Participants listening to the presentation

JBIC and the Japan Institute for Overseas Investment (JOI) co-organized a seminar on “Solar Power in the Middle East and North Africa Region” on November 5, 2009.

In this seminar, speakers from JBIC, the Embassy of France and the World Bank made presentations on the state of power generation plans by harnessing solar and other renewable energy sources in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and business opportunities they could create.  About 70 people largely from Japanese firms attended this seminar. They also participated in the question and answer session and had a quite positive discussion.

  Shinya Miyake, JBIC Chief Representative

JBIC Chief Representative in Paris Shinya Miyake made a presentation on the outline and current state of the Mediterranean Solar Plan (MSP) and the agenda for its commercial implementation, citing specific examples.

• Mediterranean Solar Plan (MSP) and Desertec (in Japanese)

  Benoit Rulleau, Economic Attache, Embassy of France

Economic Attache Benoit Rulleau, in charge of transport, infrastructures, energy and environment, Embassy of France, explained MSP, pushed forward mainly by the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM) countries.

In an effort to maximize utilization of solar energy in the Mediterranean coastal region, MSP lays out a comprehensive plan for power generation, transmission and associated power infrastructure for exporting to European countries the electricity generated by solar power in this region.

• The Mediterranean Solar Plan (MSP)

  Jonathan D. Walters, Sector Manager, the World Bank 

The final speaker, Mr. Jonathan D. Walters, Sector Manager of Energy and Transport, Middle East and North Africa Region, the World Bank, made a case for utilizing the Clean Technology Fund of the World Bank as a means to harnessing more renewable energy in the MENA region.

• Clean Energy in the Middle East and North Africa: the Opportunity of the Clean Technology Fund (CTF)

Following these presentations, active discussion took place on the procedures for participating in specific projects under MSP and other initiatives and their possible future agenda.  JBIC will continue to actively support business operations of Japanese firms in overseas investment in the environmental sector.