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The document assesses the progress of Germany's Energiewende, noting that while renewable energy shares have grown, coal still provided 42% of power production in 2015. It highlights the economic tension between the 'big four' utilities and decentralized renewables, the social and political challenges of phasing out hard coal and lignite, and the influence of industry unions in blocking a proposed climate levy on power plants in favor of a capacity reserve.

The research paper reviews INDCs submitted to the UNFCCC as of November 20, 2015, to identify the prevalence of fiscal policies such as fossil fuel subsidy reform, clean energy subsidies, and carbon pricing. It finds that 39 INDCs reference these instruments, with a strong trend toward unconditional commitments. The paper highlights the significant potential for greenhouse gas reductions through fossil fuel subsidy reform (FFSR), supported by the GSI-IF model, and recommends that more countries integrate these tools to help meet the two-degree climate threshold.

Rooftop solar in the United States experienced rapid growth between 2008 and 2014, driven by a 45% decrease in household system prices from 2010 to 2014 and the rise of third-party ownership models. The technology provides significant environmental benefits, including zero carbon emissions and minimal water use during electricity generation, while supporting a domestic industry that employed over 170,000 people by 2014. Growth is further sustained by federal and state policies such as net metering, feed-in tariffs, and a 30% federal investment tax credit.

The report argues that public finance for geothermal energy in developing countries must increase 7-10 fold to meet 2030 targets. Through case studies in Kenya, Indonesia, and Turkey, it demonstrates that public risk mitigation measures—such as concessional loans, guarantees, and exploration support—can reduce the levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) by 35-48%, allowing governments to achieve deployment targets while spending only 15-35% of the resources required for full public ownership.

The report argues that a "carbon market only" approach is insufficient for the cost-effective decarbonisation of the European power sector. While the EU ETS is an effective tool for driving fuel switching in the residual thermal generation mix, it cannot alone drive necessary investments in low-carbon technologies due to high capital costs, revenue risks, and the 'merit order effect'. The authors recommend a policy mix where the EU ETS is complemented by tailored national investment supports—such as feed-in tariffs or contracts for difference—to reduce the cost of capital. To ensure coherence, the report proposes an ex-ante cap adjustment process for the ETS based on Member State National Energy and Climate Plans and the development of long-term decarbonisation strategies back-casted from 2050.

The Sarulla Geothermal Power Plant case study demonstrates how public risk mitigation, including guarantees and feed-in tariffs, can attract private investment for geothermal energy in Indonesia. The project benefited from access to proven resources, which reduced exploration risk and allowed the developer to pay USD 70 million for completed exploration. While the project is expected to increase Indonesia's geothermal capacity by 20% and save 1.3 mt of CO2 annually by 2018, its levelized cost of electricity (USD 7.8-8.2 ¢/kWh) remains 40-60% higher than coal in Indonesia when excluding emission and health costs. The study suggests that public finance should prioritize exploration and field development, as commercial lenders are more willing to fund construction once resource risks are mitigated.

The document examines the challenges and opportunities for geothermal energy in Indonesia, highlighting the Sarulla Geothermal Power Plant as a model for private sector involvement. It argues that while Indonesia has the world's largest geothermal potential (29GW), utilization remains below 5% due to regulatory hurdles, funding gaps, and high exploration risks. The Sarulla project, with a planned 330MW capacity, demonstrates how proven resources, public guarantees, and long-term feed-in tariffs can attract private investment and lower costs. The report concludes that public finance should be strategically focused on the high-risk exploration and field development phases to meet Indonesia's 2025 target of 7.6GW installed capacity.

The Sarulla Geothermal Power Plant (GPP) in Indonesia serves as a model for mobilizing private finance in the geothermal sector. By utilizing a combination of public guarantees, a long-term feed-in tariff, and concessional loans, the project attracted significant private debt and equity despite the high risks associated with field development. The study highlights that access to proven resources significantly reduced developer risk, while the government's Business Viability Guarantee Letter (BVGL) addressed bankability concerns regarding the state-owned offtaker, PLN. While the project's levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) is competitive with other geothermal projects, it remains more expensive than coal in Indonesia. The report concludes that to meet Indonesia's 7.6GW target by 2025, the government may need to take a larger role in early-stage exploration to further reduce risks for private investors.

Ontario eliminated coal-fired electricity generation by the end of 2014, a process described as the "single largest GHG reduction measure in North America." The transition was primarily driven by public health concerns and the influence of a coalition including the Ontario Medical Association and the Ontario Clean Air Alliance. Key enabling factors included the public ownership of coal plants, which allowed the government to absorb shutdown costs, and the lack of local coal reserves, which minimized economic resistance from producers. While the phase-out significantly reduced greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 34 megatonnes since 2007, the report notes that coal was largely replaced by natural gas rather than renewables. The experience highlights the importance of credible messengers, realistic timelines, and multi-party political consensus in achieving large-scale energy transitions.

