Philippine government unveils ambitious Energy Transition Plan, anchored on smart and green grid, to international partners in New York

Climate Smart Ventures Pte Ltd (CSV), a Singapore-based transition and transaction advisory firm, together with the Rockefeller Foundation and the Environmental Defense Fund, hosted a dialogue entitled “Mobilizing International Support for Power Sector Decarbonization in the Philippines” last September 22 in New York on the sidelines of the 2023 United Nations General Assembly. The event brought together key figures from the governments of the Philippines, United States, the United Kingdom, and Indonesia, as well as senior representatives from major financial institutions, and leading energy think tanks to unveil the Philippine Energy Transition Plan anchored on aggressive renewables development, grid expansion, offshore wind, and voluntary coal plant retirement. […]

Scenarios for financial modeling of China-funded coal retirement in Asia

Discussions about the early retirement of CFPPs have flourished over the past year. Driven by a global understanding of the need to urgently reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) to reduce the risk of catastrophic climate change, multiple ideas have emerged on how different tools of financing – from buy-outs to sustainability-linked debt, as well as ratepayer-backed securities to asset portfolio securitization – can be harnessed to ensure a just transition for affected stakeholders […]

Accelerated Retirement of China’s Overseas Coal-Fired Power Plants Can Unlock Massive Energy Transition Potentials for South & Southeast Asia

A foundational pillar of addressing climate change that was unthinkable only three years ago is now becoming reality: the early retirement of coal-fired power plants in emerging economies. During the G20, Indonesia launched its Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) – a breakthrough climate finance partnership designed to mobilize $20 billion in public and private financing over the next 3-5 years in support of Indonesia’s accelerated and equitable energy transition. […]

CATA’s coal transition journey

To limit global temperature rises to 1.5˚C, coal generation must be reduced by 80% of 2010 levels by 2030 and phased out by 2040. This can only happen with large-scale collaboration, new tools and methodologies, recognition of the social elements of the transition, and innovative financing mechanisms. At COP26 we announced the Coal Asset Transition Accelerator, or CATA, a philanthropically funded initiative designed to help meet these needs with a particular focus on the role of finance. […]

Anthropocene Fixed Income Institute and Climate Smart Ventures launch “Transition-Southeast Asia (T-SEA) Partnership” to accelerate coal asset transitions with financing

The Anthropocene Fixed Income Institute (AFII), a research organization that empowers fixed income investors to drive the climate transition, and Climate Smart Ventures (CSV), an advisory firm based in Singapore focused on corporate energy transition plans that shift coal assets to renewables, are excited to announce their Transition-Southeast Asia (T-SEA) partnership. […]

Climate Smart Ventures launches report showing that Battery Energy Storage Systems can already lower electricity costs while further mainstreaming RE in the Philippines

A new study by Climate Smart Ventures Pte. Ltd. (CSV) entitled “Mainstreaming Renewables Through Storage in the Philippines: Scenarios to Accelerate the Energy Transition” has found that the Philippines is already ready to “firm-up” variable output from renewable energy (RE) with use of battery energy storage systems (BESS) for all-day (baseload) or majority of working hours in a day (mid-merit). […]

A private coal retirement pilot in the Philippines just reached financial close:  What this means for “transition finance” in emerging markets

Back in May, CSV released an article outlining the case for coal retirement pilots at the asset level. We argued that pilots offer a practical way of generating live, real-world experience for how such transactions can actually be designed and executed to fit emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs). We shared three principles that would be essential to get “coal retirement going”: […]

The Case for Coal Retirement Pilots: Insights from Asset Owners and Investors

Since COP26, interest in coal retirement has grown tremendously with various reports, feasibility studies, and commentary now under circulation. The latest IPCC report makes it clear that this decade is the “now or never” timeline to establish a resilient future that safeguards the 1.5 Centigrade temperature threshold set by the Paris Agreement. […]

Climate Smart Ventures to co-lead global initiative to spur the transition from coal to renewables

On 4 November 2021, the European Climate Foundation (ECF), Climate Smart Ventures (CSV), Carbon Trust, RMI and International Network of Energy Transition Think Tanks (INETT), with the support of the IKEA Foundation and the Growald Climate Foundation launched a new global initiative called the Coal Asset Transition Accelerator (CATA) at the 26th United Nations Climate Conference (COP26). […]