Global climate finance increased to $391bn in 2014
According to an annual report from the Climate Policy Initiative (CPI), global climate finance increased to $391bn in 2014, up from $331bn in 2013, as private backing for renewable energy technologies surged. Barbara Buchner, Senior Director of the CPI, said "two weeks out from the international climate negotiations in Paris, our analysis demonstrates that countries around the world are investing to drive their own economic growth and development." Private investment increased to $243bn in 2014, up 26% from the previous year, with a record number of solar PV and onshore wind installations, and particularly strong growth in China. 

World’s most comprehensive inventory of climate finance shows that more money than ever before — at least USD 391 billion — was invested in low-carbon and climate-resilient actions in 2014.

Private actors invested USD 243 billion in renewable energies, a surge of 26% from 2013 which resulted in record solar PV and onshore wind deployment. Public finance reached at least USD 148 billion continuing its steady growth over the past three years.

74% of total climate finance (USD 290 billion) and 92% (USD 222 billion) of private investment was raised and spent in the same country. The domestic preference of climate finance highlights the importance of domestic investment policy and support frameworks.

VENICE, ITALY – November 16, 2015 – Climate Policy Initiative’s Global Landscape of Climate Finance 2015 shows global investment in activities that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and climate vulnerability grew from USD 331 billion in 2013 to USD 391 billion in 2014, thanks to steady increases in public finance and a surge in private investment in renewable energy technologies.

Of the finance captured by the Landscape 2015, USD 292 billion paid for renewable energy. With falling costs for some technologies, these investments are achieving more impact than ever before.

Adaptation finance reached USD 25 billion or 17% of all public climate finance in 2014. On par with last year’s results, this is a partial and uncertain estimate due to different accounting approaches and major data gaps for tracking private adaptation finance. Development finance institutions were the biggest single source of global climate finance, providing USD 131 billion or 33% of total climate finance flows. Project developers and corporate actors outside the energy sector were the second and third biggest sources with USD 92 billion (24%) and USD 58 billion (15%) respectively.

“Two weeks out from the international climate negotiations in Paris, our analysis demonstrates that countries around the world are investing to drive their own economic growth and development. Overwhelmingly, it is national self-interest that is driving climate action,” said Barbara Buchner, Senior Director of Climate Policy Initiative and lead author of the study. She added, “The numbers also show that while global investment in a cleaner more resilient economy is growing, so too is the investment gap between what is required for reducing emissions to within agreed limits and what is being delivered. Even greater effort and geographic spread is needed to deliver investments consistent with the 2°C global temperature goal.”

Climate Policy Initiative works to improve the most important energy and land use policies around the world, with a particular focus on finance. An independent analytical and advisory organization, CPI has offices and programs in Brazil, China, Europe, India, Indonesia, and the United States. CPI remains committed to improving the understanding and transparency of today’s climate finance landscape. By shedding light on the intersection between public policy, finance and private investment, it aims to help decision makers optimize the use of their resources.

CONTACT

U.S. – Ruby Barcklay, +1 510 612 5180, Ruby.Barcklay@cpisf.org

Europe – Dan Storey, +39 041 270 0475, Dan.Storey@cpivenice.org

Data clarifications for journalists

* Numbers in the Landscape 2015 represent annual flows for the latest year available. They are rounded up or down to produce whole numbers. Percentages are calculated from the unrounded figures. Any discrepancy between numbers and percentages is attributable to this.

** Our figures are for overall finance flows and provide a measure of progress toward estimates of total investment needed to limit global temperature rise to below 2 degree Celsius. However, they cannot provide a quantifiable measure of progress because major data gaps still hinder our analysis.