The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed to provide up to $85 million in financing for an 81MW wind project in Thailand.
The Chaiyaphum project is being developed in the north east of the country by a special-purpose joint venture, 90 per cent owned by Thai independent power producer Electricity Generating Public Company (EGCO), and 10 per cent by German renewables developer Pro Ventum.
ADB will provide a local currency loan of up to THB 1,807 million ($55 million) and $30 million from the ADB-administered Clean Technology Fund.
The development is set to go online in December 2016. Chaiyaphum Wind Farm Company has entered into a power purchase agreement with the state-owned Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand to provide power to the national grid.
“Fast growing demand and dwindling natural gas reserves in the Gulf of Thailand mean the country needs alternate fuel sources to save foreign exchange, protect the country from global price fluctuations and help reduce greenhouse gas emissions,” ADB said in a statement.
The government is targeting the development of wind power with a capacity of 1.8GW by 2021, but it will need significant investment to achieve this goal with only 223MW installed to date.
