4 December 2018
Green Banks Mobilize US$41 Billion for Clean Energy Ahead of 2019 Target
UN Photo/Pasqual Gorriz
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The sixth Green Bank Congress was held 29 November 2018 in Shanghai, China.

Green Banks closed transactions that are expected to mobilize US$41 billion in financing for clean energy and sustainable infrastructure projects.

According to internal analyses, members of the Green Bank Network, leverage on average 10 dollars in private funding for every dollar of public investment.

28 November 2018: At the Sixth Annual Green Bank Congress in Shanghai, the Green Bank Network announced that its members closed transactions that are expected to mobilize US$41 billion in financing for green infrastructure projects and low carbon development, thereby meeting its target of US$40 billion by 2019 ahead of schedule.

The Green Bank Network (GBN) brings together financial institutions dedicated to increase investment in clean energy in close collaboration with the private sector. The network allows member organizations to share practices and lessons learned through collaboration and exchanging knowledge. Members of the Green Bank Network are investing in technology such as solar, wind, combined heat and power, LED street lighting, geothermal, anaerobic digesters, and low-carbon transport. According to an analysis prepared by the network’s Secretariat, Green Bank Network members mobilize on average 10 dollars in private funds for every dollar of public investment. The investments mobilized to date have avoided 25 million tons of CO2eq.

“Meeting climate goals will require an unprecedented and immediate mobilization of capital.” – Reed Hundt, CEO of the Coalition for Green Capital

Made at the eve of the Katowice Climate Change Conference, the announcement underlines the importance of investments in a clean energy transition. Reed Hundt, CEO of the Coalition for Green Capital, said “meeting climate goals will require an unprecedented and immediate mobilization of capital,” noting that Green Banks play a central role in providing capital in emerging economies to take on risk and leverage private capital for large-scale low-carbon investment.

Other announcements made during the Congress included the formation of a Climate Finance Facility in South Africa, plans to hold a Green Bank Design summit in March 2019, and the upcoming launch of a mew website including a searchable database of all Green Bank Network member transactions.

The sixth Green Bank Congress was held 29 November 2018, in Shanghai, China, in partnership with the Center for Finance and Development, Tsinghua National Institute of Financial Research, Green Finance Committee of the China Society for Finance and Banking, and with support from Lujiazui Green Finance Development Committee and Shenzhen Green Finance Committee. [Green Bank Congress website] [Green Bank Network Press Release] [UNFCC Press Release]

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