Historic Alliance At COP26 Accelerates Investments In Green Energy
Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) was made during COP26 to accelerate investments in green energy, renewable power solutions and aid in the transition for both developing and emerging economies around the world.
Over the next decade, the alliance aims to unlock £74.8 billion (100 Billion USD) in private and public wealth alongside tackling three profound human issues:
- Power: the power demand has increased drastically due to the increase in population. The alliance wants to provide renewable and reliable energy to one billion people.
- Climate: 4 billion tons of greenhouse gases and carbon emissions avoided and averted.
- Green Jobs: creating, improving and enabling 150 million green jobs that generate inclusive economic growth.
The Alliance also opened a “Global Call for Transformational Country Partnerships” at COP26. It offers financial and technical assistance to developing and emerging economies in energy transitioning, grid-based renewables and to fund advanced ecosystems of clean energy projects.
Republic of Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo said that Indonesia is proud to endorse the GEAPP. He also stated that this alliance is an excellent initiative to bring together critical stakeholders to align and co-create a sustainable path for nations and future generations.
Countries with poor energy infrastructure are currently responsible for 25% of the global CO2 emissions. These emissions are predicted to grow to 75% by 2050. However, these countries only get 13% of clean energy financing despite harbouring nearly half of the world’s population.
Developing countries are heavily reliant on fossil fuels. 243 GW of coal plants are being planned, permitted or under construction. If constructed, these will collectively emit 38 billion tons of CO2 in the coming decades equal to the total global emissions of 2020. There is a need to change this trajectory. To maximise jobs and livelihoods, the alliance announced they would provide more than £74.8 billion to solely focus on fossil fuel transitioning, distribution of renewables and grid-based renewables.
The alliance has partnered with various philanthropic organisations (The Rockefeller Foundation, IKEA Foundation, and Bezos Earth Fund) and investment partners (African Development Bank Group, Asian Development Bank, European Investment Bank, Inter-American Development Bank, UK’s CDC Group, US International Development Finance Corporation, and World Bank). Its country partners include Co-hosts of the 2021 UNCCC Italy and UK and Denmark.
CHANGING ENERGY FOR THE BETTER
The last decade has seen significant technological breakthroughs that made renewables economically feasible for new power in more than two-thirds of the planet. This is the first time in history that technology like this exists to provide a safe, sustainable way to provide energy for people who lack electricity. Access to electricity will boost human development by creating jobs, promoting gender equity and cutting emissions to avert the impending climate crisis. The alliance aims to work closely with emerging and developing countries, that are ready to ride the energy transition wave, and reduce carbon emissions and increase revenues.
Through the Global Call for Transitional Country Partnerships, the alliance wants to meet the growing energy demands with renewables instead of fossil fuels. They want to empower people and communities that lack access to electricity or have unreliable access.
The alliance will be working with governments to design and execute their decarbonisation plans, enhance domestic policies, and work on planning and regulatory frameworks. The alliance will also help create favourable investment settings and ensure the end-to-end delivery of national transformational programs.
NATIONAL TRANSFORMATIONAL PROGRAMS IN AFRICA
- Nigeria – Unleashing Decentralised Renewable Energy (DRE) Electrification
85 million people in Nigeria have no electricity, the GEAPP wants to work on strengthening Nigeria’s DRE sector, fund project development and help amass public and private capital from alliance partners. It will enable the deployment of distributed renewables through distribution utilities and accelerate the deployment of 5000 renewable (mini) grids. These endeavours will improve power quality (for productive use) and reduce fossil fuel (diesel) usage. The alliance aims to reach 11.9 million people with power and simultaneously avoid 31.7M tons of yearly CO2 emissions.
- Ethiopia – Unlocking the Agriculture Energy Nexus
Ethiopia has the world’s third-highest unelectrified population alongside only 10% of agricultural irrigation due to a lack of reliable power.
The alliance’s objective is to develop and execute a transformational distributed renewable energy program through microgrids to deliver energy to the agricultural sector. The intended impact is to increase farmers income by 80% and provide energy access to 4.2 million people in the region.
We think the alliance is an excellent way towards collaborative action against the climate and energy crises. With the involvement of bringing leading technology providers and finance agents together, the GEAPP is one of the most significant initiatives to extend clean, reliable and sustainable energy to many who don’t have access while simultaneously eliminating carbon pollution. EGB thinks it’s a win-win solution. Not only will it create jobs, and benefit health, it will also provide essential development and climate gains.
ABOUT EGB ENGINEERING
EGB Engineering is an international engineering consultancy firm with expertise in the field of power and propulsion. We provide sustainable and renewable engineering products and services to clients and operate in the aerospace, energy and nuclear industries.
