CEFC reports on successful first full year of investing

5 November 2014

The Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) has completed a successful first full year of investing and is developing new financing programs to support Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF) projects.

CEFC CEO Oliver Yates said the Corporation’s 2013-14 Annual Report, now publicly available, shows the CEFC has delivered a diversified investment portfolio while developing a strong project pipeline.

“We have demonstrated our effectiveness as an active investor in the sector, generating positive responses to our activities from the market and from our stakeholders. We have built a strong project pipeline, developing new and longer term investments,” he said.

As at 30 June 2014, the CEFC had contracted investments of over $930 million in projects with a total value of over $3.2 billion.

“We have worked with co-finance partners developing investment opportunities, which has mobilised more than $2.20 of other funds in projects for every dollar from the CEFC,” Mr Yates said.

“Once fully operational, the CEFC’s investment projects are expected to deliver an estimated 4.2 million tonnes of CO2-e abated annually, at a positive return for the taxpayer, while assisting industries Australia-wide in lowering emissions.

“At the same time, these projects are helping to improve energy productivity for businesses across Australia, developing local industries and generating new employment opportunities.”

Looking ahead, the CEFC has active discussions underway with more than 30 project proponents who are seeking over $1 billion of CEFC finance for total project costs of over $3 billion.

Potential investments involve energy efficiency aggregation financing programs focused on small to mid-sized business, rooftop solar PV financing, bioenergy and waste-to energy projects as well as initiatives in transport, storage and remote and end-of-grid power solutions.

The CEFC will also support the Australian Government’s Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF) with complementary finance options to address market gaps for projects seeking to secure ERF funding.

“We will continue to invest in a commercially responsible manner and we and our co-finance partners have developed financing programs which are well positioned to finance the upfront project implementation costs of many of the types of projects, large and small we would expect to bid for the ERF,” Mr Yates said.

The CEFC’s annual report can be found here.