A new climate fund backed by philanthropic donors is aiming to trigger $2.5 billion of clean energy investment in Southeast Asia and aid the region’s green recovery after the coronavirus. The South East Asia Clean Energy Facility (SEACEF) is managed by Singapore-based Clime Capital, with an initial investment of $10 million and a focus on getting new projects underway in Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines.
Asia-Pacific, home to two-thirds of the world’s people, is experiencing rising urbanization, population and economic growth, leaving nations scrambling to provide enough electric power while keeping promises to cut heat-trapping emissions. Last year, researchers said Southeast Asian countries must end their reliance on coal power and switch to clean energy, to meet pledges to curb climate change and tackle air pollution. But the region is struggling to wean itself off abundant, locally produced cheap coal in favor of clean alternatives to burning fossil fuels, the main contributor to climate change.
SEACEF describes itself as a “first-of-its-kind” philanthropic initiative to tackle climate change, focused on the high-risk funding needed to get new clean energy projects up and running. It will look to invest broadly in projects and businesses that include wind and solar power, mains grid infrastructure, energy efficiency in buildings, and electronic mobility and storage. Early-stage capital is “in very short supply”, a situation exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic pushing investors to reduce their exposure and limit development budgets, he added. The fund, which hopes to attract an additional $40 million in capital from foundations and development banks, aims to mobilize more than $2.5 billion in clean energy investment from the private sector.