Rehabilitation of small hydro power plant in Georgia

A company operating a small hydro power plant decided to invest in rehabilitation of the plant’s equipment, and addressed Energocredit for financing.

The Energocredit team performed analysis of the project, primarily the energy generation potential, financial-technical parameters and risks, as well as evaluating environmental aspects to make sure the local environment benefits from the project.

The project included rehabilitation of the water supply and electro-mechanical systems (replacement of turbines, generators and sub-station).

The $1.7 million investment allowed the company to more than double its electricity generation capacity – from 6 GWh to 13 GWh per year – enhancing the profitability of the business. The total electricity produced generates income of some $1.4 million per year at current tariffs and the additional electricity output is worth $595,000 per year. This means that the investment will repay itself out of energy generation in just 2.8 years.

At the same time, the project will reduce the country’s electricity import by around 7 GWh, thus helping to achieve the government’s policy objective of enhancing energy security.

This is a good example of how investments into energy efficiency serve multiple objectives and lead to multiple benefits.

This way, Energocredit supports the sustainable financing and implementation of sustainable energy projects by the private sector. Together, the private, residential and public sectors can make a change in energy consumption patterns and contribute to environmental protection.

The advisory package and investment incentives are funded by the European Union (EU) and the Austrian Ministry of Finance (BMF).