Jour
nal

No. 1
2023  

Electric buses for climate mitigation in Thailand 
From the Paris Agreement to CO₂ reduction   

Positive agricultural energy from manure and slurry 
Agricultural biogas facilities in Switzerland

Annual report 2022

Insights into climate mitigation

The KliK Foundation has already been dedicated to its cause for a decade now. It operates within the framework of the Swiss CO₂ Act, which has been in force since 2000 and is currently subject to amendment negotiations pursued by politicians for the 2025-2030 period. The aim is to reduce Switzerland’s greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. The KliK Foundation makes an important contribution to this by enabling the financing of climate mitigation programmes in Switzerland and abroad.   


What areas do we work in? Who are we addressing? How can climate mitigation be organised on a small and large scale, nationally and internationally? We have refined our image and want to use our new journal to provide a deeper insight into the cosmos of climate mitigation and the possibilities of reducing greenhouse gases. The KliK Journal will serve as our annual format, showcasing selected projects and featuring programme owners, developers and experts. The link to our 2022 annual report can be found in the Facts and Figures  section. It provides a comprehensive and detailed overview of the results of our activities in the last year.      


Thanks to five new climate cooperation agreements between Switzerland and partner countries concluded last year, the KliK Foundation is now active in eleven countries. Further agreements are under discussion, and new countries can submit requests for cooperation with Switzerland. Programme ideas can be submitted by programme developers and owners from partner countries as well as from other countries after prior consultation with the Foundation. In Switzerland itself, an impressive number of climate mitigation programmes have been developed in the areas of transport, agriculture, buildings and business, thanks in no small part to our foundation. Find out what climate mitigation action we support, and send us your programme ideas and requests for participation! 


2030 is an important milestone on the way to the internationally agreed target of limiting global warming to less than 2 degrees Celsius. The KliK Foundation is actively and practically involved in this issue around the globe by providing financial support for greenhouse gas reduction. With every tonne of greenhouse gas saved, we contribute to achieving Switzerland’s climate target.   


Here’s to future cooperation for climate mitigation!

Dr. Marco Berg

Managing Director of the Foundation for Climate Protection and Carbon Offset KliK

Focus

Inter
natio
nal

The KliK Foundation works under immense pressure to initiate and implement climate mitigation programmes, not only in Switzerland, but also internationally. As a private organisation with a legal mandate, the Foundation finances climate-friendly technologies and innovations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Switzerland is using the framework of Article 6 in the Paris Agreement, which allows parties to enter into cooperation to achieve their climate mitigation targets. The most advanced programme is being implemented in Bangkok, the capital of Thailand.

Electric buses for climate mitigation in Thailand

From the Paris Agreement to CO₂ reduction

Learning from the Bangkok E-Bus Programme

Interview with Mr Chatrapon Sripratum by Ms Patchaya Thanaudom.

Selected international programmes

Mitigation activities implemented under the Paris Agreement must supplement the efforts of partner countries and serve to raise their ambition in fighting climate change. To this end, mitigation activities must be carefully selected, as well as being designed and developed in cooperation with partner countries to meet local needs.

The Renewable Energy Programme of Ongresso Energy AG plans to decarbonise energy production in Peru. It supports decentralised solar PV projects with battery energy storage systems. The focus is on off-grid renewable energy solutions in large, remote areas of Peru, mainly in the departments of Loreto and Amazonas in the north-east of the country, where the programme will also provide a secure, permanent energy supply for people in remote villages. In addition, the programme will target decentralised industries throughout Peru that currently rely on off-grid fossil fuel-based energy solutions. The programme is closely aligned with Peru's NDC target, as it complements the Peruvian government's planned renewable energy additions by increasing renewable energy capacity, but goes beyond the government's commitment under the Paris Agreement.
Additional Renewable Energy Platform Peru
With a growing population, increasing wealth, urbanisation and rising temperatures, the refrigeration and air conditioning (RAC) sector is a significant contributor to Ghana's current and future greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The Green Cooling activity of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and the Perspectives Climate Group aims to bring about change through the introduction of Green split air conditioners (ACs). The split AC sub-sector currently accounts for a large share of energy and F-gas related GHG emissions, amounting to around 8% of national GHG emissions. The introduction of highly energy efficient and low GHG emitting air conditioners will be supported by various financial and technical measures aimed at strengthening the adoption of this innovative and sustainable technology. The programme takes a holistic approach and aims at transforming the whole sector by complementing the market introduction of the Green ACs with capacity training of RAC-technicians and end-of-life treatment of the replaced air conditioners.
Ghana Green Cooling
The biogas programme directly builds on Senegal’s NDC, in which the country has pledged to install at least 27,500 biodigesters by 2030. The transaction will allow the programme to raise the level of ambition to over 50,000 digesters. It will provide smallholder farmers across the country with a clean and renewable alternative to traditional firewood and charcoal for cooking. By providing guarantees, the Guarantee Fund for Priority Investments (Fonds de garantie des investissements prioritaires FONGIP) enables commercial banks in Senegal to offer credit lines to vetted biogas enterprises to install biodigesters for pre-selected end-users who will thus benefit from a clean cooking system and an income-generating opportunity through the sale of bio-fertiliser. The programme will also generate local employment and skilled jobs through the development of small-scale biogas enterprises. Through results-based financing, the KliK Foundation supports broader access to credit and financing for business development in the biogas sector.
National Biogas Programme Senegal
Small island development states like Dominica contribute very little to climate change. At the same time, they are extremely vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and are eager to participate in climate action. Dominica’s NDC focuses on achieving 100% renewable electricity generation through geothermal resources. It also sets ambitious reduction targets for the transport sector. Grutter Consulting’s e-mobility activity aims to rapidly transition Dominica’s transport sector to electric mobility (both road and marine), including the charging infrastructure. The amount of electricity used will be 100% covered by photovoltaic production (PV) with a reserve surplus. Other benefits of the programme include the improvement of air and water quality through decreased pollution levels and the reduction of associated health risks.
Green Finance for E-Mobility in Dominica

Find the portfolio here:

international.klik.ch/en
Focus

Na
tio
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As a specialised service provider, the KliK Foundation has been fulfilling the carbon offset obligation of its clients in Switzerland since 2013. With a minimum of resources, the Foundation offsets a maximum amount of CO₂ emissions. By supporting mature technologies and innovative ideas for climate mitigation, the Foundation makes a significant contribution to reducing Switzerland’s ecological footprint.

