Germany Commits €25 Million to ADB’s Energy Transition Mechanism
SHARM EL-SHEIKH — The Government of Germany today announced a €25 million (around $26 million) grant commitment to the Energy Transition Mechanism Partnership Trust Fund (ETMPTF) to support the Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM) being led by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
The announcement, made at an event at COP27 by Deputy Foreign Minister and State Minister from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Anna Lührmann, rounds off a significant 12 months for ETM since ADB joined with the governments of Indonesia and the Philippines to launch at COP26 last year.
“As Asia and the Pacific’s climate bank, ADB believes ETM has the ability to be one of the biggest carbon reduction programs in the world and an important asset in the battle against climate change,” said ADB’s Director General of Sustainable Development and Climate Change Bruno Carrasco. “This new commitment by the Government of Germany is another significant step forward for ETM and the just and affordable energy transition in Asia and the Pacific.”
The grant commitment from Germany comes from the International Climate Initiative (IKI) as part of its contribution to the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) announced on 15 November. Germany is the second financing partner to join the ETMPTF, following on from a $25 million grant announcement by Japan.
“Through this Just Energy Transition Partnership and together with international partners, we are supporting Indonesia in accelerating the build-up of renewable energies, reduce its dependence on coal and pursue a just path to a prosperous, greener, and more sustainable future. In doing so, we are jointly making a significant contribution toward keeping the 1.5-degree goal alive,” Ms. Lührmann said. ”Our pledge is expected to mobilize up to €500 million in public and private finance to catalyze immediate action, because the mechanism is already operational and our funds will be transferred before the end of this year.”
ETM is a regional, transformative program that seeks to use concessional and market-based funds to retire existing coal-fired power plants on an accelerated schedule and replace them with clean power. ETM is one component of a larger set of initiatives both domestic and multilateral, including the Indonesia ETM Country Platform and JETP, respectively, that aims to help Asia and the Pacific mitigate the worst impacts of climate change, such as extreme sea level rise and destructive weather events.
ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it is owned by 68 members—49 from the region.