OPIC to Support 20 MW Jamaican Solar Energy Facility
June 25, 2015
(OPIC)
Florida-based WRB Enterprises to develop
Clarendon solar photovoltaic facility
$47 million OPIC loan catalyzes private sector
support for White House Caribbean Energy
Security Initiative
KINGSTON – The Overseas Private Investment
Corporation (OPIC), the U.S. Government’s
Development Finance Institution, today signed a
financing agreement with Content Solar Ltd.,
solidifying a $47 million OPIC loan to support
a 20 megawatt grid-connected solar photovoltaic
facility in Clarendon, Jamaica. The project is
being developed by Tampa, Fla.-based WRB
Enterprises (WRB).
WRB will be the first investor to develop a
utility-scale solar energy generation facility
in Jamaica. The project is also the second to
be financed by OPIC in support of the Caribbean
Energy Security Initiative, a U.S. government
effort announced by Vice President Biden in
June 2014.
Reliable, sustainable energy will provide
Jamaica’s economy important stability, and help
the country make important progress toward
energy security. Especially for island nations,
power generation from traditional thermal
sources can be expensive and volatile due to
the cost of imported fuels.
Jamaica currently generates over 90% of its
electricity from imported oil, and in addition
to fulfilling the U.S. initiative, OPIC’s
financing to Content Solar for this new solar
facility also supports the Jamaican
Government’s own goals to increase generation
of secure, renewable energy.
WRB’s Chairman and CEO G. Robert Blanchard
signed the agreement alongside OPIC Chief of
Staff John Morton. Jamaican Minister of Energy
Phillip Paulwell and U.S. Ambassador to Jamaica
Luis G. Moreno officiated the ceremony.
“The largest in the Caribbean, WRB’s Content
Solar project will deliver clean, reliable,
renewable energy at a stable price to Jamaica
for decades to come. It will power more than
20,000 Jamaican homes, while displacing more
than 3 million gallons of fuel each year. It is
an important milestone not only for Jamaica,
but the entire Caribbean,” said WRB’s Chairman,
Robert Blanchard.
“OPIC’s financing to WRB for Content Solar will
both help the Jamaican people take an important
step toward energy security and also show that
Jamaica is a market where private investors can
find opportunity for growth. I’m eager to build
on our long, productive relationship with WRB
to help show that renewable power is more than
a positive environmental step, it makes sound
business sense,” said John Morton, OPIC’s Chief
of Staff.
“We are very excited that WRB Enterprises, a
U.S. company, committed to making this
substantial investment,” Ambassador Moreno
stated. “This supports my priority to spur U.S.
investment in Jamaica. I’m proud to say that
U.S. private investment in renewable energy in
Jamaica will top $150 million over the next
couple years. These projects wouldn’t be
possible without OPIC financing.”
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