According to the World Bank, the proposed Cambodia Sustainable Energy Transition is a multi-faceted project which provides comprehensive support to Cambodia's ambition to decarbonize its economy while maintaining stability and affordability. The proposed project is designed to respond to government priorities in the energy sector, to significantly:

i) upgrade the electricity grids for enhanced capacity and improved reliability and efficiency for electricity services (incl. variable renewable energy and clean power imports),
ii) enable and promote strategic investment of E-mobility infrastructure;
iii) drive energy efficiency investments in industry to catalyze implementation of National Energy Efficiency Plan (NEEP); and
iv) expedite access to modern energy services across the country.

These initiatives are imperative for fulfilling the goals outlined in the Revised Power Development Plan (RPDP), NEEP, National Policy on Electric Vehicles Development (NPEVD), and related government's socio- economic development agenda.The proposed project will consist of three components:

• Component 1: Power Grid Strengthening for facilitation of Energy Transition.
  This component will support investment in the following areas:
  • Investment in transmission lines and substations
  • Investment in AMI / SCADA integration, BESS
  • Distribution network extension and strengthening. This subcomponent will finance construction of new transmission lines and substations in Phnom Penh area (and central eastern Cambodia) which aims to meet the demands of
    • (i) electricity consumption growth and improving the reliability of electricity supply in Phnom Penh area, and
    • (ii) increasing clean power imports from Laos.

This component will finance the construction of one 230 kV transmission lines from GS Lvea Am to GS Arey Ksat (about 15 Km), and one 115 kV double circuit transmission lines from Aray Ksat to GS Chroy Chang Va III and to GS Wat Phnom (about 4.5km); with associated substations critical to service demand growth expected in the Arey Ksat area (and east of Phnom Penh).
In addition, as part of the process of starting the digitizing of its grid, Cambodia aims to start with replacing all 3 phase meters including the already installed Advanced Meter Readers (AMR) with Automatic Meter Infrastructure (AMI) and the associated soft and hard infrastructure to lay the foundation for the development of a smart grid. The pilot phase of this digitization exercise is expected to be funded from this component. The component will also support BESS investment to facilitate high level of renewable energy efficiency and Strategic investment for E-mobility uptake. Further, this component will support expansion and strengthening of distribution networks in urban and rural areas to accommodate new demand, including EV deployments.

• Component 2: Energy Efficiency Improvement This component will support implementation of a credit line for investment in energy efficiency technologies industrial sector.
  The component will be be implemented by Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME). The Industrial Energy Efficiency Financing component is designed to promote the adoption of energy-efficient technologies and practices within Cambodia's industrial sector. It provides concessional loans to industrial enterprises for the purchase, installation, and operation of energy-efficient equipment, which helps reduce energy consumption and lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Key stakeholders in the program include the MME, which serves as the implementing agency, and state-owned financial intermediaries, including Small and Medium Enterprise Bank of Cambodia (SME), and Foreign Trade Bank (FTB) as participating financial institution (PFI). These institutions collaborate to ensure the efficient allocation and utilization of financial resources to support energy efficiency investments. The financial intemediary instrument will be adopted to finance energy efficiency investment made by industrial enterprises through participating financial institutions. Only technologies from a predefined list, which is periodically updated by MME and MISTI, which meets specific energy performance standards, are eligible for financing under the project. Given its mandates in industrial affairs, MISTI would involve in the marketing of the credit line to industrial enterprises (IEs) and provide technical assistance on energy audits/assessments to these IEs provided they are recommended by participating financial institutions (PFIs).
• Component 3: Implementation Support- Implementation support for MME- Implementation support for EDC.
  This component will provide technical support to Project Management Unit (PMU) of MME. This assistance will focus on building the technical, institutional, and environmental and social (E&S) risk management capacity of the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME), participating policy banks (SME Bank and FTB), and other relevant stakeholders. Activities will include targeted training pipeline development/update, appraisal, and implementation of energy efficiency (EE) sub-projects; environmental and social due diligence in line with the World Bank's Environmental and Social Policy and Standards; and guidance on credible energy accounting of energy savings and GHG reductions Also, the component will provide technical support to PMU at EDC for project implementation. The support will include environmental and social risk management, financial/procurement management, technical specifications and site supervision. This component will support EDC to comply with relevant WB policies (Environmental and Social standards/fiduciary), and ensure all technical design, specifications under grid component are delivered in high quality and met applicable industry standards.
• Component 4: Contingent Emergency Response.
  This component supports the Royal Government of Cambodia's ability to respond rapidly to an eligible crisis or emergency by providing a mechanism to reallocate project resources in accordance with World Bank Investment Project Financing policy. This component may be activated in the event of an eligible emergency that has caused, or is likely to imminently cause, a major adverse economic and/or social impact in Cambodia.

World Bank Team Leader:

Thi Ba Chu - Senior Energy Specialist
Email: tchu@worldbank.org 

ACCESS TO INFORMATION

To submit an information request for project information, you will have to create an account to access the Access to Information request form. You can learn more about this process at: https://www.worldbank.org/en/access-to-information/request-submission

ACCOUNTABILITY MECHANISM OF THE WORLD BANK

The World Bank Inspection Panel is the independent complaint mechanism and fact-finding body for people who believe they are likely to be, or have been, adversely affected by a World Bank-financed project. If you submit a complaint to the Inspection Panel, they may investigate to assess whether the World Bank is following its own policies and procedures for preventing harm to people or the environment. You can contact the Inspection Panel or submit a complaint by emailing ipanel@worldbank.org. Information on how to file a complaint and a complaint request form are available at: https://www.inspectionpanel.org/how-to-file-complaint