MIGA Partners with IRENA to Scale Up Renewable Energy Projects
DUBAI, UAE, Dec. 5, 2023 – The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency of the World Bank (MIGA) and the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) today signed a Collaborative Partnership Agreement to enhance capital mobilization to scale up the implementation of renewable energy and energy transition projects. Ethiopis Tafara, MIGA Vice President and Chief Risk, Legal & Sustainability Officer and Partnerships, and Francesco La Camera, IRENA Director-General, signed the agreement during the United Nations Climate Change conference (COP28) in Dubai.
With this agreement, MIGA becomes a partner of the Energy Transition Accelerator Financing (ETAF) platform, a climate finance mechanism managed by IRENA. ETAF facilitates climate finance projects that advance global energy transition in IRENA member countries. Since its establishment, the ETAF has attracted $1.25 billion in pledged resources to support energy transition from development agencies and international development funds. It aims to facilitate 1.5 gigawatts of renewable energy projects by 2030.
“We welcome the opportunity to promote foreign direct investment to support projects that advance the global transition to renewable energy and contribute toward a low-carbon and climate-resilient development that benefits IRENA member countries,” said Hiroshi Matano, MIGA Executive Vice President. “MIGA brings decades of experience providing risk mitigation solutions to secure financing for projects in challenging environments. Our track record working in emerging markets and developing economies, fragile, conflict-affected, and vulnerable regions will enable us to make a substantive contribution to this partnership.”
IRENA, an intergovernmental organization headquartered in the United Arab Emirates, was founded in 2009 to support the widespread adoption and sustainable use of renewable energy. Its membership comprises 169 member countries and the European Union. IRENA established ETAF in 2021 as a global multi-stakeholder climate finance platform to advance the energy transition across IRENA membership and support the implementation of National Determined Contributions to meet the Paris Agreement objectives and targets and the realization of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.
“As the world advances unstoppably toward a renewables-based energy system, enabling access to risk mitigation resources in developing countries is crucial to ensure that the energy transition leaves no one behind,” said La Camera. “MIGA’s profound expertise in mitigating financial and political risks in emerging markets will significantly bolster ETAF’s capacity to facilitate and secure investments for vital renewable energy projects worldwide."
ETAF will source projects on an ongoing basis and act as facilitator, coordinator, and knowledge hub, providing technical support, mobilizing resources, and fostering collaboration. It will support feasible projects and mitigate investment risks through innovative financing solutions, matchmaking of project partners, technical assistance, and project facilitation. ETAF has a current pipeline of projects in Latin America, SIDS, Africa, and Asia.
“This partnership is not just about collaboration, but a strategic opportunity to align MIGA’s guarantee and insurance instruments with IRENA's technical expertise,” Tafara said. “By helping de-risk energy transition in emerging markets, together we can grow the pie of bankable renewable energy projects.”
The agreement with IRENA is consistent with MIGA’s strategic priorities to focus on climate finance and projects that address climate change and development together. This is a positive step for MIGA, as it will enable the agency to expand and strength its partnerships with other development organizations and support global efforts to speed up the energy transition.
In a tandem signing today, MIGA’s sister agency, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), signed its own partnership agreement with IRENA. Under this agreement, IFC will bring its expertise in project financing, concessional and blended finance, and energy transition, to the ETAF platform. IFC’s involvement will also help increase the flow of private capital toward ETAF projects.
About MIGA
MIGA was created in 1988 as a member of the World Bank to promote foreign direct investment in emerging economies by helping to mitigate the risks of restrictions on currency conversion and transfer, breach of contract by governments, expropriation, and war and civil disturbance; and offering credit enhancement to private investors and lenders. Since its creation, MIGA has issued over $76 billion in guarantees across 123 developing countries, supporting more than 1,000 projects. Over the past decade, MIGA’s guarantees have generated more than 156,000 jobs in developing countries.
About IRENA
IRENA is the lead intergovernmental agency for global energy transformation that supports countries in their transition to a sustainable energy future and serves as the principal platform for international cooperation, a centre of excellence, and a repository of policy, technology, resource, and financial knowledge on renewables. With 169 Members (168 States and the European Union) and 15 additional countries in the accession process and actively engaged, IRENA promotes the widespread adoption and sustainable use of all forms of renewables in pursuit of sustainable development, energy access, energy security and low-carbon economic growth and prosperity.
Contact:
In Washington:
Elizabeth Howton, (202) 458-5922 or ehowton@worldbankgroup.org
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