The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

Washington - The US Agency for International Development (USAID) yesterday said it will make available $10 million in grant funding for clean energy projects in the Caribbean and Central Americas.

USAID, the lead US government agency on global poverty, announced the kick-off for grant funding applications under the Clean Energy Finance Facility for the Caribbean and Central America (CEFF-CCA).

“USAID can facilitate financing for projects that more traditional investors may not want to invest in,” said Sarah-Ann Lynch, its senior deputy assistant administrator, at a press briefing at the Caribbean Energy Security Summit in Washington, DC.

Ms Lynch said many countries in the region were paying 35-60 cents per kilowatt hour for electricity, due to over-reliance on fossil fuels.

“We can use our broad experience in development globally, and identify promising projects in this region that may be less attractive to another investor because they might be in early stages of planning, targeting difficult-to-reach populations or may be thinking about working in innovative, possibly risky areas,” said Ms Lynch.

Grant funding proposals can be submitted up until March 2017. “This opportunity will allow us to make available up to $10 million of US government resources to cover project development, costs for clean energy and energy efficiency aspects,” she added.

“The window for the proposals will remain open until March 2017, and the maximum grant is $1 million. We hope to be able to make a number of different grants. The grants can be in any area, such as feasibility studies, engineering and environmental analysis, and all the sorts of things necessary to bring a project from its conceptual state to fruition.

“This programme will encourage entrepreneurship and offer the chance, hopefully, for small businesses to thrive and take advantage of this opportunity.”

USAID is looking to promote regional collaboration on clean energy, increase access to safe, reliable energy, and work with governments to develop polices for clean and renewable energy, promoting entrepreneurship in the sector.