Page 13 - AsiaElec Week 15

AsiaElec
NEWS IN BRIEF
AsiaElec
emergency programme, tax and other relief measures provided to businesses, and a $23bn economic relief package announced on 26 March to provide immediate income and consumption support to the poor, women, and workers affected by the three-week nationwide lockdown.
“ADB is committed to supporting India’s emergency needs. We are now preparing $2.2bn in immediate assistance to the health sector and to help alleviate the economic impact of the pandemic on the poor; informal workers; micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises; and the financial sector,” Mr. Asakawa said.
“ADB assistance for India will be further increased if needed. We will consider all financing options available with us to meet India’s needs, including emergency assistance, policy-based loans, and budget support to facilitate swift disbursement of ADB funds.” ADB
ADB triples COVID-19 response package to $20bn
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) today tripled the size of its response to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic to $20bn and approved measures to streamline its operations for quicker and more flexible delivery of assistance.
The package expands ADB’s $6.5bn initial response announced on 18 March, adding $13.5bn in resources to help ADB’s developing member countries counter the severe macroeconomic and health impacts caused
by COVID-19. The $20bn package includes about $2.5bnbn in concessional and grant resources.
The new package includes the establishment of a COVID-19 Pandemic Response Option under ADB’s Countercyclical Support Facility. Up to $13bn will be provided through this new option to help governments of developing member
countries implement effective countercyclical expenditure programmes to mitigate impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a particular focus on the poor and the vulnerable. Grant resources will continue to be deployed quickly for providing medical and personal protective equipment and supplies from expanded procurement sources.
Some $2bn from the $20bn package will be made available for the private sector. Loans and guarantees will be provided to financial institutions to rejuvenate trade and supply chains. Enhanced microfinance loan and guarantee support and a facility to help liquidity-starved small and medium-sized enterprises, including those run by female entrepreneurs, will be implemented alongside direct financing of companies responding to, or impacted by, COVID-19.
ADB
TRADING
Sembcorp launches renewable energy certificate aggregator platform
Sembcorp Industries has launched a renewable energy certificate (REC) aggregator platform backed by its renewable power capacity in China and South-east Asia, the conglomerate said on April 14.
RECs are tradable certificates or proofs of electricity generated by renewable sources.
The platform puts RECs up for sale in bulk, combining Sembcorp’s RECs with RECs from different sources. The group’s own RECs will help ensure high liquidity on the platform, it said.
Sellers are guaranteed a sale of their RECs, regardless of quantity, as long as the RECs meet the authenticity criteria of Sembcorp’s
platform, Sembcorp said.
The platform utilises blockchain
technology, which ensures transparency, integrity and better security for transactions, while the quality of RECs is verified by third- party validators, the group added.
Swiss bank UBS and mainboard-listed property giant CapitaLand have signed on as participants.
Sembcorp said the platform is useful for companies that are part of RE100, a global renewable energy campaign in which firms pledge to use 100 per cent renewable energy by a certain date.
The platform will also allow individual consumers to monetise their RECs.
COAL-FIRED GENERATION
Green groups push to stop
bailout of South Korea’s
Doosan Heavy Industries
Environmental groups are seeking an injunction against a move by South Korea
to bail out a builder of coal-fired power plants, saying the rescue package goes against the country’s climate and public health commitments.
Korea Development Bank (KDB) and the Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM) on March 26 issued a 1 trillion won ($825mn) emergency loan to Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co. The bailout is listed
as part of the South Korean government’s stimulus package for businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
But the decision has come under fire from environmental watchdogs, given that most of Doosan’s revenue comes from building coal- fired power plants.
“These decisions to support Doosan Heavy come with significant environmental and
Week 15 15 •April•2020
w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m
P13