27 April 2012
New Clean Energy Initiatives and Commitments Announced at CEM3
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The commitments and initiatives have been made specifically on energy efficiency, renewables, CCS, universal energy access are the outcome of the Third Clean Energy Ministerial and address the areas of energy efficiency, renewable energy deployment, and global energy access.

26 April 2012: Leaders from the governments of the 23 Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) participant countries, together with the Sustainable Energy for All (SE4All) initiative, have announced a variety of new commitments and initiatives to improve energy efficiency, increase the share of renewable energy, and enable energy access worldwide. These commitments and initiatives are the main outcomes of the two-day Third Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM3). CEM3 took place on 25-26 April 2012 in London, UK.

The new initiatives follow two years of CEM work and aimed at supporting the SE4ALL initiative, the UN Secretary-General’s initiative to achieve universal energy access, double the rate of improvement on energy efficiency, and double the share of renewable energy in the global energy matrix by 2030.

On energy efficiency, the 16 governments participating in the Super-Efficient Equipment and Appliance Deployment (SEAD) initiative agreed broadly to further collaborate with each other and the private sector. Specific outcomes for the SEAD initiative include: a new public-private partnership, called the Efficient Product Promotion Collaborative, which will streamline financial resources spent on appliance efficiency programs each year, including a new program targeting super-efficient fans in India; the expansion of the Global Efficiency Medal competition, which currently focuses on flat-panel televisions, to also include motors and computer monitors; and the launch of a new program to provide technical cooperation for adopting efficient lighting in cooperation with the UN Environment Programme’s (UNEP) en.lighten initiative, and with leadership from India.

The United Kingdom (UK) also announced support of up to £60 million for demonstration projects on carbon capture and storage (CCS) in developing countries. Denmark, Germany, and Spain released a global solar and wind energy atlas, while also announcing plans to assess the cost-effectiveness of those resources in different countries.

On universal energy access, the creation of the Global Lighting and Energy Access Partnership (Global LEAP) was announced, which will promote market-based and low-cost access to energy. The partnership is supported by several international organizations, including the World Bank, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the UN Foundation, the African Development Bank (ADB), the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the UN Development Programme (UNDP), as well as by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) and Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. Following the success of the World Bank and IFC’s Lighting Africa program, Italy and the US also announced the launch of Lighting India, which aims to provide two million people with modern lighting services by 2015.

In addition, several cross-cutting initiatives were announced, including: support from 11 countries to further develop the Clean Energy Solutions Center, a $15 million Internet-based technical assistance project led by Australia, the US and UN-Energy, as well as $1 million in-kind support for no-cost technical advice from the ClimateWorks Foundation; a Women in Clean Energy program, developed by the US in cooperation with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT); an Indian initiative to develop a database of national and sub-national clean energy policies and incentives; a CEM-supported 21st Century Power Partnership to unlock large-scale demand-side management and renewable energy electricity generation; and a Global Sustainable Cities Network, created by China, Denmark, Sweden and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), to support urban sustainability efforts.

The SE4ALL initiative also released its Action Agenda, providing a roadmap for contributions of governments, the private sector and civil society to achieve access to sustainable energy for all by 2030. [CEM Press Release with links to additional documents] [Summary Fact Sheet] [Summary of CEM Accomplishments]