Washington, D.C., July 26, 2005 – The
IFC-Netherlands Carbon Facility (INCaF), a joint initiative of the International
Finance Corporation and the Dutch government, recently signed two emissions
reductions purchase agreements worth more than $20 million to purchase
greenhouse gas emission reductions from renewable energy projects in Brazil
and India. Sales of these carbon credits will take place under the
Clean Development Mechanism of the Kyoto Protocol and will be used by government
of the Netherlands to comply with its commitment under the protocol.
Carbon credits, unlike the dollars and euros
that trade for physical goods and services, are a new money exchange intended
to reduce pollution, particularly emissions of carbon dioxide, that is
caused by burning fossil fuels. Carbon emissions are the leading cause
of global climate change.
Based in India’s Uttar Pradesh state, Balrampur
Chini Mills is an IFC client and operator of two new bagasse (sugarcane
waste) cogeneration plants, one at a sugar mill in Balrampur and the other
a new plant at Haidergarh. The company has signed an agreement worth
more than $10 million to sell some of the plants’ emission reduction credits
created by burning cleaner fuel. The plants are the first in the state
to use high-pressure design for both cogeneration and export of mill-generated
bagasse. They will generate power and steam, exporting electricity
to the Uttar Pradesh power grid even during the off-season.
In Brazil, Brascan Energetica S.A. signed an agreement worth around $11
million to sell carbon emission reductions from several hydropower projects
across the country. The company focuses on the development, ownership,
and operation of small-scale hydropower generation plants in Brazil. It
is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Brascan Power Corporation, a leading developer
of renewable energy projects in North America. The total installed capacity
of the company’s six run-of-river projects is currently 101.4 megawatts—clean
energy that is displacing fossil fuel-based power generation on the Brazilian
grid.
The mission of IFC (www.ifc.org)
is to promote sustainable private sector investment in emerging markets,
helping to reduce poverty and improve people’s lives. IFC finances private
sector investments in transition and developing countries, mobilizes capital
in the international financial markets, helps clients improve social and
environmental sustainability, and provides technical assistance and advice
to governments and businesses. From its founding in 1956 through FY04,
IFC has committed more than $44 billion of its own funds and arranged $23
billion in syndications for 3,143 companies in 140 developing countries.
IFC’s worldwide committed portfolio as of FY04 was $17.9 billion for its
own account and $5.5 billion held for participants in loan syndications.
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