How Germany's State Development Bank Finances Energy Transition

Abstract

In recognition of the long term consequences of relying on a fossil fuel economy, the German government launched a national plan in 2010 to transition away from non-renewable energy sources. The German state development bank, Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW), enables energy transition through financing both the development of renewable energy production and energy conservation. The report looks at the German public bank financing model and potential applications to the Canadian context.