Developing Renewable Energy Projects
Many promising renewable energy project ideas are not implemented due to a lack of knowledge or expertise on how to move them forward. Successful projects are characterised by:
- robust technology data,
- strong project proposals,
- and the inclusion of financing instruments and information for investment analysis.
Internal Sources of Information
Data and information that can be obtained from the energypedia portal.
Renewable Energy Technologies
Extensive data and information on renewable energy and their productive use can be obtained from:
- The technology specific portals: the Solar Portal, the Hydro Portal, the Bioenergy Portal, and the Wind Portal, which offer detailed onformation on the different technologies by means of case studies, country studies, concepts and literarture.
- The Productive Use Portal, which offers information, concepts, examples and literarture on the basics of productive use of renewable energy technologies.
- the PoweringAg Technology Database, which offers an overview of energy technologies that are applied in agricultural value chains, with the aim to offer alternatives to fossil fuel technologies.
Renewable Energy Projects
Data and information on renewable energy projects can be obtained from:
- Case studies from the above named technology specific portals
- Specific case studies on productive use e.g. renewable energy projects in the agriculture and food industry
Financing of Renewable Energy Projects
Data and information on the financing of renewable energy projects can be obtained from:
- the Financing and Funding Portal, which offers an extensive overview of financial instruments, relevant policies, financial barriers, microfinance, and literature.
External Sources of Information
The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) has recently launched the IRENA Project Navigator, which aims to increase the percentage of successful renewable energy project proposals worldwide. The IRENA Project Navigator is a comprehensive platform to facilitate the effective development of renewable energy projects by providing project developers with the knowledge, tools, case studies and best practices needed to support the successful completion of their projects.
The IRENA Project Navigator is divided into three sections:
The “Learning Section” allows users to learn about:
- Project Development Guidelines, which provides users with information on planning and implementation of renewable energy projects by offering tools, templates, examples and more importantly a clear and well-structured process.
- Technical Concepts, which provides users information on specific renewable energy technologies, such as: Solar energy, Wind energy, Hydropower, Bioenergy, Ocean energy and Geothermal energy.
- Examples and case studies e.g. project profiles, references or academic studies on renewable energy projects
The “Start a project” section allows users
- to create their own project workspace and:
- track their of their development process
- Identify gaps in your project development
- Use the tools of the development process online
The “Financial Navigator” section also allows users to search for funding by renewable energy type and region, drawing from a database of funds available for project financing.
To learn more about the IRENA Project Navigator and how best to use it, please join the webinar on 13 May 2015 at 02.00 pm CEST.
