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Will renewable energy business ever be economically attractive? What does the Government need to do to help private investors bear the high cost of capital investments? What will bankers look for in any loan proposal for bio-energy project? These were the questions raised during the workshop on Financing Sustainable Energy: Seizing Business Opportunities for Financial Institutions in the last week of March.

The workshop was jointly organized by the World Bank and Thai Bankers Association. The Office of National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB), the Federation of Thai Industries, and the European Commission also supported this workshop.

During the workshop, case studies from China, India and Spain were presented by Antonie de Wilde, Coordinator of the World Bank’s Asia Alternative Energy Program (ASTAE). Speakers and participants also discussed challenges and barriers in Thailand, including how to realize investments of over $1 billion in just a few years from the start of the project.

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ASTAE was set up in 1992 to incorporate renewable energy and energy efficiency into all of the World Bank’s works in the power sector. For more information about ASTAE and its activities, please click here