Interview with Claudio Palmieri, CEO at the Clean Energy Business Council MENA.

1. High hopes for
the Clean Energy
Business Council
With the threat of climate change increasing, organizations like the Clean Energy Business Council
(CEBC), are striving to bring environmental change now more than ever. We caught up with Claudio
Palmieri, CEBC’s CEO, who shared his thoughts on energy consumption, Dubai’s integrated energy
strategy, clean energy financing, and the future of clean energy in the MENA region.
– Claudio Palmieri
CEO, CEBC
““The Clean Energy Business Council believes that Dubai’s target to reduce primary energy consumption by
30 percent by 2030 is possible through private sector’s support to the government’s vision.
Clean Energy vs. Fossil Fuels
Palmieri’s Perspective
In a recent Emirates News TV Special Feature, CEBC’s previous CEO
Alice Cowman was invited to speak about the status of clean energy in
the UAE. The feature followed a recent United Nations report, stating that
in urban areas, climate change will increase the risk of storms, flooding,
and drought, which would lead to major economic shocks, and increase
the risk of violent conflicts.
What does this mean for the UAE? The UN has urged governments to act
now, particularly when it comes to the economic side of things. The good
news, according to Cowman, is that the problem has not much to do with
economics anymore, but more about where money is being spent.
“In energy right now, I think they’ve estimated $600 billion worth of
subsidies for fossil fuels, against $90 billion of subsidies for clean energy,”
said Cowman. “We need to change that balance if we’re going to move to
a low-carbon future.”
Cowman further mentioned that approximately $1.6 trillion is currently
spent in the energy sector as a whole, and more than half of it is used
for fossil fuels. “We need to change that balance,” she said. Cowman
expressed the need to redirect financing so that clean energy has a fair
chance to compete against fossil fuels.
To add fuel to this discussion of clean
energy, we spoke to Claudio Palmieri,
who has brought more than 20 years’
experience in the power and renewable
energy sectors and has worked in
commissioning, engineering project
management, service, sales, project
development, and business development
for power, renewable energy, oil and gas.
Registered as a non-profit organization
in Masdar City in Abu Dhabi, CEBC
represents the private sector involved
in the clean energy across the MENA
region.
According to Palmieri, CEBC supports
the green energy sector by providing the
industry with a forum that brings together
all stake holders such as developers,
investors, technology providers,
regulators, off-takers, utilities, and the
relevant government entities to discuss
all matters related to the successful
implementation of “renewable energy,
energy efficiency, smart grid, energy
storage, and environmental projects.”
The organization also actively supports
green energy initiatives, projects, and
research in the MENA region.
Dubai in particular, has set a target
to reduce energy consumption by 30
percent by 2030. How likely is this goal,
and how does CEBC encourage the
private sector to become more involved?
Palmieri believes that Dubai’s target to
reduce primary energy consumption by
2013 is possible, provided that the private
sector is supporting the government’s
vision sufficiently.
“Toachievethistarget,thefinancialsector
has to develop financial instruments that
enable the private sector to finance the
implementation
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december Issue 12
2015
94energy

2. of technology that improves energy
efficiency and generates clean energy
from renewables,” said Palmieri.
“Ultimately, it requires close cooperation
between all stake holders.”
In the lead up to Expo 2020 to be held
in Dubai (with a sustainability theme),
Palmieri believes that it was a wise step
by DEWA to diversify fuel resources and
to reduce dependence on gas imports by
introducing alternative energy solutions.
However, Dubai’s integrated energy
strategy clearly goes beyond Expo 2020
and contains a vision that works towards
a more sustainable energy mix.
“Dubai is unique in the sense that it
has started, through Shams Dubai, to
mobilize the private sector to participate
in the implementation of its integrated
Energy Strategy,” said Palmieri. “This is
only possible because Dubai has been
developing the required infrastructure
and the legal and commercial framework
over the last decade. Based on the
current retail energy prices in most of the
neighboring countries, such an approach
is commercially just not feasible – yet.”
Palmieri believes that the successful
development of the clean energy sector
in the UAE is dependent on the financial
sector to provide suitable financial
solutions such as green bonds and green
sukuks. Initiatives such as Shams Dubai,
for example, require suitable finance
assistance to make the implementation
of solar roof systems affordable to home
owners.
“The successful development of green
bonds to make them more mainstream
requires the development of a suitable
legal framework, and policies supporting
it,” Palmieri explained. “This is a process
that develops over time and requires
a fair level of interaction between all
parties involved. It is part of our mission
to support this process by providing
a forum where such topics can be
discussed.”
Bloomberg New Energy Finance has
been a great supporter of CEBC in
terms of financing renewable energy.
They are a current Board Member and
have contributed greatly to CEBC’s
events and initiatives. In return, CEBC
looks forward to supporting Bloomberg
New Energy Finance regarding their
FiRe program (Finance for Resilience),
which recognizes powerful ideas and
actionable interventions for clean energy,
climate, sustainability, and green growth.
In addition to seeking new ways of
increasing investment in renewable
energy, CEBC values events such as
Solar Middle East, which promotes
awareness and investment in clean
energy. According to Palmieri, as a
matter of principle, CEBC supports
all events and initiatives in the MENA
region that promote development and
investment in clean energy.
“We consider these events crucial as
they create a vital forum where all stake-
holders come together to exchange
information and ideas, where the industry
can engage with the public sector,
regulators, and present studies and best
practices.”
But awareness isn’t the only way
that clean energy can spread as a
norm throughout the MENA region.
Breakthrough technologies in clean
energy are essential for it to move
forward and progress. Over the last 25
years, renewable energy technologies
such as solar and wind power have
matured to a point that innovation no
longer comes with big breakthroughs,
but rather constant small improvements
in, “efficiency, performance, and more
cost effective designs,” says Palmieri.
“The areas where we can expect
breakthrough innovations are related to
energy storage, fuel cell, and smart grid
related technologies.”
Unfortunately, many parts of the MENA
region have been slow to adopt solar
and wind energy as part of their energy
mix. But Palmieri is confident that with
many encouraging initiatives currently
underway, like Shams Dubai, it marks the
beginning of a “clean energy evolution,”
at least in some areas.
“Clean Energy Business Council is here
to actively support the development
of a strong, clean energy sector,” said
Palmieri. “The region has great potential
to create its own clean energy industry
that covers the entire value chain
including R&D, manufacturing, project
development, and implementation.”
Palmieri is positive that clean energy
marks unprecedented opportunities for
the MENA to transform into an efficient,
sustainable region, that in the future,
will no longer have to rely on destructive
resources for energy consumption.
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