Side-event on the Clean Development Mechanism held in Yerevan

The Project Preparation Committee (PPC), a network of stakeholders involved in preparing and financing environmental investments, organized and conducted a side-event on CDM for interested delegates, who attended the Third EAP Task Force/PPC Meeting and Ministerial Conference on Financing Water Supply and Sanitation in EECCA in Yerevan on16-18 November, 2005.

The PPC is a network of stakeholders which includes over 20 multilateral and bilateral donors, IFIs, regional governments, NGOs and the private sector. As part of the "Environment for Europe" process the PPC's primary goal is to bring environmental benefits to the countries of Eastern Europe, the Caucuses and Central Asia by helping to identify prepare and finance environmental investment projects.

The side-event took place on 18 November 2005 in Armenia Marriott Hotel and hosted approximately forty participants. Along with a number of project sponsors from the region and representatives of key ministries and various financial institutions, local CDM project developers, as well as managers of private entities were invited.

The objectives of the workshop were to present an overview of the CDM institutional and policy developments in the region, and to identify and discuss barriers and possibilities of their resolution via several financial mechanisms designed and maintained by EBRD. In particular, presentations were made on CDM Project Support Facility (CDM PSF) as well as Multilateral Carbon Credit Fund which is being developed by EBRD and EIB.

The event began by an opening speech of Mr. Aram Gabrielyan, Head of Environmental Protection Department of the MoNP of RA and UNFCCC National Focal Point, who welcomed the delegates and made a presentation on development of CDM in Armenia and the current status of CDM projects in the country.

Then the floor went to Mr. Francois Collignon (Sofreco) who elucidated the current process in the Central Asian countries regarding the Kyoto Protocol and provided general information on the EU-funded "TACIS programme for Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia" Lot 3 project. The presenter gave an overview of the current economic situation in all the five countries and assessed the climate change policy progress. At the end, a number of recommendations were developed, some of which would be suitable for Armenia as well.

Mr. Albert Zweering, Team Leader for Lot 2 project, updated the participants on the CDM development in the Caucuses and Moldova. He analyzed the obstacles for CDM promotion in the region and discussed the possibilities of their resolution.

The last two presentations were made by EBRD representatives and touched upon the Bank's CDM initiatives in the countries where EBRD operates. The main role of the Bank in the field of carbon finance is to act as financier of emission reduction projects. However, in keeping with its principle of 'additionality' - supporting and complementing the private sector rather than competing with it - the Bank can play a number of additional roles.

In October 2003, the EBRD established its first carbon fund, the Netherlands Emissions Reductions Co-operation Fund, with the Dutch Government. The fund buys Joint Implementation Carbon Credits from its 13 countries of operations eligible for this mechanism.

The EBRD is expecting to launch its "Multilateral Carbon Credit Fund" in 2006. The fund will buy carbon credits from investments under the European Union scheme as well as the Protocol's Joint Implementation and Clean Development Mechanism. It will also aim to facilitate the direct trading of carbon credits between some of its shareholders.

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