The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a US$7.6m loan to Cambodia's national power utility Electricité du Cambodge (EDC) for the construction of a 100 MW solar power project in the Kampong Chhnang Province. The ADB will also assist EDC is designing and leading a competitive bidding process to award the development of the National Solar Park Project to independent power producers (IPPs). The solar project will be built in two phases, with the first one of 60 MW. The project also includes the construction of transmission lines connecting the wind power project to the national grid near Phnom Penh.
Solar capacities in Cambodia are burgeoning and reached 27 MW in 2018, i.e. 1% of the total power capacity (2,174 MW). Hydropower accounts for more than 60% of the power capacity. The ADB estimates that Cambodia can install 200 MW of solar power capacity by 2021. This could help improve the electrification rate, as nearly 5 million Cambodians still lack access to electricity.