Islamic Development Bank To Offer Insurance/Finance For RE Projects

In a bid to promote the development of renewable energy projects, the Islamic Corporation for the Insurance of Investment and Export Credit (ICIEC), the insurance arm of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group, has signed an MoU with Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company or Masdar. Under the MoU, the bank and Masdar agree to co-operate “in promoting joint action in the origination, financing, and execution of renewable energy projects through ICIEC’s insurance support in its member states.”

The agreement is expected to give a major boost to the transition to renewable and clean energy in markets of mutual interest to both entities. It was signed by Oussama Kaissi, CEO of ICIEC and Mohamed Jameel Al Ramahi, CEO of Masdar on the sidelines of during the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week.

ICIEC said that its mandate is to support the transitioning to clean energy through the generation of electricity from renewable non-emitting sources and, eventually the transition to a Green Economy whilst ensuring sustainable economic growth among the member states.

Masdar said that its similarly mandated to develop commercially viable renewable energy projects in the MENA and international markets. In December 2021, Masdar launched a global clean energy powerhouse partnership with ADNOC, Mubadala and Taqa intended to spearhead the drive to net-zero carbon by 2050.

The partnership will have a combined current, committed, and exclusive capacity of over 23 Gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy, with the expectation of reaching over 50GW total capacity by 2030. The expanded Masdar entity will become one of the largest clean energy companies of its kind and be well-positioned to lead the industry on a global scale.

The official statement held that Masdar and ICIEC share a common interest in contributing to the growth of renewable energy in the region and to the international climate finance architecture. ICIEC said that its positioned to play a key role in private sector engagement through the credit enhancement its policies provide to financial institutions on the one hand and the access it has to its Member State national and sub-national bodies who are the custodians of the relevant Climate Action projects and transactions.

Oussama Kaissi, CEO of ICIEC, said on cooperation with Masdar, “At ICIEC, each of our insurance policies, whether the policyholder is a financial institution, specialized company, or contractor, that offers cover against political and commercial risks, can contribute to the flow of Climate Action-related investment, specialized technology and equipment or services into its Member States thereby contributing to the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement and UN SDG Agenda.”

At the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week, Masdar had also signed agreements at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW) 2023 with three African countries – Angola, Uganda and Zambia – to develop 5 GW of renewable energy projects.