By WASHINGTON, DC | NREL —
The Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the China PV Investment and Finance Alliance (CPVFA) have formed a collaboration with the goal of opening wide-scale and diverse sources of investment for solar photovoltaic (PV) asset development in China.
NREL is advising CPVFA based on the work of the NREL-convened Solar Access to Public Capital (SAPC) working group. The collaboration is part of the U.S.-China Renewable Energy Partnership, which is one of seven clean energy programs announced by presidents Obama and Hu in 2009.
It also provides a mechanism to facilitate investments necessary to reduce future CO2 emissions as agreed to by both countries under the November 2014 Joint Announcement on Climate Change and Clean Energy Cooperation.
NREL will advise CPVFA in areas such as documentation standardization, data availability, and consistency in asset deployment and operations and maintenance using the SAPC working group as a model. SAPC is dedicated to opening low-cost capital market investment via securitization of project cash flows and other innovative financial vehicles.
“The collaboration between the United States and China is very much a two-way street,” said NREL’s Michael Mendelsohn, who leads the SAPC initiative. “Our counterparts in China will be able to provide unique insights on asset development and grid integration. They are also very motivated to open investment through pooled financial vehicles and reduced transaction costs-NREL and the SAPC working group, which shares similar goals-can offer expertise in this area.”
CPVFA is organized by the Chinese Renewable Energy Industries Association (CREIA) with support from The Energy Foundation, China’s National Energy Administration, and the China Banking Regulatory Commission. CPVFA is composed of China’s leading government and private sector entities, including State Grid’s Electric Power Research Institute, China General Certification Center, and many of the country’s principal developers, engineering firms, manufacturers, and other solar, finance, and power sector stakeholders.
“With the background that China is strongly pushing forward energy production and consumption reforms and deepening power system and financial market reforms, the launch of the CPVFA is of significant meaning,” said Megan Tang, vice secretary-general of CREIA and the secretary-general of CPVFA.
“The collaboration between China and the U.S. and the cooperation between PV and finance industries will not only greatly accelerate the adoption and use of PV as an important means to reduce CO2 emissions, but also broaden the space for Chinese financial innovation,” Tang continued. “CPVFA will focus on formulating and improving standard evaluation and certification systems for the Chinese PV industry; expanding financing channels and financial products innovation; and establishing a dialogue and matchmaking mechanism between finance institutions and the PV industry to build a professional and efficient platform for investment and financing.”
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