NEW INNOVATIVE FINANCE SCHEMES

New and innovative finance models can be implemented in the development of geothermal projects. These alternative finance methods or solutions are offered by other financing parties, instead of using regular bank loans. New innovative finance schemes can be exemplified by:

• Steward ownership: Steward ownership is a different way of running a company, involving all stakeholders and interests in the goals and management of the company as defined in the article on the subject by alternative ownership advisors[1]: “a steward-owned company is not a wealth-building engine for an individual or for speculative investors, and it is not a commodity that can be bought and sold. It is permanently independent, and its purpose is safeguarded by “stewards” of the company who shepherd the health and vitality of the business in order to benefit their stakeholders (such as employees, customers, vendors, community members, etc.)”.
• Pay it forward between member states: work in a similar way to the CO2 rights that are traded in the EU Emissions Trading System. In this system companies in member states can buy or sell CO2 rights to realise their obligatory climate goals. In the pay it forward system we would look at a trading of sustainable energy units realized between member states. Each member state would get a total amount of sustainable energy units that they have to deliver to reach the European sustainability goals. We could call them Sustainable Energy Units (SEU) for this example. A member state could invest into a geothermal project in its own state or in another state and sell the realised sustainable energy output to another member state which can use it to realise its SEU goals. In this way the expertise, and funding, of one-member state could be used to realise more sustainable energy in or for another member state.