Rooftop solar power is an emerging form of renewable energy in Vietnam. (Photo: VietnamPlus)
HCM City (VNA) – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and GreenYellow Smart Solutions Vietnam Co., Ltd. (GreenYellow) have signed a loan agreement of up to 13.8 million USD for rooftop photovoltaic (PV) solar systems to help increase the supply of clean and affordable energy for commercial and industrial consumers in Vietnam, the bank announced on September 11.
The loan will support the development and operation of solar PV systems located on the rooftops of commercial and industrial businesses across the country. The financing package comprises a 3 million USD A loan from ADB’s ordinary capital resources and 10.8 million USD parallel loans from FMO, a climate fund managed by responsAbility Investments AG, and Societe Generale, with ADB as the mandated lead arranger.
A 3 million USD grant from the Climate Innovation and Development Fund (CIDF), administered by ADB, will also be provided. The grant will help crowd in an international commercial bank by addressing two critical hurdles in financing solar assets with a long economic life in Vietnam. These hurdles are the lack of long-term VND funding at a fixed interest rate, and the potential volatility of the VND–USD exchange rate.
ADB Director General for Private Sector Operations Suzanne Gaboury said that as Asia and the Pacific’s climate bank, ADB is increasingly focused on mobilizing private capital to finance renewable energy projects that the region urgently needs.
She said solar PV rooftop offers an efficient way for Vietnam to deploy substantial amounts of additional renewable energy capacity while providing reliable, low-cost energy to consumers, which helps to attract and retain business and enhance Vietnam’s global competitiveness.
The ADB and GreenYellow Smart Solutions Vietnam Co., Ltd. (GreenYellow) sign a loan agreement for rooftop PV solar systems in Vietnam. (Photo: VietnamPlus)
This is ADB’s first financing of a solar PV rooftop portfolio for the commercial and industrial segment in Vietnam. Rooftop solar is an emerging form of renewable energy supply in the country and its adoption in this sector has been hindered by high upfront costs and limited financing channels. With a planned total installed capacity of up to 32.3 megawatts at its peak, this project is set to increase clean energy supply to the sector by at least 31.5 gigawatt-hours annually, reducing 15,530 tons of carbon dioxide emissions by 2025.
A rooftop solar system (Photo: VietnamPlus)
“Embedded within our core business is a profound commitment to development impact, and our collaboration with ADB uniquely aligns with our corporate mission toward innovative power distribution and driving energy transition," said GreenYellow Vietnam Chief Executive Officer Sebastien Prioux. “ADB’s instrumental role in fostering connections among like-minded partners is integral to our collective journey in actively advancing sustainable development.”
CIDF is a blended finance facility managed by ADB, established in September 2021 with an initial 25 million USD philanthropic commitment from Bloomberg Philanthropies and Goldman Sachs. The fund has the potential to unlock up to 500 million USD in private sector and government investments to support sustainable low-carbon economic development.
Founded in 2007, GreenYellow is a French energy transition partner, specializing in decentralized solar power projects, the services to monitor storage and economize energy.
At present, the company has been operating across Asia, Africa, Europe, South America and Vietnam since 2019. GreenYellow is responsible for developing, financing and operating infrastructure projects, allowing its customers to produce green electricity on-site at competitive prices, reducing energy consumption and accelerating the decarbonization process./.
