Financing Clean Energy

The report examines clean energy financing tools used by six U.S. states and Germany to scale up renewable energy and energy efficiency investments. It highlights the role of 'green banks' and other mechanisms in reducing financial risks for the private sector and overcoming barriers like high upfront costs and limited technical understanding among financiers. Case studies include Connecticut and New York's green banks, Pennsylvania and Kentucky's use of the Warehouse for Energy Efficiency Loans (WHEEL), Iowa's revolving loans, and Massachusetts's Mass Save HEAT Loan. The report concludes that these tools can help states achieve Clean Power Plan targets by leveraging limited public funds to attract significant private capital.

• State 'green banks' are effective tools for scaling up clean energy investments by leveraging public capital to attract private-sector investment, helping states meet Clean Power Plan emissions targets.
• The Connecticut Green Bank transitioned the state's market from government subsidies to private financing; it has completed 8,800 projects, installed solar panels in over 10,000 homes, and reduced carbon emissions by one million tons.
• The New York Green Bank identified a potential clean energy investment opportunity of over $75 billion for its first 10 years of operation, with the largest portion allocated to energy efficiency at $55.1 billion.
• Pennsylvania's Keystone HELP program has supported more than 12,000 residential loans totaling nearly $90 million and has transitioned to the Warehouse for Energy Efficiency Loans (WHEEL) model to access secondary capital markets.
• Massachusetts's Mass Save HEAT Loan program provided zero-interest financing for residential energy efficiency, funding $180 million in projects across more than 21,000 homes through 2012.
• Germany's Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) has significantly scaled clean energy through diverse products; between 2011 and 2013, it financed nearly €25 billion in renewable energy and €80 billion in energy efficiency retrofits.
• Iowa's Alternative Energy Revolving Loan Program (AERLP) has provided $28.4 million in funding for 195 alternative energy projects with total construction costs of $295 million since 1996.

APA

Anair, D., Mahmassani, A., Belden, A., Clemmer, S., & Wright, K. (2015). Financing Clean Energy. Union of Concerned Scientists. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2015/07/financing-clean-energy.pdf

Chicago

Anair, Don, Amine Mahmassani, Andrew Belden, Steven Clemmer, and Kathryn Wright. Financing Clean Energy. Union of Concerned Scientists, 2015. https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2015/07/financing-clean-energy.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Anair |first1=Don |last2=Mahmassani |first2=Amine |last3=Belden |first3=Andrew |last4=Clemmer |first4=Steven |last5=Wright |first5=Kathryn |title=Financing Clean Energy |publisher=Union of Concerned Scientists |date=July 2015 |url=https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2015/07/financing-clean-energy.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{anair2015financing, author = {Anair, Don and Mahmassani, Amine and Belden, Andrew and Clemmer, Steven and Wright, Kathryn}, title = {{Financing Clean Energy}}, institution = {Union of Concerned Scientists}, year = {2015}, month = jul, url = {https://www.ucs.org/sites/default/files/attach/2015/07/financing-clean-energy.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }