Seychelles' strategy to attract finance and investment in energy transition-related projects, such as renewable energy and green technologies, will be completed by the end of this year.

The chief executive of the Seychelles Investment Board (SIB), Anne Rosette, revealed the plans to the media on Thursday after a workshop held together in collaboration with the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

The half-day workshop at Eden Bleu Hotel is the consultative part of a three-year project to help the small island state attract investment and finance in the renewable energy sector.

Gathering stakeholders from various industries such as finance, environment, and renewable energy, the forum aimed to provide them with a deeper understanding of energy transition in Seychelles and receive their feedback.

In his address, the Minister for Agriculture, Climate Change and Environment, Flavien Joubert, remarked that the country's "dependence on imported petroleum products for its energy needs, is also increasingly unsustainable due to uncertainty of supplies and price fluctuation caused by geopolitical tensions."

Seychelles, an archipelago in the western Indian Ocean, has invested in solar farms in recent years, with the largest so far located on Ile Romainville, a reclaimed island off the coast of Mahe, the main island.

The island nation recently signed an agreement with French energy company, Qair, for the installation of a 5-megawatt photovoltaic (PV) system in the lagoon at Providence on the eastern coast of Mahe.

"The ambitious Seychelles' 100 percent Renewable Energy Strategy (SeyRES 100) aims for a 15 percent transition to renewable energy sources by 2030; it includes increasing the generation of electricity from renewable sources and modernising the entire electricity sector," said Joubert.

The first government housing estate outfitted with photovoltaic (PV) solar panels opened in June 2019 at Barbarons.  (Sheikh Mojaharul) Photo License: All Rights Reserved

The small island nation is also working with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Global Environment Facility (GEF) to offer a rebate for households and enterprises to install PV systems.

As part of the initiative, residential customers receive a 25 percent refund of the total cost of the PV system and its installation, while commercial entities receive 15.  

"We need further work to identify projects that are attractive to investors, that is why we welcome the project by UNCTAD. We hope also the project will assist the Seychelles to attract institutional investors," said Joubert.

Meanwhile, Rosette revealed that SIB began discussions with its stakeholders to set up the strategy in the first quarter of 2024. Following the workshop, it expects to have bankable projects that it will then promote to both local and international investors.

"Renewable energy is cross-cutting, it involves other sectors like the circular economy and waste management," said Rosette.

She explained that UNCTAD is providing support in collecting the information needed to develop the strategy, in its implementation as well as training SIB personnel and its stakeholders to successfully fulfill the projected outcomes.

The principal secretary for the Department of Energy, Tony Imaduwa, told the press that the workshop will allow the participants to determine the challenges the sector faces especially where investment is concerned in the energy sector.

He revealed that one of the main challenges is that the average household and commercial entities' energy consumption has increased.

"With this increase, we find that it affects the renewable energy's percentages as the rate that we are producing it in is sort of cancelled out by the increasing demand. It is now important that we put more emphasis on educating consumers to use energy more efficiently," he added.

Imaduwa said, "We are also looking at other projects concerning other forms of renewable energy that we can use in the country to achieve our set target."

The department is also carrying out a series of studies to determine what measures should be implemented to increase the system's capacity.