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Growing focus on renewable energy investment in Asia

“There is a realization that renewable energy is no longer a trendy fad,” It is actually something that has proven to work, proven to be financially viable and it is a sector that is maturing rapidly.

Betting big on renewables The Asset July / August 2010 by Chito Santiago As several countries across Asia are plugging their infrastructure gaps, particularly in the power sector, much attention is focussed on renewable sources of energy. Sponsors, both domestic and foreign, as well as investors and financiers, are pouring into the region looking for various opportunities in wind, solar, waste, water and hydropower projects.

“There is a realization that renewable energy is no longer a trendy fad,” says Frank Belitz, head of renewable energy and environmental finance in Asia at Standard Chartered Bank. “It is actually something that has proven to work, proven to be financially viable and it is a sector that is maturing rapidly. So people have the feeling that it is here to stay.”

Indeed, more renewable energy projects have emerged in Asia. “We are holding discussions with private companies for a number of windfarm projects in China,” discloses Stéphanie Clément de Givry, managing director for natural resources and energy project finance, and structured commodity finance in   the Asia-Pacific at Société Générale Corporate & Investment Banking (SG CIB). “If you look at the pipeline of projects, you would see the potential of the windfarm sector in China. China is going to be the largest windfarm country in the world.”

The focus on renewable energy, as the Asian Development Bank (ADB) points out, is driven too by the growing awareness on the need to curb rising levels of greenhouse gases and helping countries adapt to the anticipated impacts of climate change. The Asset – MAGAZINE-Betting big on renewables

October 5, 2010 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | ASIA, business and costs | antinuclear, climate change, energy efficiency, global warming, renewable energy, renewables, solar, wind