Powering access to green energy in Africa
Half of the African continent's population lacks access to electricity. This unique combination of climate projects benefits communities in Africa by contributing to a sustainable, secure energy supply.
With this high-quality project portfolio, we support wind and solar projects that unlock Africa's huge potential for sustainable energy generation:
#1405 Solar energy, Ambatolampy, Madagascar
#1404 Solar energy, Omaheke, Namibia
#1488 Solar energy, Aswan, Egypt
#1515 Wind energy, Northern Cape, South Africa
#1574 Wind energy, Ombepo, NamibiaIn total, the portfolio avoids about 446,770 tonnes of CO2 emissions per year.
The African continent faces many social, economic, health, and environmental challenges. Transitioning to an energy system centered on renewable energy such as wind, solar or hydro is key for sustainable development, especially regarding mitigating the effects of climate change and providing access to clean and affordable energy for all.
Africa could double its energy demand during the next decade and the current grid relies mostly on non-renewable, emission-intensive sources such as coal. We must end the “addiction to fossil fuels”, as UN Secretary-General Guterres puts it, to reduce CO2 emissions significantly, especially in the energy sector. Thus, it is crucial to promote the expansion of sustainable energy. On the African continent, this transition can contribute to ending energy poverty, stabilizing grids, and reducing energy dependencies. Climate projects can unlock the potential for renewable energy generation in many diverse regions in Africa. Renewable energy projects in the ClimatePartner portfolio are registered with international standards.
TypeReduction
Locationcontinent-wide, Africa
StandardVCS
TechnologyemPOWERing
Verified byaccredited Validation and Verification Bodies (VVBs)
Validated byaccredited Validation and Verification Bodies (VVBs)
Estimated annual emission reductions446,770 t CO₂
Four criteria for projects to meet quality thresholds
The life cycle of a climate project
A climate project has a set life cycle consisting of various phases, from the feasibility assessment to the retirement of Verified Emission Reductions (VERs).The project developer reviews the general feasibility of the project, the project design, and the financing. Then, the Project Design Document (PDD) is prepared, which contains all the basic information about the project, such as the objective, location, timeline, and duration.
In this phase, independent auditors examine the PDD and the information it contains. This phase often also involves field visits with on-side interviews and analyses. Auditors are accredited, impartial assessors who have to be approved by the relevant standard as a validation and verification body (VVB). TÜV Nord/Süd, S&A Carbon LLC., and SCS Global Services are examples of VVBs."
Once validated, the project can be registered with a standard such as the Verified Carbon Standard or the Gold Standard. All high-quality climate projects are based on international standards. They provide the framework for project design, construction, carbon accounting, and monitoring. Recognised standards make the climate project system and the projects themselves resilient, traceable, and credible.
After the climate project has been registered, the monitoring begins. Here, the project developers monitor and document the data of the project activities and progress. The duration of the monitoring phase varies from project to project: it can cover two years, but documentation over five or seven years is also possible.
At the end of each monitoring phase, a VVB checks and assesses whether the values and project activities stated in the monitoring report are correct. As with validation, visits to the project site are often part of the verification process.
Once verified, the emission reductions that were confirmed in the verification phase can be issued as VERs. The steps of monitoring, verification, and issuance of VERs are repeated regularly and are therefore considered as a cycle.
Once a VER has been used, it must be retired. This process is also reflected in the registry. If the financing of a climate project is done through ClimatePartner, the VERs are bundled in a system certified by TÜV Austria and then retired on a regular basis. This ensures that each VER can no longer be sold and is only used once, preventing double counting.
Explore our projects
Enabling women in at-risk communities to make the transition to clean energy
Ceramic water filters save CO2 and improve health
Improved cookstoves worldwide – for better health and cleaner air
A certified climate project combined with additional commitment
Powering access to green energy in Africa
Turning degraded farmlands into healthy ecosystems
Improved cookstoves - better for health and the environment