ADB backs Cambodia’s first ever large-scale solar farm

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
The 10MW Bavet solar farm is Cambodia's first competitively-bid renewable energy IPP project. Source: Sunseap

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is providing financial assistance for the construction of Cambodia’s first large-scale solar power project – a 10MW farm based in Bavet.

ADB is funding Singapore construction firm Sunseap Group – one of the largest sustainable energy providers in Southeast Asia – via a US$9.2 million debt package to build the project under a 20-year PPA with the country’s electricity regulator Electricité Du Cambodge (EDC) under a public-private partnership (PPP) arrangement.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

Sunseap won the tender for the project last year. It is Cambodia’s first competitively bid renewable energy IPP project, and holds significance considering the electrification rate in Cambodia still only remains at 55%.

The ADB financing package includes co-financing from a private sector financial institution through ADB’s B Loan programme and a concessional loan from the Canadian Climate Fund for the Private Sector in Asia (CFPS). According to ADB, the CFPS loan was instrumental in assisting the sponsors to overcome some of the early mover risks and cost premiums associated with a first-of-its-kind project such as this.

The project, based near Bavet, a special economic zone in Svay Rieng province, is scheduled to begin operations in August 2017. It will produce enough clean energy to be able to meet around one quarter of Bavet City’s local energy demand – half of which is currently being met through Vietnamese power imports.

Electricity tariffs in Cambodia are higher than those in neighbouring countries mainly due to the high cost of fossil fuel-based generation and the fragmented power supply system in the country.

“We are honoured to have received the support of ADB as we embark on this large-scale project. Cambodia is a fast-growing market with vast potential for solar development,” said Frank Phuan, founder and director of Sunseap Group. “While electricity consumption in Cambodia has increased significantly over the years, almost half of the country’s population currently has no access to stable, affordable electricity. Through this partnership, people in rural Cambodia will gain access to a precious commodity that many in the urban developed world take for granted.”

“ADB's leading role in financing this project will help demonstrate the benefits of increasing Cambodia's power supply through PPPs using local, renewable energy sources,” said Christopher Thieme, ADB’s deputy director general for Private Sector Operations. “It will also signal to the government, investors, and international financiers that private sector-led infrastructure investments can be undertaken successfully in a transparent manner, at a competitive price, and with a sound financing package.”

In related news, ADB recently approved a US$175 million loan to the Power Grid Corporation of India (Powergrid) for solar park transmission.

25 November 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Large Scale Solar Central and Eastern Europe continues to be the place to leverage a network that has been made over more than 10 years, to build critical partnerships to develop solar projects throughout the region.

Read Next

July 31, 2025
Lithuanian government-owned utility and renewables developer Ignitis Group has completed its first 94MW solar project in Latvia.
July 31, 2025
US solar module manufacturer SEG Solar has shipped its first order of utility-scale solar modules from its Texas production facility.
July 30, 2025
US solar tracker manufacturer Nextracker recorded revenues of US$864 million and a gross margin of 32.6% in the quarter ending June 27, 2025.
July 30, 2025
The Government of Kyrgyzstan has signed two investment deals with Vietnamese firms Rox Energy Global and RECA LLC for the development of a 1.9GW solar project.
July 29, 2025
US renewables developer Savion, a subsidiary of global oil giant Shell, has formed a new company to take ownership of its solar projects after development.
July 29, 2025
US-based solar manufacturer T1 Energy has expressed support for the US government’s tariff investigations into global polysilicon imports and solar products from Laos, Indonesia and India.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Media Partners, Solar Media Events
September 2, 2025
Mexico City, Mexico
Solar Media Events
September 16, 2025
Athens, Greece
Solar Media Events
September 30, 2025
Seattle, USA
Solar Media Events
October 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
October 2, 2025
London,UK