Climate and environmental protection

Climate change is one of the biggest challenges of our time. It has far-reaching economic and social implications that can be felt across the globe. While it affects all economies, developing countries are at a much greater risk than the industrialised and emerging economies - the main perpetrators of climate change.

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KfW is supporting the expansion of renewable energy in developing and emerging economies on behalf of the German Federal Government. While there is often a great deal of potential available, countries lack the infrastructure and transmission lines required. This is where the support provided by KfW comes into play.

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The Green Climate Fund (GCF) and KfW expanded their cooperation in 2017. KfW received a financial commitment of EUR 102.7 million from GCF in April 2017 for a project in Tanzania. The aim of the project is to help secure the long-term supply of drinking water to nearly half a million people in the region of Simiyu, which has been severely affected by climate change.

An initial financing agreement between GCF and KfW was also signed at the UN Climate Change Conference in Bonn for a project in Bangladeshthat has already been given the green light. GCF is participating in this project with a grant of USD 40 million. The project entitled “Climate Resilient Infrastructure Mainstreaming” will improve the protection of the population against storms and floods by means of infrastructure properly adapted to climate change. The signing of the financing agreement represents a milestone in the cooperation between GCF and KfW. Other projects with GCF are in the pipeline.

GCF is a key financing instrument for implementing the Paris climate accord. KfW was one of the first institutions to receive accreditation from the GCF in 2015 and is able to propose suitable climate projects for financing.

At the UN Climate Change Conference (COP 23) held in Bonn in November 2017, the rules on implementing the Paris climate accord were further developed and possibilities to expand climate financing discussed. KfW was able to demonstrate through more than 20 events that it is one of the world’s leading banks when it comes climate financing. A particularly innovative project implemented by KfW on behalf of the Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety to re-wet moorland in Russia received an award at the conference.

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Germany and India embarked on a strategic partnership in 2013 against the backdrop of the Indian energy transition with the large-scale project “Green Energy Corridors” to promote special electricity transmission lines to connect large solar installations and wind farms to the Indian electricity grid. Funds of EUR 1 billion were committed for this purpose over a period of five years. It was possible to meet this financing target well ahead of schedule in 2017 as a result of the conclusion of a loan agreement for Green Energy Corridors in the state of Maharashtra. Given the considerable success of the project, the Federal Government has committed additional funds of EUR 400 million to date for a second phase.

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Other projects around the world:

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The information contained in this online Annual Report 2017 is based on KfW’s Financial Report 2017, which you can download here. Should this online Annual Report 2017, despite the great care taken in preparation of its content, contain any contradictions or errors compared to the Financial Report, the KfW Financial Report 2017 takes priority.