Damu Fund and UNDP Conclude New Renewable Energy Agreement

The subsidiary organization Baiterek National Management Holding JSC - Damu Entrepreneurship Development Fund JSC and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Kazakhstan have signed a new agreement under the project "Reducing the risks of investing in renewable energy projects", aimed at stimulating and promoting development RES projects (renewable energy sources).

Under this agreement, business entities will be provided with financial support for the implementation of renewable energy projects by applying the following financial mechanisms:

• 10% subsidy by the UNDP project for loan interest rates;
• UNDP project subsidizing of part of the main loan up to 25 percent;
• the issuance of green bonds by the Fund in order to finance renewable energy projects.

In order to implement one of the above mechanisms, the Damu Fund is currently considering the possibility of issuing green bonds on the stock exchange of the Astana International Financial Center.

According to the Chairman of the Board of the Damu Fund, Gaukhar Buribaeva, a number of state policies, strategies and programs are aimed at solving environmental problems.

- The Damu Fund, as a state financial institution, is ready to support the implementation of the green financing strategy as part of its sustainable development policy. We hope that successful cooperation with UNDP will give a new impetus to efforts aimed at stimulating investment in renewable energy projects among SMEs and will help us achieve an effective solution to the tasks set by the state, ”said Gaukhar Buribaeva.

It is also worth noting that this is not the first agreement between the Damu Fund and UNDP. Recall that in August 2017, with the participation of the Ministry of Investment and Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan by the Damu Fund, UNDP launched a model of financial support for business initiatives aimed at reducing CO2 greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere as part of the Sustainable Cities for Low-Carbon Development project Kazakhstan. ”

- Together with the Damu Fund, we have already supported 37 green projects in the field of energy efficiency of residential buildings worth more than $ 10 million. Based on previous successful experience, we are launching another joint mechanism for financial support of green projects - this time in the field of renewable energy sources. We hope that this support measure will increase the share of private companies that have installed solar, wind farms and other renewable energy technologies, ”said Arman Kashkinbekov, head of the UNDP Sustainable Development Department in Kazakhstan.

The joint initiative of UNDP and the Damu Fund will contribute to the fulfillment by Kazakhstan of its commitments under the Paris Agreement, as well as the achievement of targets for sustainable development goals.

You can familiarize yourself with the terms of the programs on the Damu Fund website damu.kz or by calling the 1408 call center.