Search Climate Insights Directory

Africa possesses vast untapped renewable energy resources and critical minerals but faces significant barriers in financing, technology ownership, and value chain integration. While some progress has been made in solar, wind, and hydropower, the continent remains heavily reliant on imports for technology and patents. The document argues for strengthened partnerships, increased climate finance from the Global North, and the development of local manufacturing to ensure a just energy transition.

The evaluation finds that while the GCF has a prominent position in climate finance and a diverse set of instruments, its energy sector approach lacks a clearly articulated strategy and suffers from a mismatch between its stated and actual risk appetite. The portfolio is heavily skewed toward international accredited entities (IAEs) and focuses primarily on renewable energy generation, while underfinancing energy efficiency and emerging technologies like green hydrogen and large-scale storage. Results management is described as underdeveloped, with inconsistent metrics for measuring paradigm shifts and a lack of specific emissions reduction targets for the energy sector. The report recommends that the GCF clarify its role in the global energy transition, increase support for enabling environments and regulatory frameworks, and better align its risk appetite with transformational innovation.

The report identifies a significant gap between global solar panel manufacturing capacity and projected deployment, resulting in 'spare' capacity of 3,837 GW between 2024 and 2030. Utilizing this surplus could enable the world to exceed the COP28 target of tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030, reaching 13,345 GW (a 21% excess). The document argues that deploying just one-seventh of this spare capacity could meet the electricity demand growth and extend basic energy access to the entire populations of 88 analyzed Global South countries. It highlights that 80-85% of manufacturing is based in China, where companies are already facing investment delays and layoffs due to under-deployment. The report suggests a 'win-win-win' scenario where China maintains its industry, Global South nations gain energy independence and access, and developed nations fulfill their climate finance responsibilities.

The document argues that achieving cost-effective net-zero emissions in Canada's building sector requires a significant shift toward electrification and a cessation of gas network expansion. It highlights a misalignment between current utility regulations—which continue to incentivize gas infrastructure growth—and the necessary transition to clean energy. The briefing recommends that provincial governments legally mandate net-zero targets for regulators, prioritize electrification over gas for new developments, and develop managed contraction plans for existing gas networks to avoid stranded assets and protect taxpayers.

The report evaluates Nigeria's strategy to expand LNG production to offset declining oil revenues, warning that such investments risk becoming stranded assets as global demand shifts toward clean energy after 2030. It highlights that while Nigeria is the world's sixth-largest LNG exporter, the sector has not significantly improved domestic energy access or reduced poverty, and continues to be linked to environmental degradation and social conflict in the Niger Delta.

The report evaluates Madagascar's cold chain infrastructure, focusing on medical vaccines and four agricultural value chains: potatoes, tomatoes, fisheries, and dairy. It identifies significant gaps in electricity access and road infrastructure that lead to high post-harvest losses and inequitable vaccine coverage. The analysis proposes electrification scenarios for healthcare facilities and investment roadmaps for agricultural cooling, emphasizing the high return on investment for fisheries and dairy.

The report assesses Madagascar's clean cooking landscape, where only 5% of households use clean technologies. It models two 2030 scenarios: a baseline based on the SDG7 Energy Compact and a 'Universal Access' scenario emphasizing e-cooking and biofuels. Key findings highlight that while bioethanol, biogas, and pellets have vast production potential, affordability remains the primary barrier. The transition could significantly reduce deforestation and avert thousands of deaths from indoor air pollution, particularly benefiting women who bear the brunt of fuel collection and cooking tasks.

This executive summary outlines the 'Accelerating Private Sector Investments in Green Mini-Grids' report, which examines the Distributed Renewable Energy (DRE) mini-grids sector in Africa and the collaborative efforts required to overcome barriers to deployment.

The report examines Nigeria's decentralised renewable energy (DRE) sector, focusing on green mini-grids, solar home systems (SHS), and productive use of energy (PUE). While Nigeria has a significant energy access deficit—with 88.5 million people lacking electricity—it has developed a robust regulatory framework and a dynamic private sector. Growth is driven by international donor programmes and government initiatives like the Nigeria Electrification Project (NEP). However, the sector faces substantial hurdles, including high inflation, foreign exchange risks, limited local manufacturing, and difficulty accessing affordable local credit.

