Acknowledging the above, Mexico has already developed a NAMA to promote EE in SMEs. Implementation started in 2014, and has so far provided publicly funded concessional loans to 17,501 companies for standardized EE measures such as the substitution of obsolete equipment. Nevertheless given the basic technological focus adopted, it produced rather modest impacts with regards to GHG emission reductions. Nonetheless, the initial NAMA has successfully provided concessional loans to SMEs and built up a wide technical support structure 100 per cent financed by public funds.
The proposed Nama Support Project (NSP) will offer technical and financial assistance to the above mentioned SME-NAMA, to considerably extend its scope by starting a second implementation phase. For this purpose a strategy has been developed for providing financing for more complex EE measures, such as the optimization of systems in medium-sized enterprises (compressed air, steam generation and distribution, industrial refrigeration, amongst others) which will require higher investment costs but have a higher energy savings potential resulting in more GHG reductions. Furthermore by introducing commercial (second-tier) banks as financial intermediaries, private capital will be leveraged providing for considerable up-scaling opportunities.
The NSP will focus on developing a dynamic and robust market for EE in SMEs, with a significant contribution of private capital and replication potential in other sectors. For this purpose a new technological approach, based on optimizing energy systems performance in selected SMEs’ sub-sectors (i.e. hotels, chemical industry, food processing industry, etc.), will be implemented. Also, a qualified EE services offer integrated by certified consulting companies, will be established and market and financial barriers will be overcome to attract involvement of commercial banks in EE financing.
Direct funding leverage: Financial cooperation will be provided to set up a guarantee fund (EUR 7 m) as well as a small-scale grant subsidy scheme (EUR 2.5 m) to finance EE measures in SMEs. A leveraging effect of at least EUR 70 m of private capital is expected for clean technology financing.
Technical cooperation funds will be used to make the need and importance of EE ubiquitous in the relevant stakeholders’ mindset, and to produce a significant pipeline of bankable EE projects showcasing the success cases (4 million EUR). This will be achieved by providing the market with a qualified offer of EE services integrated by certified consulting companies; and raising SME’s awareness regarding EE economic and environmental benefits, particularly emphasizing how it improves SME’s competitiveness.
Mitigation potential: With a conservative approach, an energy efficiency project implemented in electric and thermal energy consumption systems can produce individual average savings in the range of 40 and 100 t CO2e/y, which is 17 to 42 times higher than the savings obtained per project during the first implementation phase. At the end of the 4th implementation year, the NSP aims to a total of 9,000 projects implemented with an annual impact capacity of 360,000 t CO2e/y. Over the NSP implementation period, the estimated cumulative emission reduction potential amounts to 421,200 t CO2e.