Sustainable Use of Natural Resources & Energy Financing (SUNREF), a green finance label developed by l’Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD) and supported by the European Union (EU), has launched its energy financing programme for Ghana at the Alisa Hotel in Accra.

The Programme is a unique and innovative financial offer, with a credit line of €30 million from the AFD and €2.5 million as grant and technical assistance from the EU, provided to local partner banks.

CalBank is the first bank to partner with the programme. Through this partnership with local partnering banks, SUNREF Ghana will offer competitive loans and technical assistance for structuring green investments, to help companies, organisations, individuals and households seize the opportunities of green finance and the ecological transition.

The programme aims to develop and consolidate a financing market for green investments in the area of energy efficiency, renewable energies and environmental services. SUNREF Ghana will support eligible and viable green projects, help to increase the competitiveness of businesses - particularly SMEs, improve energy security, and strengthen the capacity of local stakeholders.

In her opening remarks during the launch ceremony, the French Ambassador in Ghana,  Anne-Sophie AVE said the collaboration between the European Union, the AFD and local partnering banks represents “a stepping stone towards energy transition and the decrease of Ghana’s carbon footprint and energy intensity.”. She declared that “the SUNREF Ghana project supports ambitious GHG emission reductions in Ghana” and also commended “Ghanaian partner bank CalBank for setting the example and being the first bank to join the project.”

The Minister of Energy, Matthew Opoku Prempeh  for his part said, “the programme is well designed to help small and medium-sized companies in Ghana to seize the opportunities created by this intervention from AFD to invest in Renewable Energy (RE) and Energy Efficiency (EE) projects.”  

He further emphasised that “the SUNREF programme will be extended to energy efficiency initiatives, for instance transport owners who wish to convert their fleet from fossil fuel to electric vehicles.”

He added that “the outcome of these projects will immensely contribute to reduction in energy consumption and CO2 emissions and to enable us meet Ghana’s target as captured under the Ghana Nationally Determined Contribution.”

As part of the launch of SUNREF Ghana, a panel - featuring representatives from CalBank, GCB Bank, the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), the Association of Small Scale Industries and the Solar Association of Ghana discussed sustainable natural resource management in Ghana, focusing on the challenges and opportunities of creating a green energy market in the country.

As a major local actor in the promotion of renewable energy and energy efficiency in Ghana, the Energy Commission is the key partner in the implementation of the technical assistance component of the programme.