Innovation is needed to open new avenues for achieving Sustainable Development Goal 7, “Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all”. Achieving this, and other UN SDGs calls for an unprecedented global transformation process that extends far beyond the energy sector.
DNV GL’s Chief Group Development Officer David Walker used the opportunity at the Vienna Energy Forum 2017 to address different ways of scaling and improving the conditions for energy solutions to have a material impact on the energy system and emissions.
During discussion on the importance of helping developing countries remove barriers and build capacity on the ground, David Walker referred to the Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN) and how they can help developing countries remove some of the barriers for technology transfer projects through its technical assistance services.
DNV GL is a strategic partner of the CTCN. One of the activities is supporting the development of market studies for energy efficient household appliances across southern Africa, which in turn will lead to the development of common standards. This will help to reduce cost, open wider markets, and reduce energy consumption as well as emissions. Another service that can help scaling innovation is ensuring that a technology will perform per specification, and that it can deliver returns under local conditions. When such risks have been sufficiently reduced, via tools like DNV GL’s technology qualification process, it is possible to mobilize finance and involve both development banks and private finance.
The Vienna Energy Forum 2017, organized by the Austrian government and UNIDO, brought together over 1600 participants, including Heads of State, ministers, energy experts, representatives of international and non-governmental organizations, academia, civil society and the private sector.
The forum serves as a platform for discussing and highlighting the importance of the linkages between climate and development, as well as the synergies among the SDGs, and the importance of joint and integrated approaches for a successful implementation. The goal of this year’s event was to contribute to the successful implementation of the SDGs and the Paris Agreement.
The Vienna Energy Forum was established in 2008 as a joint initiative by the Austrian Government, the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis and the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), with the aim of exploring how energy can contribute to meeting global developmental challenges.