The National Bank of Bahrain (NBB) has extended its support to the new King Hamad American Mission Hospital (AMH) to finance the construction of the hospital which includes installation of solar panels.

Set to open in 2022, it will be the first eco-friendly hospital in the kingdom covering up to 50 per cent of its electricity requirements from photovoltaic energy.

Located on a 57,000-sq-m area in A’Ali, the hospital will include a maternity and children’s block, a multi-specialty block with an intensive care unit, a diagnostics centre, a fertility centre, a 300-seat auditorium and a special needs children’s development, assessment and treatment centre.

NBB said this latest initiative is in line with its commitment to support local commercial entities and small to medium enterprises, alongside financing many sectors within the kingdom, particularly the healthcare sector.  The bank also seeks to promote the use of renewable energy sources in Bahrain by providing the necessary financing to major projects, as solar panels become more widespread across various hospitals and healthcare centres globally, it stated.

The AMH will be the first private hospital in the kingdom to have a renewable energy source. The solar panels will be fully equipped with a net metering system and will be used to meet significant portion of the facility’s power requirements, it added.