REEEP to invest €3.95m in emerging clean energy projects

9th January 2013 By: Natalie Greve - Creamer Media Contributing Editor Online

The Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP) would invest some €3.95-million in 28 clean energy projects in 19 countries with the aim of scaling up renewable-energy and energy-efficient solutions in key emerging markets and developing countries in Africa and Asia. 

The primary contributors of the most recent funding cycle – REEEP’s ninth – were the UK, Norway and Switzerland governments.

Funding remained focused on the replication or scaling-up of successful initiatives previously funded by the organisation, as well as on supporting off-grid generation, harnessing the benefits of clean energy in food production and water supply, and the release of energy data in emerging markets.

REEEP director-general Martin Hiller said on Wednesday that the free availability of publically owned energy data could provide a significant boost for the clean energy businesses.

“One of the new projects will release energy access data in Ghana through a database populated with relevant energy statistics. This will become a leading example of open data on the African continent,” he noted.

REEEP programme director Eva Oberender added that the organisation would focus on the nexus between clean energy, food production and water provision, which included developing solar-powered cold-storage for fishing communities in Indonesia and solar-powered pumps for irrigation in Kenya and Burkina Faso. 

Further, REEEP’s focus included Peru and Vietnam for the first time, largely as a result of the Swiss funding, while the government of Norway, which has been a strong supporter of REEEP since 2006, is supporting or cofunding 15 projects.

“REEEP has built an impressive base of experience that is typified in the expansion of successful business models for renewable energy and energy efficiency in developing countries,” said Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs acting director-general Kåre Stormark

“Our funds are well-invested here because they aim to reach far beyond the original project outcome.”

The partnership develops sector-specific interventions, and has funded more than 180 clean energy projects in 58 countries, disbursing €18.4-million and leveraging an additional €35.1-million in cofunding.