Energy+ the Future

Norway, in conjunction with more than forty international partners, has signed an agreement to provide over US$140 million to developing countries to stimulate clean energy production.

The Energy+ program was officially signed into existence at the Rio+20 negotiations,  by Norwegian minister of international development Heikki Holmås and his counterparts from Kenya, Ethiopia and Liberia.

The project aims to assist developing countries in building clean energy infrastructure, rather than using environmentally damaging, but cheaper, fossil fuels.

“The cooperation with Ethiopia, Kenya and Liberia will give ordinary people new development opportunities and help to improve public health. At the same time we can avoid increased emissions of greenhouse gases,” said Holmås.

The program will support various renewable energy-based projects in the participating countries, such as rebuilding Liberia’s Mount Coffee hydroelectric dam damaged in the country’s civil war.

When finished, the Mount Coffee project will supply the entire Liberian capital, Monrovia, with electricity, replacing countless oil and coal energy sources.

Mr Holmås said “giving priority to renewable energy sources and to greater energy efficiency in these countries will help to ensure a reliable and secure supply of energy, more jobs, better health, greater business opportunities and increased economic growth.”

Energy+ financing, unlike that of similar projects, is performance-based. Initial funds will be provided to begin development and encourage private investment, and the rest will be distributed at the meeting of the targets set, for reinvestment into further action.

Norway is joined by other developed and developing nations, to civil society and the International Energy Agency in launching Energy+.

Norway and Australia are, by some measurements, in equal first place for the world’s highest average standard of living. Both have some of the strongest economies in the world, and large reserves of mineral wealth. Australia has significantly better renewable resources, as the sunniest, windiest inhabited continent.

Despite this, Norway is developing its own renewables sector and stimulates renewables in the developing world, whilst Australia languishes behind.

Norway has also met and surpassed its millennium development goal of contributing 0.5% of GDP to foreign aid. Australia has cut its foreign aid increases to ensure a national budget surplus by 2013, a move described as “heartless” by many in the NGO community.

Hopefully Australia can learn from Norway’s example, and develop its own renewable resources, as well as helping the rest of the world to create a strong renewable energy-based economy.

By Genevieve Stewart photo by Hege T. Magnus.