isramart : Securing CDM and energy efficiency

isramart news:
Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) in the region and domestic schemes for energy efficiency were under discussion at a recent forum held by the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP) and CVC Sustainable Investments.

The CDM and domestic schemes for energy efficiency Consultative Forums, held in Melbourne and Sydney in September, updated participants on the international and domestic scheme designs and sought their views on the design of domestic frameworks for energy efficiency incentives. Discussion focussed on the Victorian Energy Efficiency Target, the South Australia’s Residential Energy Efficiency Scheme and the New South Wales Energy Efficiency Trading Scheme.

Carbon Bridge Managing Director Bridget McIntosh discussed how the CDM’s project mechanism has stimulated small scale renewable energy and energy efficiency projects in the region.

Ms McIntosh said that CDM in South East Asian developing countries has been successful in stimulating renewable energy take-up and greenhouse gas abatement and that is has helped in these areas because it is able to be used in discrete projects.

She highlighted the effectiveness of CDM as an effective mechanism for encouraging take-up and use of renewable energy in developing nations, particularly in the Asia region. There are almost 4,000 renewable energy and greenhouse gas abatement projects in the pipeline to become CDMs – 75 per cent of which are in the Asia region.

Highlighting the benefits of CDM, Ms McIntosh said that the scheme does not pick winners, allowing market-based choices, innovation in finance and the room for the market to find its own investments.

She said that without CDM, renewable energy in these developing countries would not have been catalysed and would not be as thriving and active as it is today. Ms McIntosh called for a policy framework to support project-based work.

Other speakers at the forum were Demand Manager Managing Director Jeff Bye and Green Energy Trading Director Ric Brazalle. Windcorp and CVC Sustainable Investments Director Mark Fogarty chaired both the Melbourne and Sydney forums.