Escotel Mauritius secures US$26m in guarantees from MIGA for its solar power generation

MAURITIUS – The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) has issued guarantees of up to US$25.6 million to Escotel Mauritius covering its investments in solar power generation in Liberia and Sierra Leone for a period of up to ten years.

The MIGA guarantees provide protection to Escotel Mauritius against the risks of Transfer Restriction, Expropriation, and War and Civil Disturbance.

MIGA’s guarantees will support the provision of electricity and logistical services to power existing and future cell phone towers (Telecommunication Network Sites (TNS) in Liberia and Sierra Leone

Escotel projects will be providing power through considerably more efficient and climate-friendly power solutions by installing photovoltaic solar panels at each TNS that will either supplement or replace entirely the diesel generators.

This will allow the telecommunication operator to modernise and expand the scope and quality of its services and will have a significant impact since providing power to TNS currently represents about 50% of the total operating costs due to unreliable supply and heavy reliance on expensive diesel generators.

“We are proud to help operators reduce reliance on fossil fuels, giving people better access to telecommunication services and supporting economic transformation, and are looking forward to implementing this model in other geographies”

Michel Hubert – CEO, Escotel Mauritius

Of the US$25.6 million in guarantees, US$13.5 million is for Escotel (SL) Limited in Sierra Leone, and US$12.06 million is for Escotel Liberia Inc.

“MIGA’s clean energy guarantees to Escotel Mauritius will contribute positively to greenhouse gas reductions in Liberia and Sierra Leone,” said MIGA executive Vice-President Hiroshi Matano.

“The cost savings through a more energy- and cost-efficient supply of clean power also send a strong signal to other telecom providers in Africa,” he added.

MIGA’s support for these projects will yield significant climate mitigation benefits and It is expected that 600 TNS will be modernised by 2028 in Sierra Leone, resulting in an avoidance of more than 58,000 tons of CO₂ equivalent (CO2e) emissions over the period.

In Liberia, nearly 158,000 tons of CO₂ emissions will be avoided by the modernisation of 612 TNS over the same period.

Off-grid and on-grid power is very unreliable in both Sierra Leone and Liberia.

In Sierra Leone, only 16% of the population has access to electricity; the electrification rate in the vast rural parts of the country is almost zero.

Liberia still faces significant challenges transitioning its power sector from post-conflict recovery to long-term development and has one of the lowest rates of electrification in the world.

Only 12% of the 4.8 million Liberians, and less than 20% of residents in the capital, Monrovia, have access to electricity.

“MIGA’s guarantees allowed us to raise capital and invest in a challenging market,” said Michel Hubert, CEO of Escotel Mauritius.

“We are proud to help operators reduce reliance on fossil fuels, giving people better access to telecommunication services and supporting economic transformation, and are looking forward to implementing this model in other geographies,” he added.

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