Government of Nepal
Ministry of Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation
Alternative Energy Promotion Centre
Central Renewable Energy Fund
Call for Concept Note applications for Sustainable Energy Challenge Fund
Financial Assistance for Distributed Renewable Energy Projects
(Published Date: August 6, 2022)
Nepal Renewable Energy Programme (NREP) is a Government of Nepal programme dedicated to increasing private sector investment in distributed renewable energy (DRE) and increasing universal energy access, while facilitating policy, planning, legal construct, and regulatory environment conducive to both enabling and sustaining progress in DRE market development and universal energy access.
Central Renewable Energy Fund (CREF), the financial mechanism of Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC), has recently established a Viability Gap Funding based Sustainable Energy Challenge Fund (SECF) with funding support from UK-Aid. SECF provides financial and technical assistance to the DRE projects to ensure their financial viability and sustainable operation.
The SECF application procedure has two-stage process. In the first stage, applications for Concept Note of potential DRE projects, up to 1 MW in installed capacity, are requested. The Concept Notes will be shortlisted based on eligibility of the applicant; technical potentiality, financial aspect, and expected results and impact of the project. In the second stage, shortlisted Concept Note applicants will be invited to submit Full Applications, which will undergo due diligence and evaluation by an Independent Evaluation Panel of DRE experts.
Applications are requested from the project developers of;
- DRE projects developed in a Public Private Partnership model in partnership with local and provincial governments
- Projects to be implemented by aggregating demands of DRE technologies and projects for improving energy access including electric cooking to households, micro, small and medium enterprises
- Projects to improve energy access to the households through reverse auction.
- Projects proposed for the improvement of technical, financial and managerial aspects of the existing mini and micro hydro projects or other renewable energy mini-grid project
- Grid-connected solar PV installations at commercial, institutional and industrial buildings (where minimum of 51% of the annual energy produced is used for self-consumption) for bank interest rate buy-down
- Grid-connected solar PV installations at commercial, institutional and industrial buildings (where minimum of 51% of the annual energy produced is used for self-consumption) for incentives based on kWh generation
- Innovative DRE projects that meet SECF objectives, e.g. those that may include hybrid generation types, advanced controls that provide grid support and reliability, advanced energy storage technologies that manage grid load, etc.
Priority will be given to the projects developed in off grid areas and contributing for clean energy access to households, enterprises and institutions.
Interested local governments are requested to submit the expression of interest to develop the energy access project through reverse auction modality.
Interested commercial banks are requested to submit the expression of interest to participate in the Loan Loss Guarantee Mechanism.
With this notice, AEPC/CREF invites all eligible applicants to submit the Concept Notes via online application portal: https://secf.nrepnepal.com. The online application portal will be open to submit the concept notes until end of September 2022. Concept notes received during this period will be evaluated on a rolling basis. So, we encourage the potential applicants to submit their concept notes at earliest possible date.
Interested applicants can also contact us through secf_queries@NREPNepal.com or call us at 9802323318.
Information Package on SECF including eligibility criteria, application process and Funding Windows, are available at the following websites:
www.moewri.gov.np, www.aepc.gov.np, www.cref.gov.np, www.nrepnepal.com.
AEPC/CREF reserves the right to accept or reject, wholly or partly, any or all the project concepts without assigning any reason, whatsoever.