Asia is home to some of the world’s most coal-dependent economies. Public-private partnerships to shift countries to greener energy sources, such as the Just Energy Transition Partnerships in Indonesia and Vietnam, have stalled.
Singaporean asset manager Keppel is teaming up with the state’s enterprise development body and the Asian Development Bank, or ADB, to develop a pipeline of investable projects in clean and bio-energy, waste-to-energy, green mobility and green real estate.
“The cooperation on blended finance, which explores potential uses of concessionary financing, will further improve bankability, support development outcomes, and help mobilize private investment for the projects,” the partners said in a statement.
The goal is to invest $800 million by 2030 and offset 1.2 million tons of CO2 annually.
Catalytic capital
About $434 billion is needed annually through 2030 to significantly shift the energy mix in Asia’s emerging economies to clean, affordable energy.
“As the global push towards decarbonization accelerates, the demand for financing to support clean energy transition and environmental projects across the Asia Pacific has never been greater,” said Keppel’s Cindy Lim.
Keppel reached the first close of its APAC-focused infrastructure fund last year at $575 million. It will leverage its technical expertise in large-scale infrastructure in the partnership. The partners are hopeful ADB’s concessionary and first-in financing and Enterprise Singapore’s market access and networks will mobilize investment and drive green growth.
