| 1. Largest Climate Fund project to date: Solar energy to produce ice and purify water |
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For each MWh of EKOenergy-labelled energy, 0.10 € goes to EKOenergy’s Climate Fund. This enables us to finance new clean energy projects in developing countries. Most of our grants are between 20,000 to 40,000 € and the financed projects last for a maximum of 2 years.
Since an increasing number of consumers choose EKOenergy-labelled energy, our Climate Fund is growing. In order to make a larger positive impact, we are financing a larger project for the first time.
We will grant 313,581 € to Renewable World’s project “Using Renewable Energy to Transform Fishing Livelihoods” to improve community resilience through access to clean energy for 1,970 households along Lake Victoria in Kenya.
In the first half of the project, the focus will be on the provision of ice and purified water. Access to affordable and safe drinking water will help combat water-borne diseases such as typhoid, which is an ongoing problem in the region. The availability of ice at an affordable rate will ensure better preservation of caught fish and will increase the profit margin of subsistence fishers.
We'd like to thank all consumers and sellers of EKOenergy-labelled energy, we wouldn't be able to finance projects like this one without your support. |
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| 2. EKOenergy's 10th anniversary |
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On the 23rd of February, we celebrate the 10th anniversary of our ecolabel. For the past ten years we have made a difference together, and the positive impact continues to grow each year.
Here are some of our achievements since the launch of the EKOenergy ecolabel:
We granted more than 2.2 million € to renewable energy projects in developing countries, and we are preparing for more!
In addition to electricity, we expanded our activities to cover renewable gas, heat and cold.
The EKOenergy ecolabel is mentioned as a good practice in SDG implementation in a UN publication, and our goals are recognised as an Energy Compact by UN-Energy.
We have over 100 authorised sellers who are able to offer EKOenergy-labelled energy in 70 countries.
Our website and information materials are translated into more than 20 languages.
We have earned awards and recognition such as the European Citizen's Prize from the EU Parliament and the Taten fĂĽr Morgen award of the German Council for Sustainable Development. EKOenergy was also selected as one of the "100 projects for the climate" by the French Ministry of the Environment, Energy, and Sea.
We've raised more than 450,000 € for river restoration projects.
We were involved in the drafting of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol Scope 2 Guidance in 2013 and also were an early supporter of the RE-Source platform. To promote the uptake of renewable energy across various sectors such as breweries, the fashion industry and video gaming, we have set up numerous outreach campaigns. |
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| "The faster we go to solar and wind, the cheaper our wholesale electricity prices will be, and we can get away from being held to ransom by gas and coal companies." - Andrew Blakers, in an interview with RenewEconomy (Energy Insiders podcast) |
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| 3. EKOenergy from on-site installations in Spain and Ecuador |
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Did you know that our EKOenergy label can be added to the kilowatt-hours that are produced and consumed on-site?
Recently, orange juice producer Zuvamesa began using EKOenergy-labelled solar power from their on-site installation in Spain. Our authorised seller Quantica Renovables takes care of the administration.
Another recent user of EKOenergy from on-site PV is Agroarriba, an exporter of sustainably produced cocoa in Ecuador. Their EKOenergy use is facilitated by our authorised seller Marriott.
DP World Posorja, a company specialising in cargo logistics, port terminal operations, and maritime services in Ecuador also started using on-site produced solar with the EKOenergy label. They are helped by our authorised seller Genera Renovables.
Thanks a lot to all those involved!
By adding the EKOenergy ecolabel to on-site produced energy, consumers can
- show that they think globally and act locally,
- help EKOenergy promote renewable energy use worldwide,
- contribute to financing off-grid solar in developing countries,
- communicate easily by using our internationally recognised logo. |
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| "A total of 90 people attended the workshop. Few tribal communities came from distant places to participate. The Deputy Commissioner and the Chief Executive Officer thanked EKOenergy for the financial support and TERI for the very systematic implementation of the project. After watching EKOenergy's video presentation, they appreciated EKOenergy for funding need-based projects around the world." - A staff member from the Energy and Resources Institute India (TERI), in their report about a solar project EKOenergy has financed |
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| 4. Help us select the next Climate Fund projects |
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Through the funds we collect in our Climate Fund, we finance renewable energy projects that fight energy poverty and address several of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. All projects are selected through an open and transparent process.
We are now looking for consumers, energy sellers and experts willing to be involved in this year's project selection.
Are you interested in participating in the selection process as a jury member in the second half of April and the beginning of May? You'll be asked to read, score and rank 15-20 pre-selected project proposals. Each proposal is composed of 3 pages
If you'd like to be involved, contact laura.blomberg@sll.fi for more information. |
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| 5. New outreach materials in various languages |
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In the past few weeks, we prepared several new leaflets and translations of existing materials.
