Banks and IFIs are ready to finance energy efficiency project in Kaliningrad: Regional partner countries also ready to achieve results.
Within the Rensol project, Baltic Development Forum and Nordic Council of Ministers’ Information Office in Kaliningrad, organised 4 June a Round Table meeting on financing models for energy efficiency projects in Kaliningrad, Russia. The meeting took place in connection with the V Forum of partner region 2-5 June in Kaliningrad.
At the seminar different financing institutions participated including European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), International Finance Corporation (part of the World Bank Group), Export Credit Agency (EKF/Denmark), Vneshekonombank (Russia), Transcapitalbank (Russia), Nordic Energy Finance Corporation (NEFCO/Nordic) as well as Kreditanstalt fur Wiederaufbau (Germany) as well as representatives from private Nordic banks (Nordea). The Bank and IFIs were invited to present how they could contribute to finding solutions to energy efficiency projects. The meeting was moderated by Hans Brask, Director of Baltic Development Forum and Arne Grove, Head of the Nordic Council of Ministers’ Information Office in Kaliningrad (see programme).
The important administrative and political framework conditions in the energy field in Russia was presented at the opening of the conference. As all the bankers were saying stable and transparent framework conditions were crucial for all project financing. Not least the energy tariffs are crucial to know in the years ahead. The payback time of energy projects in Russia are very short – partly due to the same framework condition issue – and energy project description are therefore very important.
Ieva Petruzyte, Consultant working for Baltic Development Forum presented the preliminary finding of the report on different financing models on energy efficiency projects in Russia and in neighbouring countries. The potential for such energy projects is huge and the Baltic Sea Region countries are able to offer state of the art practices, solutions and technologies. Hence the basis for strong links in the region is obvious but often financing remains an obstacle for closer cooperation and the success of projects. The seminar was part of the preparation of the final report, which will be ready after the summer break.
To the meeting representatives from 7-8 municipalities were invited to present the top priority projects in the energy field and the very positive outcome of the Round Table was that the bankers were all very positive toward the presented projects. The meeting was attended by more than 60 people and entailed a lot of contacts, and many follow-up meetings are planned for the future.
The banks and the IFI appreciated the seminar and the direct encounter and were positive towards copying this type of meeting in other parts of North-west Russia. There are possibilities to have positive multiplying effects, which is one of the ultimate objectives of the Rensol project.
The partly EU-financed Rensol project, which is led by BDF, is promoting regional cooperation in Russia in the field of energy efficiency and renewable energy solutions. The project covers exchange of best practices and technologies and includes regional partners from Denmark, Sweden and Finland. Focus is on the municipal level in the Kaliningrad region but the objective is to find models and solutions that can be applied in other parts of Russia as well. See the Rensol website for more information – www.rensol.eu.
For more information contact:
Director Hans Brask, Baltic Development Forum or Arne Grove, Head of Information Office in Kaliningrad.