The answer: Develop specialised financial instruments that address the specific barriers to investing in energy efficiency.
Steve Fawkes, Managing Partner at ep group is the Lead Author of a new Toolkit designed as a comprehensive guide for policy makers and financial institutions to help them design effective financing instruments that can bring capital to improving the energy efficiency of the building stock in the Arab region.
Improving the energy efficiency of the building stock in the Arab region is as essential as it is elsewhere, and as well as reducing costs and emissions it can play a critical role in improving energy access. The Toolkit reviews the barriers to energy efficiency financing, some of which are generic and some of which are specific to the Arab region. It then reviews the essential components of energy efficiency financing instruments and presents different types of instrument including; credit lines; energy efficiency funds and others. Each type is illustrated by international examples and lessons drawn from best practice around the world. The Toolkit also makes proposals for the design of financing instruments in the region and for derisking investment into energy efficiency in buildings. As one of the barriers to increasing investment into energy efficiency is the very different languages spoken by efficiency experts and financiers the Toolkit also talks of the need to develop a common language and provides a ‘phrase book’ that can be used by both sides to aid communication.
This Toolkit pulls together much of ep group’s work and know-how on energy efficiency financing developed over the last decade including: developing the Investor Confidence Project Europe; leading various strands of work for the Energy Efficiency Financial Institutions Group including the EEFIG Underwriting Toolkit; and of course advising a number of funds in the UK, Europe and Asia; and conducting due diligence on specific investments. It is a capacity building tool to enable policy makers and other stakeholders to design effective energy efficiency financing instruments and supports our purpose of enabling maximum impact.