The document presents an Evidence Gap Map (EGM) developed by SEforALL and 3ie to guide policymakers and researchers toward rigorous evidence on sustainable energy in low- and middle-income countries (L&MICs). Based on a search of 22 academic databases and 29 grey literature sources, the EGM includes 703 studies (668 impact evaluations and 35 systematic reviews). The evidence base is geographically skewed, with nearly half of the impact evaluations focused on China or India, and significant gaps exist for countries with the most pressing electrification needs, such as Burundi and South Sudan. While improved cookstoves are the most evaluated technology, there is a total lack of rigorous evidence for interventions involving insurance, risk guarantee instruments, push and pull finance, and advocacy and diplomacy.

The document analyzes the emergence of 'equity PIMs'—regulatory tools that provide financial rewards or penalties to utilities based on their performance regarding equity metrics. It identifies seven US jurisdictions using these tools to address energy poverty and the inequitable distribution of clean energy benefits. The report distinguishes between program-based and outcome-based PIMs, discusses the role of reporting metrics and scorecards as precursors to financial incentives, and argues that PIMs must be part of a broader regulatory strategy including cost-control reforms and low-income assistance to be effective.

The Accelerating Solar Action Program (ASAP) is a USD 31.57 million initiative implemented by Ecobank Ghana Limited to expand access to distributed Solar PV systems for households and MSMEs in Ghana. The program combines a USD 15 million loan from the Green Climate Fund (GCF) with USD 15 million from Ecobank to provide concessional term loans with tenors up to 7 years, addressing high upfront costs and restrictive commercial lending terms. ASAP aims to install 30.59 MW of capacity across 2,382 beneficiaries, including irrigation cooperatives, to reduce GHG emissions by 417,452 tCO2 eq over 25 years. Beyond financing, the program includes technical assistance for capacity building of bank officers, solar vendors, and Energy Commission staff, alongside advocacy to catalyze a national net-metering market.

The document explores the theoretical capacity of superhot rock energy in South America, highlighting its potential to meet rising energy demands, reduce fossil fuel reliance, and leverage existing oil and gas expertise, while noting that commercial scale is not expected by 2030.

The document explores the potential of superhot rock energy in Africa, highlighting its capacity to provide massive amounts of carbon-free electricity and its potential to drive economic growth and energy access.

The document explores the potential of superhot rock energy in Asia, highlighting its capacity to provide massive amounts of carbon-free electricity and its potential to replace fossil fuels while requiring minimal land use.

The document outlines the role of virtual power plants (VPPs) in aggregating distributed energy resources (DERs) to provide utility-grade services and argues that strong policy and regulation are essential to scale these benefits over the next one to four years.

The 'Sharing the Power' project, supported by the Dutch Postcode Lottery and implemented by RMI and Nayo Tropical Technology Ltd., has upgraded a solar minigrid in Mokoloki, Ogun State, Nigeria. The project addresses capacity shortfalls caused by a 60 percent population increase and rising diesel costs by increasing battery capacity from 190 kWh to 316 kWh and switching to a DC coupled system. Central to the model is 'inclusive energy governance,' where the Mokoloki community holds an 11 percent stake in the project, granting them voting rights through a Community Power Association (CPA) and 11 percent of net revenues to fund communal projects such as roads, schools, and health centers.

The Forum on Trade, Environment, & the SDGs (TESS) urges the TESSD to shift its format from presentations to outcome-oriented discussions to achieve concrete results by MC14. TESS suggests a more sectoral approach to circularity (e.g., textiles and electronics) and clean energy, while emphasizing the need for inclusive participation from developing countries, least developed countries, and small-island developing states. The statement advocates for the TESSD to act as an 'inclusive incubator' that complements the WTO's Committee on Trade and Environment (CTE) and other multilateral bodies.

Hamara Grid is implementing a PPPP model in Mon district, Nagaland, to deploy solar mini-grids (30 kWp to 45 kWp) as a solution to the poor reliability of the national grid. The project integrates energy access with livelihoods, health, and education, utilizing a blended finance structure of grants, debt, and equity. As of August 2023, six mini-grids are operational, with a target of 50 villages by June 2025. Key findings highlight the importance of incubating energy-based livelihoods to accelerate energy utilization and the strategic prioritization of larger villages to reach commercial viability faster.

The GCF Risk Dashboard for Q4 2024 reports that portfolio concentration risks remain within Board-approved tolerance levels, though 28 projects are under close monitoring due to notable issues or delays. The fund's total committed amount is USD 15.8 billion equivalent, with a geographic distribution led by Africa (37%) and APAC (30%). Financial instruments are primarily split between loans (41%) and grants (39%), while 54% of target areas focus on mitigation and 46% on adaptation. The report also notes one non-performing loan of USD 4.19 million associated with the IDB's Low Emissions and Climate Resilient Agriculture Risk Sharing Facility.