ImpactAlpha, August 1 — The COVID-19 pandemic reduced users and revenues for public transportation companies, says Mauricio Claver-Carone of the Inter-American Development Bank, dealing a hard blow to efforts to move away from fossil fuels and transition towards more secure energy sources.
IDB is joining forces with the U.N.’s Green Climate Fund and nine Latin American and Caribbean countries to advance low-carbon transportation and strengthen the resilience of urban transport infrastructure. The fund will provide concessional loans and grants to Barbados, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Panama, Paraguay and Uruguay.
Smart cities
The fund will deploy $284 million to finance electric buses, taxis, ride-hailing and delivery service vehicles and institutional fleets. $98 million will go towards micro-mobility, including short-distance vehicles, docking stations, cycling lanes and pedestrian streets. The fund will also finance green batteries and green hydrogen pilot projects.
IDB is hoping to cut 7.5 million tons of carbon emissions and impact nine million people, through benefits such as green jobs and lower energy bills.
Catalytic capital
IDB and its partners committed $200 million, including $5 million in grants. The Green Climate Fund, which manages $40 billion of assets, will allocate another $200 million, including $55 million in grants. The government partners will add $50 million to bring the fund’s total to $450 million.
The fund’s technical assistance aims to improve designs, regulations and business model for private financing – and create a gender action plan to increase equity in e-mobility.