Positive agricultural energy from manure and slurry

Methane emitted from the open storage of manure and slurry on farms is 28 times more harmful to the climate than CO₂. Biogas facilities offer a multi-functional climate mitigation solution, producing electricity, heat and fertiliser at the same time.

Biogas facilities are multi-talented

Interview with Fabienne Thomas, Head of Policy at aeesuisse

Harnessing agricultural methane emissions

Interview with Victor Anspach, member of the Board of Directors of Ökostrom Schweiz

Selected programmes in Switzerland

In accordance with the CO₂ Act, the KliK Foundation promotes climate mitigation activities in the areas of transport, business, buildings and agriculture.

In the business sector, the KliK Foundation runs the “Climate-Friendly Cooling” programme. It complements legal regulations and promotes the replacement of highly climate-damaging refrigerants, especially HFCs (partially halogenated hydrofluorocarbons), with climate-friendly alternatives. The programme supports both the early replacement of such systems and the construction of climate-friendly small systems that are not covered by the Chemical Reduction Ordinance (Chemikalienreduktionsverordnung). In addition, the conversion to climate-friendly refrigerants without modifying the HFC system is supported with a subsidy of 70 to 90% of the investment costs. Such a conversion can reduce emissions of such a facility by more than half, over the remaining life of the system.
Businesses
In the building sector, the KliK Foundation and its partners have developed a comprehensive support portfolio in the area of heat supply. Whether for wood heaters or heat pumps, for single-family homes or entire neighbourhoods, or even for industrial facilities, there is support available for all types of buildings. When replacing an oil or gas heating system, the support programmes cover up to 30% of the investment costs for a wood heater or heat pump.
Buildings
From electric buses and electric waste transporters to electric excavators, electric loaders, electric dumpers and electric agricultural loaders, or even electric ships, the KliK Foundation offers a wide range of support in the area of electric mobility. In 2021 the two programmes for electric construction vehicles and electric agricultural loaders were launched and are constantly being developed. In the construction sector, support is currently available for electric excavators, electric loaders and electric dumpers. The support amounts to 200 Swiss francs per tonne of CO₂ reduced, and is provided in the form of investment grants and annual operating grants.
E-mobility

Find more about the programmes here (available only in German, French, and Italian):

klik.ch

Facts
and
figures

Find the 2022 annual report here: journal.klik.ch/en/jb22

Annual report 2022

0

11 countries currently have bilateral climate mitigation agreements with Switzerland (listed here according to their date of signing). Emission reductions can be attributed to Switzerland if the corresponding climate mitigation activities complement the measures of the partner country and thereby increase its ambition.

2.44
Transportation
5.02
Business
1.16
Buildings
0.28
Agriculture
2.36
Projects
40.60
Switzerland
11.26
International

Expected contractual impact of climate mitigation activities in mio. tonnes of CO₂e between 2021 and 2030 (as at the end of 2022).

0

More than 2,000 electric buses will contribute to emission reductions in the Bangkok metropolitan region at the end of 2023.

0%

20% of motor fuel emissions must be offset in 2023 (compared to 17% in 2022 and 23% in 2024). A maximum of one quarter of this offsetting can take place abroad.

0

13.6 million tonnes of CO₂e have been saved in Switzerland since 2013 with the support of the KliK Foundation.

173
Transportation
128
Business
100
Buildings
150
Agriculture
133
Projects
137
Switzerland
21
International

Average cost in Swiss francs per tonne of CO₂e offset between 2021 and 2030.

About the Foundation

In order to achieve the national goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the Swiss CO₂ Act provides for numerous instruments. The KliK Foundation fulfils the obligation entrusted to it by Swiss mineral oil importers under this law to offset a certain amount of CO₂ emissions from the Swiss transport sector.

Climate mitigation measures are required in Switzerland in the form of energy efficiency improvements and emission reductions in the transport, agriculture, industry and building sectors. Since the beginning of 2022, the CO₂ Act has also stipulated that part of the carbon offset obligation can be met by climate mitigation activities abroad. Switzerland can count the emission reductions achieved abroad towards its own internationally communicated climate mitigation target (Nationally Determined Contribution, NDC) after the corresponding adjustment has been made in the partner country. Switzerland has also defined its NDC within the framework of the Paris Agreement and specified the requirements in an Implementation Communication. In the period from 2022 to 2024, approximately 8.4 million tonnes of CO₂e are expected to be saved, of which a maximum of 2.1 million tonnes will be through international mitigation activities.      


In Switzerland, the climate mitigation programmes supported by the KliK Foundation range from the use of biogas to the introduction of electric and hybrid buses, carbon sinks through Swiss timber construction, building automation, pellet heating systems, climate-friendly cooling systems and district heating networks. More than 13 million tonnes of CO₂e have been saved since the Foundation was established ten years ago. At the time of publication of this KliK Journal (April 2023), 17 programmes are under development at an international level, with the aim of issuing international attestations; the Internationally Transferred Mitigation Outcomes (ITMOs).