A meeting organized by Climate Policy Initiative in partnership with the Climate Investment Funds Administrative Unit
To read a CIF blog on the First CSP Dialogue click here
On the 22nd January 2014, Climate Policy Initiative (CPI) hosted the Second Concentrated Solar Power Dialogue in Abu Dhabi. This meeting was the second of three Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) Dialogues that will bring together major actors from the world of solar energy finance to enable a global sharing of experiences and to explore merging lessons in the attempt to scale up effective CSP finance. The dialogues assemble countries receiving support from the Climate Investment Funds (CIF) for CSP projects and host countries involved in other (‘non-CIF’) CSP projects, donor countries, project developers and financiers, multilateral development banks, representatives of the CIF Administrative Unit, and a few selected additional participants. This session revisited the purpose and objectives of the CSP Dialogues, providing a brief summary of the First CSP Dialogue and introducing focal themes and questions to guide discussions. A tour de table introduced all participants and identified priority areas of interest of the group. This session discussed the initial findings of a case study on the Eskom Solar One 100 MW CSP Tower Project in Upington, South Africa. The Eskom plant is an interesting case for studying the effectiveness of CSP financing for several reasons: Based on this concrete example, financiers and experts from the host country commented on the roles of the public sector and the private sector (e.g., national policies, financing structure, risk allocation). Chair: Patricia Bliss-Guest, Program Manager, Administrative Unit, Climate Investment Funds Overview Presentation: Opening Comments: Roundtable Discussion This session focused on recent developments from the financing perspective, with insights from project developers, technology providers, and both public and private investors. Panelists shared experiences and explored how CSP projects are financed: what is the role of public and private finance for CSP in different markets and for different CSP technologies? In which cases are public players better suited to manage specific investment risks, and what is their exit strategy to avoid crowding out of private capital? Chair: Jonathan Walters, Director, Regional Partnerships and Programs, World Bank Overview Presentation: Panelists: Roundtable Discussion Based on a number of concrete examples, policymakers and experts from CSP host countries commented on the roles, reasoning, design and evolution of public policies to promote CSP. The discussion focued on the shaping of revenue support policies, such as reverse auctioning of subsidized power purchase agreements, and addressed the question of how to make these policies effective while minimizing costs to the public consumer and mitigating regulatory risks for private investors. The session also touched on the wider enabling environment for CSP investments, including tax incentives. Chair: Shaanti Kapila, Global Support Program Coordinator, Administrative Unit, Climate Investment Funds Framing Presentation: Panelists: Roundtable Discussion Moderation & wrap up: Barbara Buchner, Senior Director, Climate Policy Initiative The concluding session invited a broad discussion amongst participants to highlight our priorities going forward. Based on the previous sessions, the aim was to draw preliminary lessons and highlight key issues that require further attention to render CSP financing effective. Closing of the meeting by Thomas C. Heller, Executive Director, Climate Policy Initiative and Patricia Bliss-Guest, Program Manager, Administrative Unit, Climate Investment Funds
Welcome and Status of the Project
The Eskom Solar One 100 MW CSP Power Tower in South Africa
Financing CSP: The Respective Roles of the Public and Private Sector
The Role of Public Policy in Encouraging CSP
Stocktaking Session: What have we learned?
