The Caribbean Renewable Energy Development Programme (CREDP) is the most significant Regional renewable energy project over the last decade in CARICOM. CREDP was financed from two sources vis Global Environmental Facility (GEF) of the World Bank with The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) as the Implementing Agency and the German Technical Cooperation (GTZ) now GIZ. The GEF component was funded in the amount of US$4.426Million and implemented through the UNPD, and is referred to as CREDP/UNDP. The other component funded in amount of US$2.2 million (by GTZ referred to as CREDP/GTZ (now CREDP/GIZ) during the Phase I. Under Phase II (2008-2012) additional funding in amount €5.25 Million were provided. The CREDP/UNDP component executed by the CARICOM Secretariat in Guyana had an official end date of April 2008 but was extended to December 2009 while the CREDP/GIZ executed by Project Consult based in St Lucia entered a second phase in 2008 which will run to the end of March 2012.
The main objectives of CREDP are to dismantle identified barriers to the increased use of renewable energy in the region in areas of: Policy, Finance, Capacity and Information/awareness. To date CREDP has had some successes, but the barriers have largely remained, and it is considered that inter-alia, the more comprehensive framework of the CARICOM energy programme will continue to build on these successes.
CREDP/UNDP: the following summarizes schievements of CREDP/UNDP in realtion to the key objective areas:
1. Policy: Under CREDP/UNDP selected CARICOM countries were supported in development of national energy policies. The support was quite limted owing to a number of challenges
2. Financing: CREDP/UNDP aimed at demonstration innovative financing instrument to support RE development. A vehicle called Caribbean Renewable Energy was designed but not implemented. Also a Caribbean Renewable Energy technical Assistance Facility (CRETAF) which was designed as a contingent loan facility was not implemented as designed. This was converted to a straight grant during the extension where 10 RE projects in 6 countries were supported. CRETAF was designed to focus on grid connected RE technologies and solar water heating. Geothermal development was not included given the size of financial requirement for early stage project development.
3. Capacity Building: This aspect of CREDP/UNDP was considered to be most successful in terms of the number of training workshops conducted
4. Information and Awareness: The establishment of Caribbean Information Portal on Renewable Energy (CIPORE) has been the most significant tangible achievement of CREDP/UNDP under this component. CIPORE is the one stop point for all information on Renewable Energy Development in the Caribbean. CIPORE can be accessed at http://www.Cipore.org.
LINKS for the following to be made to Documents and Publication TAB
• CREDP/UNDP Project Document
• CREDP/UNDP Final Project Report
• CREDP/UNDP – Documents and Reports
• CREDP/UNDP Final Evaluation Report
• CRETAF Reports
• CIPORE
CREDP/GIZ: (http://www.credp-giz) the CREDP/GIZ during the first phase focused on five eastern Caribbean countries of Dominica, Grenada, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines. However during the second phase which began in 2008 and run to 2012, the scope of the project was extended to include energy efficiency matters and cover all CARICOM countries except Montserrat (being non independent territory). Phase II was also executed in greater concert with CARICOM Energy Programme The following highlights achievements of CREDP/GIZ in relation to the key objective areas:
1. Policy: Under CREDP/GIZ countries
2. Financing: No special financing mechanism was tested; The project provided small grants to support various RE objectives under policy development; feasibility studies; support of government official to attend critical energy related meetings
3. Capacity Building: The project support a range of training workshops, experts advise; study tours
4. Information and Awareness: The Project supported a range of awareness building exercises
• Plan of Operations
• CREDP/GIZ – Reports, documents, presentation
See more on CREDP/GIZ at http://www.credp-giz.org
