Voltalia Menzel Habib Solar (EBRD-56130)

Regions
  • Middle East and North Africa
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Countries
  • Tunisia
Geographic location where the impacts of the investment may be experienced.
Specific Location
Menzel Habib, Gabes Governorate
Whenever identified, the area within countries where the impacts of the investment may be experienced. Exact locations of projects may not be identified fully or at all in project documents. Please review updated project documents and community-led assessments.
Financial Institutions
  • European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)
International, regional and national development finance institutions. Many of these banks have a public interest mission, such as poverty reduction.
Project Status
Proposed
Stage of the project cycle. Stages vary by development bank and can include: pending, approval, implementation, and closed or completed.
Bank Risk Rating
B
Environmental and social categorization assessed by the development bank as a measure of the planned project’s environmental and social impacts. A higher risk rating may require more due diligence to limit or avoid harm to people and the environment. For example, "A" or "B" are risk categories where "A" represents the highest amount of risk. Results will include projects that specifically recorded a rating, all other projects are marked ‘U’ for "Undisclosed."
Voting Date
Nov 19, 2025
Date when project documentation and funding is reviewed by the Board for consideration and approval. Some development banks will state a "board date" or "decision date." When funding approval is obtained, the legal documents are accepted and signed, the implementation phase begins.
Borrower
Menzel Parc Solaire SARL (Voltalia SA)
A public entity (government or state-owned) provided with funds or financial support to manage and/or implement a project.
Sectors
  • Energy
The service or industry focus of the investment. A project can have several sectors.
Investment Type(s)
Loan
The categories of the bank investment: loan, grant, guarantee, technical assistance, advisory services, equity and fund.
Investment Amount (USD)
$ 43.38 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Currency conversion note:
Bank reported 37.3
Converted using 2025-10-08 exchange rate.
Loan Amount (USD)
$ 43.38 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Currency conversion note:
Bank reported 37.3
Converted using 2025-10-08 exchange rate.
Project Cost (USD)
$ 116.29 million
Value listed on project documents at time of disclosure. If necessary, this amount is converted to USD ($) on the date of disclosure. Please review updated project documents for more information.
Currency conversion note:
Bank reported 100
Converted using 2025-10-08 exchange rate.
Primary Source

Original disclosure @ EBRD website

Updated in EWS Oct 11, 2025

Disclosed by Bank Oct 8, 2025

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Project Description
If provided by the financial institution, the Early Warning System Team writes a short summary describing the purported development objective of the project and project components. Review the complete project documentation for a detailed description.

According to the EBRD, the project consists of the provision of a senior loan of up to EUR 37.3 million to Menzel Parc Solaire SARL, an SPV wholly owned by Voltalia SA and incorporated in Tunisia for the development and construction of a solar PV plant of up to 100MW and the associated grid infrastructure in Menzel Habib, Gabes region of Tunisia. The electricity produced by the Project will be sold to Societe Tunisienne de l'Electricite et du Gaz ("STEG") the off-taker for the Project under a 25-year Power Purchase Agreement.
The Project will benefit from a grant of EUR 3 million from the EU Neighbourhood Investment Platform (EU NIP) to cover part of the cost of the transmission infrastructure. In addition, it will receive a first-loss risk guarantee from the European Fund for Sustainable Development plus (EFSD+) Hi-Bar guarantee programme. This programme contributes to projects in the European Neighbourhood supporting sustainable investments in energy transition.

The Project will support the country in meeting its declared renewable energy (RE) target i 35% of electricity generation by 2030 i and will create a strong demonstration effect for private sector contribution to Tunisia's energy transition.

This Project will also support the design and delivery of a new nationally accredited dual education programme for young labour market entrants in the Gabes Governorate, strengthening human capital development by enhancing the employability of youth through lifelong learning opportunities in the Energy sector. It will support joint efforts to address both urgent and future needs for a skilled technical workforce, contributing to the overall dual learning programme objective of ensuring at least 40% share of women within five years. In parallel, the Project will include targeted HR measures within Voltalia to embed gender-responsive practices across recruitment, retention, and career progression.

Technical cooperation (TC) support of up to EUR 75,000 is expected to be provided under the Gender and Economic Inclusion (G&EI) TC Framework to support Voltalia in the design and implementation of a new dual-education training programme promoting human capital and skills development, and targeted HR reforms to embed gender equity across recruitment, retention, and career progression. This TC is expected to be funded by the EBRD's Shareholder Special Fund.

Investment Description
Here you can find a list of individual development financial institutions that finance the project.

According to the EBRD, the project consists of a senior loan of up to EUR 37.3 USD million to Menzel Parc Solaire SARL, an SPV wholly owned by Voltalia to finance the construction and development of a 100 MW solar photovoltaic plant located in Habib Menzel, Gabes, Tunisia. EBRD's financing will benefit from a first loss risk cover from the EFSD+ Hi-Bar guarantee programme.

EBRD has also mobilised a grant of EUR 3 million from the EU NIP to cover part of the cost of the transmission infrastructure.

Private Actors Description
A Private Actor is a non-governmental body or entity that is the borrower or client of a development project, which can include corporations, private equity and banks. This describes the private actors and their roles in relation to the project, when private actor information is disclosed or has been further researched.

As stated by the EBRD, the client is Menzel Parc Solaire SARL, a special-purpose vehicle incorporated in Tunisia for the sole purpose of developing, owning and operating the Project. The Project will be owned, managed, and operated by Voltalia.

Private Actor 1 Private Actor 1 Role Private Actor 1 Sector Relation Private Actor 2 Private Actor 2 Role Private Actor 2 Sector
- - - - Voltalia SA Client Energy

Contact Information
This section aims to support the local communities and local CSO to get to know which stakeholders are involved in a project with their roles and responsibilities. If available, there may be a complaint office for the respective bank which operates independently to receive and determine violations in policy and practice. Independent Accountability Mechanisms receive and respond to complaints. Most Independent Accountability Mechanisms offer two functions for addressing complaints: dispute resolution and compliance review.

Client - Voltalia SA:

Kamel Hammami
Email: k.hammami@voltalia.com 
Phone: +33 6 43 94 60 18
Website: www.voltalia.com 
Address: 84 Boulevard de Sebastopol, 75003 Paris France

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

You can request information by emailing: accessinfo@ebrd.com or by using this electronic form: https://www.ebrd.com/eform/information-request

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF EBRD

The Project Complaint Mechanism (PCM) is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who have been or are likely to be adversely affected by an European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the PCM, it may assess compliance with EBRD's own policies and procedures to prevent harm to the environment or communities or it may assist you in resolving the problem that led to the complaint through a dialogue with those implementing the project. Additionally, the PCM has the authority to recommend a project be suspended in the event that harm is imminent.

You can contact the PCM at: pcm@ebrd.com or you can submit a complaint online using an online form at: http://www.ebrd.com/eform/pcm/complaint_form?language=en

You can learn more about the PCM and how to file a complaint at: http://www.ebrd.com/work-with-us/project-finance/project-complaint-mechanism.html

How it works

How it works