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It is part of a $250 million loan allocated to a program that seeks to increase electricity coverage in rural areas. The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has announced the approval of a $250 million loan to finance a program aimed at increasing electricity coverage in rural areas of Guatemala. Among other initiatives, this program will include the development of mini-grids with renewable energy and energy storage systems. The loan has a 25-year repayment term, a 5.5-year grace period, and an interest rate based on SOFR, a variable interest rate that uses as a reference an index published daily by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. The Rural Electrification Access Program, approved by the IDBs Board of Executive Directors under the Multiple Works Program Loan (MWP) modality, aims to increase the number of users with access to electricity service in rural areas, as well as strengthen institutional capacity for the planning, design, and/or management of rural electrification projects. This rural electrification program is designed to benefit approximately 70,000 households in municipalities with limited electricity coverage. It also includes indigenous populations and women, who will receive awareness-raising activities on productive uses of electricity and training in the maintenance of isolated systems. According to a statement, between 1996 and 2023, Guatemala increased its national electrification rate from 52% to 90%, although the country is still below the regional average, which is close to 98%. Currently, nearly 380,000 households lack electricity and rely on candles, kerosene lamps, diesel generators, or batteries to meet their energy needs. The largest electrification gaps are located in rural areas, where electricity service coverage is 82%. The program will finance investments in rural electricity infrastructure, such as the expansion of medium- and low-voltage distribution networks and the strengthening of existing networks. It also provides funding for mini-grids using renewable energy, energy storage systems, and the installation of individual solar photovoltaic systems with storage. Additionally, the program will support the strengthening of the National Electrification Institute (INDE) through actions such as the development of georeferenced planning systems and cost-efficient modeling, as well as awareness-raising, technical training, and community empowerment programs. |
