Madar (Tunis) - The Tunisian government, the state power utility STEG and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) signed guarantee and financing agreements worth 50 million euros, about 167 million dinars, in Tunis on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, for a solar power plant at Beni Mhira in Tataouine governorate, according to La Presse de Tunisie.
Economy and Planning Minister Samir Abdelhafidh signed the guarantee agreement and STEG chief executive Faycal Trifa the financing agreement, while the head of the EBRD's Tunisia office, George Akhalkatsi, signed both for the bank.
The plant will have a capacity of 50 MW with a 10 MW, 20 MWh battery storage system, and will be connected to the grid through a substation and a 225 kV line of about 1.2 km. Works are due to start in the first quarter of 2027, with commissioning in summer 2028.
The package combines 30 million euros from the EBRD at 1% and 20 million euros from the Clean Technology Fund at a fixed 0.62%, over 18 years with a five-year grace period, plus a 4-million-euro grant for technical assistance. STEG launched the international tender in October 2026.
The minister said it would be Tunisia's first solar plant combining generation and storage connected directly to the STEG grid, in line with targets of 35% renewables in electricity output by 2030 and 50% by 2035. He added that EBRD financing for eight ongoing public projects in Tunisia totals about 940 million euros.
