In an important step to improve and promote renewable energy sources and energy efficiency in Latin America and the Caribbean, the ETRELA consortium, led by OLADE, implements the project in seven countries: Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Honduras, Peru, Dominican Republic and Uruguay. The project focuses on capacity building and education, generating a multiplier effect that in the future will provide professionals capable of meeting the challenges inherent to the energy transition.
The project, led by OLADE, with the support of RENAC and Global Factor as its technical arm, receives funding from the German government through the International Climate Initiative (IKI) and focuses on the development of renewable energies and energy efficiency in Latin America and the Caribbean as a strategy for mitigating and adapting to climate change.
This initiative, whose second phase was officially presented in Brazil, Colombia, Honduras and the Dominican Republic through events coordinated between the consortium, the Ministries/Secretaries of Energy and the German Embassies in each country, will carry out a series of activities such as equipping demonstration centers, training courses for trainers and generating spaces for discussion on quality standards for education in renewable energies and energy efficiency in the country.
The events in Honduras and the Dominican Republic were held in January and February 2024, while the presentations in Brazil and Colombia took place in November 2023.
At the event held on January 25, 2024 in Honduras, the German Ambassador to Honduras, Daniela Fogl, explained that the project is a response to the general need for education in the field of renewable energies. “We must all work to ensure the sustainability of our planet and economic development, which requires more energy every day,” she said. Underlining the importance of a country dedicated to the green sector, Vogl praised Honduras’ positive progress in renewable energy and highlighted the country’s geography and resources to help promote sustainable projects.
Likewise, the Undersecretary of Energy, Tomás Rodríguez, acknowledged the scale and benefits for Honduras of the project, which focuses on developing human capacities through courses, online and on-site training and laboratories. The National Autonomous University of Honduras (UNAH) participated in the project through its School of Engineering and contributed to its development.
At the event held on February 2, 2024 in the Dominican Republic, the German ambassador for the Dominican Republic, Maike Friedrichsen, highlighted the long-standing successful energy collaboration between the two countries, highlighting a new joint project that assumes the responsibility of promoting more sustainable energies in the region. The ambassador pointed out that this commitment is materialized through a portfolio of projects supported by German technical and financial cooperation, aimed at strengthening the infrastructure for renewable energies in the Dominican Republic.
Communications and Institutional
Relations Department
josefa.corral@olade.org