Camco has assembled an advisory board of industry experts with significant local and climate finance experience for its blended finance platform for the Pacific, TIDES.
TIDES (Transforming Island Development through Electrification and Sustainability) is being developed by Camco to provide flexible financing to local renewable energy developers. Its goal is to catalyse private sector investment in zero-emissions projects across the full range of sizes, from mini-grids to large grid-connected systems.
The five-member advisory board, responsible for advising on the fund’s future design, has been established as Camco progresses its fundraise for a USD100 million project facility and a USD30 million market capacity building facility. Its members are:
Ajay Raniga - co-founder of Sunergise International Limited, one of the largest solar developers in the Pacific region.
Bob McMullan - Chairman of Australian Water Partnership. Bob was previously Executive Director at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Director of the ANU Crawford Leadership Forum and an Australian Member of Parliament.
Dr Mike Allen - Special Envoy for Renewable Energy at the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT).
Olivia Coldrey – Head of Energy Finance and Clean Cooking at Sustainable Energy for All (SEforAll), with over 20 years’ experience in climate and energy markets.
Tapu Panuve* - former President of the Tonga Chamber of Commerce and current chairperson of Tonga Utilities Board. Tapu has chaired several of Tonga’s largest state-owned enterprises.
Paul Makumbe, Camco’s regional director for the Pacific, said: “We are thrilled to announce the TIDES advisory board today. The members’ combination of industry knowledge and local presence and relationships will be invaluable to us as we continue to fine tune the fund by localising global expertise.
“In doing so, we will be able to ensure TIDES remains highly relevant to the Pacific context and islands’ diverse needs, which is critical to scaling the region’s clean energy sector that is so urgently needed for cutting emissions, improving economic growth and boosting communities’ resilience to climate change.”
* Tapu stepped down from his position on the advisory board in October 2022.