Tag Archives | clean energy
Energy, Environment, Finance sector development

Asia’s clean energy investment needs and the role of blended finance

Asia’s clean energy investment needs and the role of blended finance
Expanding the scale of blended finance in clean energy will require innovative efforts from the international community to reform traditional development finance approaches.

Environment, Finance sector development, Industry and trade

Green finance for sustainable investment

Green finance for sustainable investment
To place the Asian economies onto a sustainable development pathway requires an unprecedented shift in investment away from industries relying intensively on greenhouse gases, fossil fuels, and natural resources toward more resource-efficient technologies and business models. The finance sector will have to play a central role in this green transformation. Important aspects of green finance are sustainable investment and banking, where investment and lending decisions are taken based on environmental screening and risk assessment to meet sustainability standards, as well as insurance services that cover environmental and climate risk.

Industry and trade

Trust-by-Design Investment: A novel Blockchain-based approach to ease green energy investments

Trust-by-Design Investment: A novel Blockchain-based approach to ease green energy investments
To meet obligations under the Paris Agreement, major investments in renewable energy production and infrastructure are necessary. However, as public budgets are tight and because of Basel capital requirements, major public investments are unlikely to provide sufficient liquidity. Since most renewable energy projects are considered risky, many financiers are reluctant to lend to them or they lend at high interest rates. This lack of financing has to be overcome.

Energy

Energy Efficiency: The Cornerstone for Achieving SDG 7

Energy Efficiency: The Cornerstone for Achieving SDG 7
In 2015, all countries of the world agreed to adopt the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. These goals came into force on 1 January 2016 and are aimed at ending poverty, protecting the planet, and attaining prosperity for all. The adoption of the goals was a unique achievement as they are applicable universally, and countries are making joint efforts to achieve them. Although the SDGs are not legally binding, countries are expected to take ownership and to voluntarily report their progress at the national level.

Video Blog

VIDEO BLOG: Empowering local communities to finance their clean energy future

Let's Turn on the Lights
The efficiency of solar power cells and lower cost of storage batteries means it has become possible for isolated villages and whole islands to generate their own electricity off-grid. Indeed, in the aftermath of two hurricanes that struck Puerto Rico, Elon Musk tweeted that independent solar power linked to batteries could rebuild that island’s entire electricity system.

Energy

Energy strategies must consider all parts of the ‘energy trilemma’

A woman installs a solar panels on the roof of her house in rural Bhutan
As we gather this week for the 2015 Asian Clean Energy Forum, the context for our meeting has changed greatly from that of last year. We have seen a dramatic drop in the price of oil, which has sent shockwaves through the entire energy sector. Volatility is the new normal, and, for a sector known for its conservative outlook, this drives those at the forefront of the energy challenge to re-evaluate traditional norms. However, we see that it is not just price shocks that keep energy leaders awake at night: extreme weather and large-scale accidents/disruptions top the list of issues facing energy leaders in Asia.

Environment

Window of opportunity still open on climate action

Window of opportunity still open on climate action
A set of reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the last of which was released on November 2, 2014, sets the scene for governments to renew their efforts on the issue through ambitious commitments for a comprehensive climate agreement in Paris in December 2015.