The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the Green Climate Fund (GCF) launched new $1.01 billion in financing targeting high emitting industries in the private sector with an agreement signed Wednesday.
According to a statement from the bank, the EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso and GCF Executive Director Yannick Glemarec signed the agreement that will promote the uptake of low-carbon technologies in the industrial sector.
The program combined $252.5 million of concessional finance from the GCF with $757.5 million from the EBRD and other co-financiers, and an additional $5.53 million from the GCF and $1.36 million from the EBRD for technical assistance and policy dialogue.
The program is the GCF’s first at-scale engagement in the sector.
It has been designed to facilitate a transformational shift within the energy-intensive industries, agribusinesses and the mining sector of Armenia, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Morocco, Serbia, Tunisia and Uzbekistan and will support corporates in formulating a low-carbon pathway.
"Overall, the program is expected to reduce emissions by 17.2 million tons of CO2 over a 20-year asset lifetime, which is equivalent to avoiding one year’s worth of energy-related CO2 emissions by a country like Croatia," the statement said.
"Companies face a range of challenges related to identifying, prioritizing and implementing low-carbon projects, and support from the EBRD and the GCF will be crucial," EBRD President Renaud-Basso was quoted as saying in the statement.
GCF Executive Director Glemarec said the program, which covers seven countries, serves as a model in paring back emissions in hard-to-abate industries and will facilitate technology transfer and place climate change at the center of corporate strategy.
By Nuran Erkul Kaya
Anadolu Agency
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