Total Eren Enters Cambodia with 74 MWp Solar Project

Total Eren, a renewable independent power producer based in Paris, has taken its first steps in the renewable energy market of Cambodia through the acquisition of a 73.9 MWp photovoltaic project named “Battambang” from Risen Energy, a Chinese developer active in R&D and PV panels manufacturing.

The PV farm is currently in operation in the Battambang Province, Northwest Cambodia. Risen Energy developed, built, financed and recently commissioned the project in March 2021. The company will be performing the maintenance of the PV farm for the next 2 years.

The Battambang solar farm produces about 115 GWh per year, reportedly enough to supply the needs of about 180,000 people in Cambodia while reducing carbon emissions by more than 50,000 tons of CO2 per year. It is one of the largest solar farms in operation in the country today and the largest in the Battambang region.

The produced electricity has been contracted through a 20-year power purchase agreement signed in August 2019 with the national utility, Electricité du Cambodge. Battambang was financed through a USD 45 million loan, signed in September 2020, from DEG, the German Development Finance Institution affiliated to KfW, the German Development Bank.

This project is part of the larger scheme implemented by Cambodia under the “Basic Energy Plan” issued in 2019 which sets a target of 10% of the Kingdom’s electricity mix to be generated through renewable energy sources by 2030.

Fabienne Demol, Executive Vice President – Global Head of Business Development of Total Eren, stated: “We are delighted to secure our first renewable energy project in Cambodia. I want to thank our teams who made it possible as well as Risen Energy for our successful collaboration. Total Eren wants to take an active role in the country’s decarbonisation process and is committed to providing energy which is low-carbon and sustainable to the Cambodian people. Looking ahead, we look forward
to developing a larger portfolio of renewable energy projects in the country.”

Champion Yuan, Board Director of Risen Energy and General Manager of Risen Hong-Kong, said: “We are excited to close the transaction of this 73.9 MW Solar Project in cooperation with Total Eren. It is a significant milestone since this is the first Solar Project that Risen Energy completed in Cambodia, and the first renewable energy project for Total Eren in the country as well. Risen Energy has rich experience in developing, engineering, constructing and operating Wind and Solar power projects around the globe, and we are looking forward to a continued cooperation with Total Eren to promote the development of renewable energy globally.”

Total Eren is also active in South Asia, especially in India through its JV, Eden Renewable India, which owns 657 MWp of solar capacity in operation or under construction in the country.