Several clean energy initiatives have been launched at the 2nd Ministerial of the Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas (ECPA), which strived to further strengthen momentum in the region to combat climate change and accelerate clean energy technology and policies ahead of the Paris Climate Change Conference.
26 May 2015: Several clean energy initiatives have been launched at the 2nd Ministerial of the Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas (ECPA), which strived to further strengthen momentum in the region to combat climate change and accelerate clean energy technology and policies ahead of the Paris Climate Change Conference.
At the ECPA meeting, which convened from 25-26 May 2015 in Mérida, Mexico, energy ministers discussed technology solutions to grow low-carbon economies while helping in the implementation of national commitments to reduce climate pollution. The meeting took place just prior to the 6th Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM 6), which convened from 27-28 May.
US Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz said that the meeting’s outcome would play an important role in “facilitating the world’s transition to a clean energy economy through regional and global cooperation.” The Ministerial established: the North American Energy Ministers Working Group on Climate and Energy with Canada and Mexico; and the ECPA Western Hemisphere Clean Energy Initiative with other governments from the region.
The ECPA Western Hemisphere Clean Energy Initiative was also announced, under which countries expressed their intention to achieve a collective doubling of renewable sources, such as solar, wind, small-scale hydropower, sustainable biomass and geothermal, by 2030. Areas of regional cooperation include: reliable, resilient and low-carbon electricity grids; modeling and deployment of clean energy technologies; energy efficiency for equipment, appliances, industries and buildings; carbon capture, use and storage; climate change adaptation and resilience; and emissions reduction from the oil and gas sector.
Since 2009, the ECPA has been working on diverse projects to increase energy security, promote low-carbon growth and foster regional integration to achieve social and sustainable development, following an invitation by US President Barack Obama for governments to join an ECPA to advance cooperation on energy efficiency, renewable energy, cleaner and more efficient use of fossil fuels, energy poverty and infrastructure. [ECPA News Story] [ECPA Website] [US Trade and Development Agency Press Release] [US Department of Energy Press Release] [IISD RS Story on CEM 6]