Uzbekistan - Small Hydropower Development Project

Overview & Synopsis

The objective of the Small Hydropower Development Project is to increase energy supply through small hydropower in Uzbekistan. There are two components to the project, the first component being a credit line facility for small hydropower investments. This component will finance the development of up to 150 MW of SHPPs to be installed on existing irrigation canals, which will be promoted and co-financed by local developers and PFIs. The PFIs will sign sub-loan agreements to on-lend to SHDs to carry out the implementation of SHPPs and co-finance Project activities. The PFIs will follow their existing loan approval processes for SHP sub-projects, which will be reviewed by the WB to confirm that they are adequate for verifying and monitoring long-term investments by SHDs. The PFIs will be responsible for ensuring that sub-loan applications and approvals under the Project meet all GoU and WB requirements. Finally, the second component is the technical assistance and capacity building for market opening.