IFC recently hosted a workshop entitled Scaling up Clean Energy – How can the Norwegian Private Sector be Involved? It was organized in cooperation with the Royal Norwegian Embassy, NORAD, and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Speaking at the event, IFC Executive Vice President and CEO Lars Thunell said, "Already, IFC financing supports Statkraft Norfund Power's hydro projects in Asia and Latin America, and Norwegian technical expertise has helped develop our portfolio of infrastructure investments and carbon finance transactions."
Former IFC Executive Vice President Jannick Lindbęk, a member of the Norwegian delegation, said, "IFC has a vital role to play in mobilizing private sector participation in clean energy. The workshops helped outline the Norwegian government’s priorities in this field and created a platform for dialogue with the private sector in areas of mutual interest. Norway has leading technology in clean energy such as hydropower, and a key outcome of this meeting was to continue the process of ensuring that this expertise is accessible and well-known."
The meetings were part of the annual consultations between the World Bank Group and the Norwegian government on development programs supported by Norwegian trust funds. A follow-up meeting is planned for March 2008 to leverage Nordic expertise in clean energy as part of IFC’s efforts to mobilize private sector participation in addressing climate change.
Over the last five years, Norway has provided a total of $24.2 million, mainly through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and also from the development agency Norad. Norway is the eighth-largest donor to IFC.
Learn more about IFC and its donor partners.
For more information contact:
Thoko Moyo
Small & Medium Enterprise
Tel: (202) 458-8517
E-mail: TMoyo@ifc.org
