The Rockefeller Foundation has announced a partnership with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) — the private sector arm of the World Bank Group — to help catalyze private-sector investment in distributed renewable energy solutions.

With the goal of mobilizing up to $2 billion in private-sector investment, the partnership will deploy $150 million in blended finance to de-risk capital investment in projects in emerging markets, with a focus on sub-Saharan Africa and other select regions. In its initial "rapid deployment" phase, the organizations will distribute $30 million in blended concessional finance and grant capital to leverage a pipeline of projects developed by IFC, including a prototype scaling mini-grid program and technologies for distributed renewable energy generation, battery energy storage, and facilitated access. A portion of the funding will be used to provide technical assistance, targeted feasibility studies, and cost-sharing support to private-sector clients and governments.

"Investing in renewable energy infrastructure in communities that have not had access to reliable power will ensure that the recovery from the COVID-19 crisis is both green and equitable," said Rockefeller Foundation president Rajiv J. Shah. "The landscape of energy technologies we are investing in will make it possible for every person on the planet to have totally reliable, productive electrification."

"The climate challenge at its core is an energy challenge," said IFC managing director Makhtar Diop. "The twin goals of improving energy access and addressing climate change both require our urgent attention but can’t be achieved with public resources alone. The private sector can and must be part of the solution if the scale of our results is to meet the scale of our ambitions."