TALLINN, March 16 (Xinhua) -- Estonian energy company Eesti Energia has secured 2.1 billion U.S. dollar funding for building in Jordan a power plant that will be running on oil shale, the company's spokesperson said on Thursday.
According to Eesti Energia representatives, Attarat Power Company (APCO) in which Eesti Energia is a shareholder, said it had reached financial close for the power plant project.
The oil-shale-fueled power plant, the gross capacity of which is planned at 554 megawatts, is scheduled for completion in 2020.
Estonian Finance Minister Sven Sester said that the securing of the 2.1 billion U.S. dollar funding for the project was a great achievement not only in the context of Jordan and Estonia but also globally.
Eesti Energia, which owns a 65 percent stake in APCO, is now selling off 55 percent of APCO shares and will only retain 10 percent. The shareholders will provide up to 528 million U.S. dollars to fund the project.
Eesti Energy CEO Hando Sutter said that the state-owned energy group would not sell its 10 percent stake in APCO before the power plant project in Jordan is completed.
He said that Eesti Energia did not aim to manage the project and that its only interest was to do the development work and share Estonia's oil shale technology experience.
Eesti Energia will receive 50.4 million U.S. dollars in total from the planned sale of its APCO shares.
