Tunisia Secures €50M EBRD Financing for Its First Utility-Scale Battery Storage Project
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The Arab Post
- . November 13, 2026
- . Update: November 13, 2026 10:21 pm
On November 12, 2026, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) officially signed a €50 million financing package with Tunisia’s national electricity and gas utility company, STEG. Tunisia battery storage, The US$60 million investment will be used to finance the Beni Mhira solar power plant and the first utility-scale battery storage project in Tunisia. The project combines cutting-edge energy storage technology with the development of new solar power generation, to provide a more reliable and stable energy supply for the country and to rapidly promote the shift of the national grid to renewable energy sources.
EBRD and CTF Partner to Fund Landmark Energy Infrastructure
The formal contract between EBRD and Société Tunisienne de l’Electricité et du Gaz (STEG) supplies the necessary funding to build a solar and storage project in the southern region of Tataouine, Tunisia. The EBRD financing for Tunisia is a significant step towards upgrading the country’s energy sector, which is still heavily reliant on fossil fuels.
The official EBRD November 12th announcement states that the financial package of €50 million is structured in a strategic manner into two parts. The main funding is a €30m loan from the EBRD which is also provided with a guarantee by the government.
The rest of the capital comes from a €20m concessional loan from the Climate Investment Funds’ Clean Technology Fund (CTF). This is a secondary funding provided under the Global Energy Storage Program as outlined in the detailed EBRD project summary. The partnership has enabled the deployment of state-of-the-art battery energy storage systems to be more affordable for the state of Tunisia, thanks to the concessional financing.
Technical Scope of the Beni Mhira Solar-Plus-Storage Facility – Tunisia battery storage
The approved project is to build a 50 MWac solar PV (PV) power plant with 10 MW/20 MWh of battery storage. The project also involves the construction of a 225 kV high-voltage transmission line, which will connect the project to the national grid and facilitate the safe and efficient evacuation of energy.
The incorporation of solar generation with battery storage has been the subject of recent coverage by Africa Business Communities as being key to the flexibility of Tunisia’s power system. The batteries will be able to capture surplus electricity when the sun shines in the day-time and release it onto the grid when there is less energy demand or less sun.
The Tunisia solar and battery storage project is the first utility-scale project of this kind in the country that will enable STEG to build the essential technical and operational capacities to implement the necessary changes in the grid.
Supporting Tunisia’s Renewable Energy Ambitions
The successful implementation of the Beni Mhira facility is a key milestone in resolving the intermittency problem that can pose significant challenges in implementing renewable energy. The STEG energy project will help alleviate the initial risks of using large scale battery technology in the region, says International energy market analysts at Traders Union.
In addition to that, one of the previous reports from Africa Energy News states that this move is part of the Tunisian government’s overall plan to supply 35 per cent of its energy from renewable sources by 2030. The Ministry of Industry, Mines and Energy is seeking to expand private and institutional investment in the solar and storage market by demonstrating the viability of a combination of the two.
The official closure of the financing from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development for Tunisia of €50 million on 12 November 2026 is a crucial step for the country’s energy sector. International lenders are directly helping STEG to stabilize the national grid by supporting the Beni Mhira solar plant and the country’s first Tunisia utility-scale battery storage project. While construction is about to begin, this proven investment establishes a model that can be scaled up to create resilient and climate-smart energy infrastructure throughout North Africa.
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