IKEA Foundation and The Rockefeller Foundation have pledged to create a $1 billion fund in 2021 to use distributed renewable energy (DRE) to lower 1 billion tons of GHG emissions and empower 1 billion lives, with a focus on emerging economies.
The new fund will invest in renewable energy sources as mini-grids and off-grid solutions located near the point of use, to bring clean and reliable energy access to 800 million people globally who don't have access to electricity, and another 2.8 billion with unreliable access.
In a joint statement, both the partners said the new global platform will oversee the organizations' combined matching funds, and will be run as a public charity that will rapidly channel development funds to 'life-changing projects' on the ground.
"Our collective ambition is to create a platform that supports renewable energy programs which can deliver greenhouse gas reductions fast and efficiently and accelerate the energy transition," said IKEA Foundation CEO, Per Heggenes. "We need to replace polluting sources of energy with renewable ones, provide access to energy to communities and unlock further funding for sustainable models."
This announcement comes soon after The Rockefeller Foundation signed a partnership with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to mobilize $2 billion private investment in DRE, with a focus on Sub-Saharan Africa (see $2 Billion Investment Partnership For Distributed RE).
It is not the first DRE investment for IKEA Foundation. It is one among anchor investors in Africa's off-grid solar financier SunFunder (see $12 Million Debt Commitment For Off-Grid Solar Start-Up).