Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, November 12, 2019
On November 12, GGGI Mongolia organized a knowledge sharing event in Mongolia, as part of the Energy Efficiency (EE) Improvement Project implemented by GGGI, together with the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC). The main objective of the event was to bring together private companies interested in providing energy services and facilitate dialogue between different levels of awareness and understanding for both the private and public sector.
Mr. Romain Brillie, Country representative of GGGI Mongolia, delivered the opening speech. He highlighted: “Mongolia has committed to decrease its greenhouse gases emissions and increase its energy efficiency. With an energy intensity roughly seven times higher than the world’s average, Mongolia has significant opportunities for improved energy efficiency. To be more specific, recent reports point towards a significant market potential for EE technologies in sectors such as industry, buildings and appliances. One of GGGI’s main roles, as an international intergovernmental organization focusing on green economic growth, is to help attract financing for green investment projects, and into low carbon technologies. For that to happen, working with the private sector is absolutely key”.
Mr. Atarjargal.Ts said in his remark that ERC is working hard to develop a legislative environment by developing necessary regulations and framework for ESCO market and invited the private sector to engage with ESCO modeled and energy efficiency businesses.
The Energy Conservation Department of ERC presented the energy conservation regulatory environment and introduced ESCO market opportunities to participants of the event, which were mainly from potential private sector companies in the energy industry. Senior Investment Officer of GGGI, Mr. Gulshan Vashistha, shared international best practices of the ESCO market, including Thailand’s case. Ms. Batzaya, Investment officer of GGGI Mongolia, spoke about the residential retrofitting project in Ulaanbaatar city as one of the potential ESCO market models in Mongolia.
The Government of Mongolia set out ambitious targets and goals to reduce GHG emissions of the energy sector through developing renewable energy and improving energy efficiency. Mongolia’s Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) proposes energy efficiency in both energy and construction sectors as mitigation measures, in addition to improving stove efficiency with the co-benefit of the air pollution reduction. Energy efficiency has wide range of multi-benefits, such as energy saving, resource efficiency, reduction of air pollution and GHG emissions, increasing green jobs, improving household savings and public budget, and contribution to the poverty alleviation from less money spent on space heating.
GGGI’s comprehensive value chain approach to green growth helps effectively address these multi-disciplinary dimensions of energy efficiency improvement. As part of the support to the Energy Regulatory Commission of Mongolia, framed in the MoU signed in March 2017, GGGI is providing technical assistance and policy advice to the Government in implementing the Energy Efficiency Law (2015) and the National Energy Efficiency Action Program (NEEAP, 2017).
In 2016, GGGI conducted the first-in-the country audit on power energy savings of 15 out of 135 entities. The audit demonstrated that the country has high potential for energy efficiency – power saving measures can conserve power of 260 million kWh worth MNT35 billion, which is equal to the annual electricity production of Erdenet Power Plant. Later, in 2018, Chinggis hotel, private enterprise – one of the 15 audited companies, took EE measures with a GIZ grant (10k) and achieved 20% improved EE.
Although, there has been several legal and regulatory improvements to avail from EE potential in Mongolia, interests of the private sector and technical understanding of the multi-benefits of EE are still underdeveloped. Participants of the workshop expressed their appreciation of the knowledge sharing event and expressed their interest in developing an ESCO market in in the energy sector.
