Bloomberg Philanthropies and Goldman Sachs Deploy $25 Million to Advance Clean Energy Solutions in South and Southeast Asia – EQ Mag Pro
NEW YORK, NY : Today, Bloomberg Philanthropies and Goldman Sachs announced the launch of the Climate Innovation Fund to support sustainable low-carbon economic development with a focus on South and Southeast Asia to increase the pace, scale, and ambition of climate solutions and contribute to the clean energy transition.
The Fund’s initial US$25 million in philanthropic funding from Bloomberg Philanthropies and Goldman Sachs, to be managed by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), has the potential to unlock up to $500 million in private sector and governmental investments in critical solutions to accelerate technologies and markets for a net-zero future.
The Fund will initially tackle projects with direct, measurable positive climate-related outcomes in the most carbon intensive areas of India and Vietnam. Investments will focus on projects in clean energy systems, sustainable transport, energy efficiency, and adaptation activities to improve the climate resilience of livelihoods and infrastructure.
“As we work to rebuild economies devastated by the pandemic, we have the opportunity to make progress on another deadly crisis we are facing – climate change. By investing in solutions that will create jobs and spur economic growth now, we can also make economies more resilient for generations to come,” said Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies. “India and Vietnam are dynamic and growing markets, and both have the potential to lead the way in the global fight against climate change. This fund will give them access to the capital and direct investment they need to do just that, and I’m looking forward to working with our partners at Goldman Sachs and the Asian Development Bank as we expand our efforts in the region and help other countries do the same.”
“It’s imperative for risk capital to support new technologies and low-carbon solutions that help us to build a more sustainable future,” said David Solomon, Chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs. “The Climate Innovation Fund will serve to catalyze investment in new, low-carbon technologies in under-invested parts of the global economy. We are proud to be working alongside Bloomberg Philanthropies and the Asian Development Bank on this important initiative.”
“ADB plans to significantly scale up its investments to tackle the adverse impacts of climate change,” said Masatsugu Asakawa, President of the Asian Development Bank. “The planned Climate Innovation Fund will help ADB meet the demands from developing countries in the region for innovative technical and financing solutions to boost both mitigation and adaptation.”
According to BloombergNEF (BNEF), South and Southeast Asia are key markets for clean energy development, due to lower generation costs of wind and solar power and improving economics of energy storage. India, for instance, has installed 38.7 gigawatts of wind and solar capacity in the past four years and the market is expected to grow to 17 gigawatts per year by 2025. However, nations in these regions are also home to extensive coal reserves and continue to support development of coal-fired power generation.
Source : goldmansachs
