EV infrastructure giant ChargePoint has had success with its new carbon credit sales in Africa, according to Sustainability Magazine.
ChargePoint has partnered with Africa GreenTec to install solar energy infrastructure for about 1,000 people in the Senegal village of Keur Niangane. The project, called Solartainer, was funded by carbon credits generated from about 10,000 EV chargers. In addition to storage, the system included 55 solar-powered street lights, 4,860 meters of cables, and 119 poles. The community of over 150 families previously relied on diesel power.
Renewable energy generation and storage entails upfront costs that low-income nations can have trouble meeting. Carbon credits are a useful vehicle in these instances, though their reputation has been harmed by companies that don't actually put the money to lowering pollution.
Debt-for-nature swaps are another mechanism to help developing countries get off dirty fuels. These include debt bonds in exchange for mobilized climate efforts such as those used by Ecuador to protect the Galápagos Islands. There are also low-interest loans for climate projects, as used in the Bahamas to protect mangroves. U.N. efforts to provide funding to low-income to mitigate the effects of climate shifts have hit walls, however.
Solar power, energy infrastructure, and electric vehicles all play massive roles in global decarbonization. In the instance of ChargePoint and Africa GreenTec, the economic benefits of the growth of these sectors is trickling into communities that wouldn't otherwise get to enjoy them. The electrification will reduce the pollution that affects the health of those nearby and help diminish destructive weather patterns.
"This project is already making a significant difference, particularly to the lives of women and children in this community, and we're proud to contribute to such a meaningful change," ChargePoint CEO Rick Wilmer said, per Sustainability Magazine. "We will continue to drive positive environmental and social impact as two of our core values."
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