The Climate Policy Initiative outlines a framework for mapping climate finance flows to establish investment baselines, reveal interactions between public and private finance, and identify opportunities for policy improvement. The guide emphasizes tracking project-level primary financing and total investments over additional costs, while cautioning against double-counting by excluding revenue supports like feed-in tariffs and private R&D. The author notes that data gaps, particularly in the land use sector, remain a challenge, leading to a collaboration with the European Forestry Institute and Climate Focus to develop specific mapping tools for that sector.

The report finds that while renewable energy auctions are generally cost-effective and fair in project allocation, they often suffer from low deployment due to poor risk management. By analyzing 20 global auctions, the study identifies that project risks (such as transmission and land acquisition) have a greater negative impact on deployment than auction-specific risks. The authors recommend a 'controlled environment' for introducing wind energy auctions in India, including pre-identified sites and resource assessments, alongside the use of strong penalties for non-commissioning and payment guarantee mechanisms to ensure financial viability.

The report finds that wind power is already cost-competitive with imported coal, while solar power is expected to become competitive by 2019. It argues that the total cost of government support for solar energy can be reduced by 96% if the government shifts from accelerated depreciation to a policy of reduced cost, extended tenor debt. To further minimize costs, the report suggests accelerating wind deployment in the near term and ramping up solar deployment after 2019.

The document examines India's Accelerated Depreciation (AD) scheme, which served as a primary driver for wind capacity growth from 1994 until its withdrawal in 2012 and subsequent reinstatement in 2014. While the AD benefit successfully attracted private investment from corporations and high-net-worth individuals, it was criticized for incentivizing capacity additions over actual power generation and excluding large independent power producers and foreign investors. The report contrasts this with the Generation-Based Incentive (GBI) and the US experience with Production Tax Credits, concluding that future policies must link incentives to performance and improve grid infrastructure to ensure sustainable industry growth.

The Gümüşköy Geothermal Power Plant (GPP) represents the first instance in Turkey where the private sector financed the exploration of an unproven geothermal field. Developed by BM Holding, the 13.2MW project utilized a combination of USD 15.1 million in private equity and USD 34.5 million in debt, including a USD 24.9 million loan from the EBRD-funded Mid-size Sustainable Energy Finance Facility (MidSEFF) channeled through Yapikredi. The project's financial viability was secured by a ten-year USD-denominated feed-in tariff (FiT) of 10.5 USD¢/kWh, which increased equity returns from 10% to 16%. The study finds that while Turkey's geothermal sector grew rapidly from 30MW in 2008 to 405MW in 2014, most projects relied on government-proven fields. Gümüşköy demonstrates that private-led exploration can be cost-competitive, with an LCOE of 10.3 USD¢/kWh, and can build local banking capacity for sustainable energy finance. However, the report warns that scaling the sector requires addressing high carbon emissions from non-condensable gases, suggesting binary systems and carbon capture for industrial use as solutions.

The article examines the use of local content requirements (LCRs) to align renewable energy deployment with socio-economic goals like job creation and economic development. Using an effectiveness framework applied to India’s National Solar Mission for solar photovoltaics, the analysis identifies three critical conditions for LCRs to be effective: they must be limited in duration with planned evaluations, focused on technologies with available expertise and manageable market barriers, and integrated with training, business linkages, and broader value chain support.

The report identifies geothermal energy as a cost-competitive, low-carbon baseload power source, but notes that its deployment is hindered by high resource risks and long development timelines. It finds that 76-90% of geothermal project investments rely on public debt or equity, as the private sector is generally unwilling to fund the high-risk exploration phase. The document argues that while current policy support often focuses on the operational phase, public finance should be redirected toward the early stages of project development to attract more private capital.

The document examines how Spain's Feed-in Tariffs and Feed-in Premiums successfully drove the deployment of 2.3 GW of CSP and fostered a world-leading domestic industry, but later shattered investor confidence through retroactive cost-cutting measures. It highlights that the lack of deployment caps and failure to drive cost reductions led to unsustainable public costs, resulting in a market standstill since 2012 and increased financing costs due to heightened risk aversion.

The report examines the financing of renewable energy in China, highlighting the transition from an electricity surcharge system to potential environmental fiscal measures. It analyzes global investment trends, the types and risks of renewable energy subsidies, and provides a framework for designing a carbon tax to fund the energy transition, drawing on international examples from Europe and North America.

The report details the expansion of solar energy in the U.S., focusing on rooftop photovoltaic (PV) systems, large-scale PV, and concentrating solar power (CSP). It highlights significant cost reductions, the role of state and federal incentives, and the environmental benefits of transitioning from fossil fuels to solar, while addressing grid integration challenges and land-use impacts.

The document evaluates the EU's climate policy instruments, finding that while 2020 targets are likely to be met, the reductions were driven more by the economic crisis than by policy. It highlights low cost-effectiveness due to a lack of uniform carbon pricing and notes that energy efficiency targets are at risk.