BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 29. The World Bank Board approved a $2 billion project to improve energy security and affordability by increasing the use of renewable energy sources in rising and developing economies in Europe and Central Asia, Trend reports.
According to the World Bank, the Europe and Central Asia
Renewable Energy Scale-up (ECARES) program is a 10-year multi-stage
initiative that aims to increase renewable energy capacity by 15 GW
(enough to charge 650 million electric vehicles annually) and
reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 240 million metric tons
(equivalent to not burning 100 billion liters of gasoline).
This initiative will support nations' efforts to accelerate the
transition to clean energy, reduce carbon emissions in their
economies, and improve their international competitiveness by
funding supportive policies and institutions, integrating with the
grid, and providing financial and risk management solutions.
Moreover, the program anticipates attracting $6 billion in private capital financing.
The inaugural project sanctioned by the World Bank Board under the ECARES initiative is a $657 million financing facility designated for the Accelerating the Market Transition for Distributed Energy project in Türkiye, in support of the country’s goal of adding 60 GW of solar and wind power by 2035.
To note, the ECARES program combines policy and technical guidance, financial resources, and risk mitigation tools to deliver impactful solutions on a large scale.
The Türkiye Accelerating the Market Transition for Distributed Energy project will concentrate on enlarging the distributed solar energy market for end-users, including businesses and households.
Additionally, it will pilot distributed battery electricity storage to boost renewable energy utilization.