ICEIDA and NDF signs agreement on geothermal exploration
NDF and ICEIDA have signed a co-financing agreement to support geothermal exploration in the East Africa Rift Valley States (EARS)
The agreement was signed by NDF's Chairman of the Board Egill Gíslason, NDF’s Managing Director Pasi Hellman and ICEIDA's Director General Engilbert Guðmundsson, in witness of Iceland's Minister for Foreign Affairs Össur Skarphéðinsson, who also honoured the signing event with his congratulatory remarks. Also Rohit Khanna, the Program Manager of the Energy Sector Management Assistance Program from the World Bank participated.
The Geothermal Exploration project is part of the World Bank and Icelandic initiated Geothermal Compact Program. The project will finance the early stages of geothermal exploration in thirteen East Africa Rift Valley States (EARS); Djibouti, Ethiopia, Uganda, Eritrea, Kenya, South-Sudan, Tanzania, Malawi, Mozambique, Burundi, Rwanda, Zambia and Somalia. The energy need in these countries are growing rapidly and the geothermal potential in the area is considered to be promising. Yet the costs and risks of drillings in the exploration phases are considered primary hindrance to the utilisation of geothermal energy. If the drillings are successful, the geothermal energy can play an important role in reducing the use of fossil fuels in the region.
With the co-financing agreement, NDF and ICEIDA contribute EUR 5 million each, to help these countries increase the use of clean and renewable energy namely geothermal energy. The project will finance geological, geothermal and structural mapping, chemical analyses of geothermal springs, geophysical investigations and test drillings. The World Bank will collaborate with Iceland to establish a flexible financing facility that can in part share the costs and risks of specific drilling programs in the target countries.