The World Bank Group has unveiled a new programme that aims to accelerate the adoption of offshore wind energy in developing countries.
As part of the initiative, the World Bank along with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) will help developing nations in assessing their offshore wind potential.
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The programme also intends to offer technical assistance for projects that are ready for investment by renewable energy developers.
World Bank Energy & Extractives head and senior director Riccardo Puliti said: “Offshore wind is a clean, reliable and secure source of energy with the massive potential to transform the energy mix in countries that have great wind resources.
“We have seen it work in Europe – we can now make use of global experience to scale up offshore wind projects in emerging markets.”
The World Bank noted that the offshore wind industry has increased five-fold since 2011, with 23GW of capacity being installed at the end of 2018.
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By GlobalDataThe figures represent a significant opportunity for developing countries such as India, Brazil, South Africa and the Philippines, which have strong offshore wind resources
IFC director and Energy & Mining global head Bertrand de la Borde said: “We see great opportunity for offshore wind development at scale and are looking forward to working with private sector developers to open up new investment opportunities in countries that could benefit from this increasingly competitive source of renewable energy.”
The $5m programme will be led by World Bank’s Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP), in partnership with IFC.
It is also backed by the UK government which offered a $26m (£20m) grant to ESMAP to help developing countries implement environmentally sustainable energy solutions.
