expertise of Masdar, the UAE’s clean energy investment vehicle.

UAE, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu