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Vanuatu’s electricity sector faces a pressing challenge. While donor investments have expanded renewable energy generation and grid access, infrastructure remains highly vulnerable to climate shocks such as cyclones, floods, sea-level rise and saltwater intrusion. Grids are unstable due to limited storage and forecasting capacity, system losses remain high, and adaptation is not yet mainstreamed into policies and institutions. Without targeted intervention, these vulnerabilities threaten progress towards Vanuatu’s target of 100 percent renewable electricity by 2030 and risk reversing development gains.
This proposed three-year project will enable reliable, sustainable and climate-resilient electric power systems with stable grid integration, particularly on the islands of Malekula and Espiritu Santo. Financing from the Special Climate Change Fund will provide the additional support needed to safeguard existing investments and ensure renewable energy expansion is resilient to climate impacts.
The project will:
- Climate-proof renewable energy infrastructure and deploy SCADA and battery energy storage systems to stabilize grids;
- Strengthen the capacity of utilities, provincial governments, local technicians and communities to operate and maintain resilient electricity systems;
- Mainstream climate risk into provincial energy plans and strengthen policies and financing frameworks for climate-resilient energy; and
- Help achieve more than 70 percent renewable energy in the target provinces, reduce outages by 30 percent and improve grid stability by 25 percent.
Together, these measures will contribute to making Vanuatu’s energy transition low-carbon, climate-resilient and sustainable.
- Community
- District
- National
- Local Governments
- National Governments
- Non-Governmental Organizations
- Private Sector Partners
12,000 people in Malekula and East Santo
- United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
- Government of Vanuatu
Expected outcomes
Outcome 1. Power generation and distribution systems (including support and ancillary facilities) are climate-proofed and stable even during climate events
Outcome 2. Utilities, provincial governments, and communities have the skills and institutional capacity to operate and maintain resilient electric power systems
Outcome 3. National policies and financing mechanisms incentivize climate-resilient, stable and reliable electric power system projects
Outcome 4. Knowledge, technology, and best practices for climate-resilient, stable and reliable electric power systems are transferred and mainstreamed in Vanuatu
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Vanuatu’s electricity system is highly exposed to increasingly intense cyclones, storm surges, extreme rainfall, flooding, sea-level rise and coastal corrosion. Electricity assets were largely designed using historical climate conditions rather than projected hazard levels. On Malekula and Espiritu Santo, exposed infrastructure, limited monitoring and difficult access can prolong outages and delay repairs following extreme events.
The core problem is limited national technical, financial and institutional capacity to design, install, operate and maintain reliable, sustainable and climate-resilient electric power systems. Key barriers include outdated grid codes and technical standards; insufficient climate-resilient storage; weak grid-management and forecasting systems; limited local technical capacity; and fragmented policies and incentives for private-sector participation. Existing investments are expanding renewable energy and grid access but do not fully finance the additional measures needed to address these adaptation gaps.
The project will respond through four substantive components, supported by project-wide monitoring and evaluation. It will climate-proof electricity infrastructure and stabilize grids; strengthen the capacity of utilities, provincial governments, technicians and communities; harmonize energy and climate policies and establish financing and regulatory mechanisms; and support knowledge-sharing and technology transfer across the Pacific.
Implementation will bring together government ministries, utilities, provincial governments, communities, civil society, private-sector actors, donor partners and regional organizations. Communities will participate in planning, training, awareness activities, governance, monitoring, and local operation and maintenance. They will be engaged not merely as passive beneficiaries but as partners in the governance and delivery of SCREPS from design through operation, helping ensure that resilient electricity systems reflect local priorities and needs.
Component 1: Climate-resilient infrastructure and grid stability
Outcome 1. Power generation and distribution systems (including support and ancillary facilities) are climate-proofed and stable even during climate events
- Output 1.1. Electric power system infrastructures (including support and ancillaries) designed, constructed and operated to climate-resilient standards
- Output 1.2. Installed and operational adequate storage and hybridization capacity
- Output 1.3. Installed and operational modern grid management systems
Component 2: Inclusive capacity development and institutional strengthening
Outcome 2. Utilities, provincial governments, and communities have the skills and institutional capacity to operate and maintain resilient electric power systems
- Output 2.1. Trained utility staff and local technicians in electric power grid integration and O&M
- Output 2.2. Integration of climate risk and grid stability assessments into energy planning of provincial governments
- Output 2.3. Established and operational institutional coordination mechanisms across governance levels
- Output 2.4: Comprehensive knowledge product package for climate resilient electric power system infrastructures
Component 3: Policy, finance, and private sector engagement
Outcome 3. National policies and financing mechanisms incentivize climate-resilient, stable and reliable electric power system projects
- Output 3.1. Harmonized national energy and climate policies supporting climate-resilient power grid systems
- Output 3.2. Mobilized financing mechanisms to support utilities’ and private sector climate-resilient electric power system projects
- Output 3.3. Established and implemented regulatory frameworks for reducing risks for independent power producers
Component 4: Knowledge sharing and technology transfer
Outcome 4. Knowledge, technology, and best practices for climate-resilient, stable and reliable electric power systems are transferred and mainstreamed in Vanuatu
- Output 4.1. Established technology transfer agreements with international partners
- Output 4.2. Operational knowledge-sharing platforms for utilities, governments, and communities
- Output 4.3. Documented and disseminated lessons learned in Vanuatu and in the Pacific region
Karma Rapten, Regional Technical Advisor, Climate Change Adaptation, UNDP karma.rapten@undp.org