The City of Cape Town will receive technical assistance, valued at R5.9 million, from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), to support its energy transition.
The City on Monday issued a statement, indicating that its energy directorate had accepted the offer from the international finance institution.
"The IFC and the City have agreed that the approximate value of the assistance to be provided is R5.9 million," the statement read.
The IFC is a member of the World Bank group and offers investment, advisory, asset-management services, to encourage private sector growth in developing nations.
The city said that its Sustainable Energy Markets Department is embarking on a number of projects related to renewable energy and other sustainable energy interventions. This includes energy efficiency in municipal buildings and facilities as well as electricity supply and purchase of renewable energy, and an assessment of climate investment opportunities.
"The letter of collaboration states that the technical assistance is provided to the city free of charge," the statement read.
The city emphasised that there will be no co-payments or additional investment of resources arising from the transaction - as city projects receiving the technical assistance are scheduled and resourced already. "The rendering of the assistance by the IFC will not necessitate the allocation by the city of any additional resources," the statement read.
The City said that the work is aligned to its policies related to energy sector reform and climate change mitigation.
"We thank the IFC for their generous donation of assistance... We are committed to doing everything we can, and with all partners, to achieve cleaner, more affordable and secure energy for our residents," said Councillor Beverley van Reenen, the city's mayoral committee member for energy.
Last week, Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis announced that tenders had been launched to procure 300 MW of renewable energy, in a bid to make the city less dependent on Eskom to beat load shedding.
