What it aims to achieve
The Renewable Energy Integration (REI) Program will help low- and middle-income countries develop more flexible and resilient energy systems through solutions that can accelerate the uptake of the best combinations of technologies to help in the following areas:
- Absorb new sources of intermittent renewable energy;
- Manage advanced grids;
- Balance different infrastructural requirements; and
- Improve overall energy systems operation.
Why it’s needed
The program is expected to mobilize significantly more investments from governments, financial institutions, and the private sector, and actively support the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals. More specifically, it will address the following areas:
- Support governments in establishing suitable policies and an enabling environment that will increase the uptake of flexible energy systems and integrate more variable renewable energy into the grid;
- Help develop their institutional capacities to plan and manage flexible energy systems sustainably;
- Mobilize public and private capital to integrate renewables into power systems in a way that maintains the safety, reliability, and security of energy supply;
- Promote an increased uptake in energy access, reduce the total cost of energy systems, as well as foster innovation by supporting early-stage ventures, technologies, and business models with high-impact potential.
How it works
The program works through national and regional investment plans that address the technical, policy, and market barriers preventing the further penetration of renewable energy into the grid. It promotes specific investments in enabling technologies, infrastructure, or business models that may demonstrate the benefits of such an approach in developing countries. In addition, a dedicated private-sector window may allow for investments in countries or regions where the regulatory framework and market structure support direct investments in flexibility and innovations.
Activities that may be funded under this program are presented below:
- Scaling up technologies that enable renewable energy, such as storage solutions, grid management, and green fuels;
- Enhancing infrastructure to be renewable energy-ready through smart grids and grid interconnections;
- Supporting renewable-energy innovation, for example, by empowering consumers to contribute actively to demand-side management; along with
- Enhancing system and market design and operation through regulatory change and procedural innovation.
The program provides technical assistance to facilitate policy-level activities at the sectoral level, such as conducting market studies and developing improved procurement mechanisms. It also promotes innovative market and system design and operations, such as advanced weather systems and net billing schemes.
Delivery Challenges
To achieve global climate goals, the energy sector needs to shift from being fossil-based to zero-carbon before the start of the second half of this century. Accelerating this transition calls for enhancing the flexibility of energy systems to facilitate the penetration of renewables. Countries in the developing world often lack the capacity for such flexibility.
The REI Program aims to help address system-wide barriers to the integration of higher shares of intermittent renewable energy generation into the grid and take advantage of the emerging opportunities, as part of the clean energy transition.
News Spotlight
