25 March 2024: The Africa Minigrid Developers Association (AMDA) and Energy Peace Partners (EPP) are pleased to announce today a new collaboration to expand access to investment for renewable energy minigrids that benefit under-electrified and unelectrified communities across Africa.
The AMDA-EPP collaboration seeks to increase the visibility of AMDA members and the renewable energy projects they aspire to develop among multinational corporations and the wider global climate community. The collaboration focuses on expanding the African market for International Renewable Energy Certificates (I-RECs), including Peace Renewable Energy Credits (P-RECs). P-RECs serve as a quality label for qualifying high-impact I-REC projects in fragile, energy poor countries that deliver significant social and economic benefits to local communities.
More specifically, AMDA and EPP are collaborating to produce new initiatives that help expand incentives for corporations with environmental and social impact goals to support AMDA members’ projects, expand the number of countries with voluntary clean energy markets to attract corporate buyers, and create new educational resources and market insights for AMDA members.
“AMDA is committed to working with all stakeholders to meet critical climate goals through expanding access to clean energy and advocating for an enabling environment to attract investments into renewable energy minigrids,” said Olamide Niyi-Afuye, the CEO of AMDA. “This collaboration wouldn’t have come at a better time to help us deliver on member value for our member companies across Africa.”
“This collaboration with AMDA is critical for EPP efforts to support new renewable energy minigrid projects in Africa and expand the pipeline of P-REC projects to meet growing demand among corporate buyers for clean energy projects that also deliver meaningful social impact,” said David Mozersky, President of EPP. “We are excited to work with AMDA and the wider AMDA member community to advance renewable energy as a building block for peace and development across the continent.”
By cultivating the market and incentives for corporate buyers for I-RECs and especially P-RECs in Africa, AMDA and EPP will help increase the revenue that AMDA members can secure from new renewable energy projects, accelerating and enhancing financing terms and expanding access to carbon-free electricity to more under-electrified and unelectrified communities.
Renewable energy investment continues to increase around the world as policymakers, companies, investors, and nonprofit stakeholders work together to address the climate finance gap and more than triple annual investment in renewable energy to make the 1.5°C target possible. However, these investments continue to overlook the world’s most under-electrified and unelectrified communities, perpetuating climate equity issues in the world’s most fragile countries. To date, communities across Africa have secured only 2% of the $3 trillion invested globally in renewables.
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About AMDA: The Africa Minigrid Developers Association (AMDA) is an industry association created by private sector minigrid developers and development partners interested in improving political and financial environments for minigrid companies in Africa. AMDA serves as the consolidated voice for minigrid developers to accelerate their pathway to scale and sustainability towards achieving universal access to sustainable, reliable, affordable, and modern energy in Africa. To date, AMDA has 43 member companies operating in 22 countries in Africa. For more information, visit: africamda.org.
About EPP: Energy Peace Partners (EPP) is a nonprofit organization that develops innovative climate and finance solutions to promote greater resilience and peace in fragile, climate vulnerable, and energy poor countries, primarily in sub-Saharan Africa. Our team offers world class expertise in peace building, renewable energy, and climate security. EPP developed the novel “Peace Renewable Energy Credit” (P-REC) to provide catalytic funding for new renewable mini-grids plus linked community projects through corporate renewable energy procurement. For more information, visit: www.energypeacepartners.com.