Our leaflet "Your clients can use EKOenergy-labelled electricity" is now available in German and Portuguese. The leaflet explains how installers of solar PV can help their clients add our ecolabel to the energy they consume.
The leaflet explaining 10 reasons to choose the EKOenergy ecolabel is now available in simplified Chinese.
Two new leaflets in our Climate Stories series are now online: "Solar power for Amazonian indigenous health posts" is a project we financed in Colombia and "Access to solar power in villages affected by armed conflicts" is a solar project in South Kivu, DR Congo.
Contact us if you'd like to have these leaflets in other languages or need other EKOenergy materials for your colleagues or clients. |
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| "We’re bringing this case as a shareholder in the company and are asking the court to order the Board to strengthen Shell’s climate plans. This will be the first time ever that a company’s board has been challenged on its failure to properly prepare for the energy transition." - ClientEarth and other shareholders are taking Shell's Board of Directors to court |
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| 6. EKOenergy on social media |
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Follow EKOenergy on social media to get relevant updates about the climate crisis, renewable energy and climate action worldwide.
Here are some recent posts:
In 2021 we granted 27,000€ to the African Centre for Renewable Energies and Sustainable Technologies, to bring solar power to 6 health centres in Cameroon. We just got photos from the ongoing installation. (from our Twitter)
Change is on its way, and each of us can play a role in speeding up the process - Record additions of new wind and solar in 2022 helped Europe survive a 'triple crisis' created by restrictions on Russian gas supplies, a dip in hydro caused by drought and unexpected nuclear outages. (from our LinkedIn)
We are planning our next renewable energy campaign! Stay tuned for more. (from our Instagram)
The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are at the heart of EKOenergy's work. In December 2020, UN DESA (UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs) highlighted our activities in their publication about good examples of SDG implementation and in 2021 EKOenergy's work to promote renewable energy was accepted as an Energy Compact by UN-Energy. (from our LinkedIn)
Most of the climate data for the whole of 2022 is now available. And it shows that last year set new weather records for individual locations as well as the world as a whole. (from our Facebook)
Fossil fuel lobbyists want to make sure politicians don't move towards renewables. It’s time to end the fossil fuel lobby's access to the @Europarl_EN. (from our Twitter) |
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| 7. Climate action and advocacy |
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While we mainly focus on the promotion of renewable energy in direct contact with consumers and energy companies, we also regularly support other climate initiatives and renewable energy campaigns of like-minded organisations and networks. Here are some examples:
Together with other groups and organisations, we sent a letter to ask the European Commission to intervene so that Poland's rules and legislation won't block the much-needed wind energy deployment.
We've joined various meetings about the review of the Greenhouse Gas Protocol Scope 2 Guidance (See our input for the review of the Scope 2 Guidance) and studied the EU's plans to regulate green claims. We also follow discussions about the EU's Reform of the Electricity Market Design, but for that, we mainly rely on the expertise of Climate Action Network Europe.
We regularly participate in the Fridays for Future demonstration each week, and some of our team attended a march in Helsinki to demand better protection of Finnish forests. |
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| "We installed 36 solar panels to power the health care centre, a charging station for mobile phones, and a water pump." - Centre for Renewable Energy and Action on Climate Change, Nigeria, in the video about their solar energy project financed by EKOenergy |
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| 8. Crisis accelerates the energy transition |
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Europe’s political response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 was to accelerate its electricity transition.
There is now a focus on rapidly cutting gas demand—at the same time as phasing out coal. This means a massive scale-up in clean energy is on its way.
In 2022, wind and solar generated a record fifth of EU electricity (22%), for the first time overtaking fossil gas (20%), and remaining above coal power (16%).
The shift away from fossil fuels was put on hold by a 1-in-500 year drought across Europe, which led to the lowest level of hydro generation in decades, and widespread unexpected outages of nuclear power plants. This created a 185 TWh gap in generation, equal to 7% of Europe’s total electricity demand in 2022. Five-sixths of the gap was made up by more wind and solar generation and a fall in electricity demand. But the remaining sixth was met by increased fossil generation.
2023 will be quite the opposite. Hydro generation will rebound, French nuclear units will return, wind and solar deployment will accelerate, and electricity demand will likely continue to fall over the coming months. In 2023, Europe is set to witness a huge fall in fossil fuels— of coal power, yes, but especially gas power.
Text copied from the summary of Ember's European Electricity Review 2023 |
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We at EKOenergy are always enthusiastic to collaborate with new partners.
For further information, please do not hesitate to get in touch. |
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