Observatory holds CBI responsible for undermining solar panel project

Shafaq News / The Iraqi "Green" Observatory placed responsibility on the Central Bank for undermining the project of using solar panels in homes to generate electricity, citing the stringent conditions of its lending initiative. The observatory called for certain clauses of the initiative to be amended for its success.

In a press statement today, the observatory stated, "more than a year has passed since the launch of the Central Bank's initiative to support renewable energy, aimed at supporting sustainable solutions and mitigating the effects of climate change." It noted that "the initiative declared its failure since its launch due to the technical specifications it imposed, such as solar panels and batteries."

The statement further highlighted that "the percentage of consumers who could benefit from these projects was reduced because many of them were denied loans." It called for "amending the clauses of the initiative to enable middle-income citizens to borrow."

The observatory proposed "setting lower specifications for solar energy equipment in line with what is available in the local market, in addition to the current ones in the initiative."

It emphasized, "the modification of the lending mechanism should be by granting solar energy companies allowances for importing or providing favorable interest rates to consumers, with the damage, if any, being borne by the borrower."

In July 2021, the Central Bank of Iraq decided to promote the adoption of renewable energy production tools and work with the High Committee for Lending to ensure the provision of a percentage of the electricity generated from renewable energy sources (solar panels) to residential complexes benefiting from the initiative.

In early March 2022, the Central Bank issued guidelines for financing electricity generation systems from renewable energy sources.

The Central Bank stated at the time that this initiative, in line with the country's commitment to the Paris Climate Agreement, aimed to transition to clean energy within this framework. A committee was formed, headed by the Deputy Governor and including representatives from the Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Electricity, the Central Organization for Standardization and Quality Control, as well as experts and investors from the private sector.