Bloomberg Philanthropies Commits $285 Million to Help Clean Energy Scale Fast Enough to Meet Surging Global Demand
As rising electricity use reshapes global energy markets, new support will help strengthen clean energy industries to power next era of global growth
LONDON — UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy on Climate Ambition and Solutions Michael R. Bloomberg today announced a $285 million commitment to help clean energy scale fast enough to power the world’s energy systems. The new effort marks the next phase of Bloomberg Philanthropies’ global energy work, focused on accelerating clean energy’s ability to deliver reliable, affordable, and secure power worldwide.
As industrial growth, artificial intelligence, electrification, and geopolitical instability reshape global energy markets, Bloomberg Philanthropies is deepening its efforts across emerging and developing economies to strengthen national clean energy industries by building their institutional strength, technical capacity, market expertise, and analytical capabilities. This will enable them to play a more influential role in the energy planning, financing, and market decisions that have traditionally been dominated by incumbent energy interests.
“Clean energy is now cheaper than fossil fuels in virtually every part of the world, and as a result, its share of global power production is growing,” said Michael R. Bloomberg, UN Special Envoy on Climate Ambition and Solutions and founder of Bloomberg L.P. and Bloomberg Philanthropies. “But fixable obstacles are still slowing down deployment – and with energy demand rising at an unprecedented speed, we can’t allow those obstacles to continue standing in the way of lower energy costs for households and businesses, and cleaner air and water for communities. This new investment will help ensure they don’t.”
“The clean energy age has arrived,” said António Guterres, United Nations Secretary-General. “As demand for power surges, it must now scale fast in the economies that need it most. Michael Bloomberg’s commitment does exactly that – backing the industries that will power homes, lower bills, lift economies, and clear the air for billions. Together, let’s bring the renewables revolution to every corner of the world.”
Clean energy is now the cheapest source of new power in most of the world, with renewables reaching 34% of global electricity generation in 2025, overtaking coal’s 33% share for the first time in roughly a century. By 2030, renewables and nuclear are projected to generate half of the world’s electricity.
But that progress is exposing a new challenge: ensuring clean energy deployment keeps pace with soaring electricity demand. While clean energy technologies are scaling rapidly, the industry players supporting them are still maturing. In many markets, the clean energy industry and infrastructure remain under-resourced relative to incumbent energy sectors that have spent decades building political influence, technical expertise, financing networks, and institutional power.
The question is no longer whether clean energy is economically viable. The question is whether the industry players behind it can mature fast enough to shape the future energy system.
Bloomberg Philanthropies’ new commitment is designed to help close that gap by building on existing efforts in emerging markets and developing economies where electricity demand is growing fastest.
Focused on countries responsible for nearly 70% of global power sector emissions, this support aims to help solar and wind generate more than half of their electricity by 2030 through:
- Strengthening clean energy industry associations and regional networks to better participate in energy planning, financing, and market design;
- Supporting data, economic analysis, and technical research that demonstrate how clean energy can deliver reliable, affordable power at scale;
- Providing technical assistance to help governments and regulators create market conditions that accelerate clean energy investment and deployment;
- Partnering with financial institutions and investors to help unlock private capital for clean energy infrastructure.
Barbara Buchner, CEO of Climate Policy Initiative, said: “Renewable energy is the world’s fastest-growing power source, but that growth is uneven. Markets with great potential are often the ones where the foundational prerequisites like strong policy frameworks, institutional capacity, industry coordination, and reliable data are still being established. Directing resources towards closing those gaps is what turns potential into bankable opportunity, and that is what this commitment does.”
Tetchi Capellan, Chairperson of the Asian Photovoltaic Industry Association, said: “Across Asia, solar momentum remains on course because we have the natural resources, the ambition, and the technology to succeed. But turning that momentum into lasting transition requires infrastructure the region is still building — from grid stability and storage integration to the removal of investment barriers. This investment gives industry associations exactly the capacity and resources to meet those challenges head-on.”
Sonia Dunlop, CEO of the Global Solar Council, said: “Competitive technology alone doesn’t build a new energy system. In market after market, we see the same story: the economics are there, the projects are ready, but what slows us down is the institutional and political representation gap. Renewable energy associations that can engage effectively in grid planning, market design, and finance aren’t a peripheral concern. They are what turns a country’s energy potential into actual power on the grid. That is what this investment recognizes, and it is long overdue.”
Patricia Espinosa, CEO & Founding Partner of onepoint5, and former Executive Secretary of UNFCCC, said: “The emerging economies driving global energy demand are also those with the greatest potential to power themselves with renewables. Many of them have set ambitious clean energy targets, and there is no one blueprint for how the transition happens. It must be adjusted to the realities of each country, its companies, and its people. What they do share is a need for an effective enabling environment and the infrastructure to translate those targets into deployment at scale. That is the gap this commitment fills, and that is why it matters.”
Saliem Fakir, Executive Director of African Climate Foundation, said: “Africa has abundant renewable energy resources and rapidly growing electricity demand. What has been missing is not the potential, but the institutional infrastructure and capabilities to unlock it: an ecosystem of players with the analytical capacity to engage in energy planning, the technical expertise to work with regulators, and the credibility to mobilize private finance at scale. Philanthropy that targets those gaps directly is the kind of intervention that can shift the trajectory of a continent’s energy system. Bloomberg Philanthropies’ commitment to doing exactly that gives us a real opportunity to change the shape of Africa’s energy future in a lasting way.”
Mada Ayu Habsari, Chairperson of the Indonesian Solar Energy Association, said: “Indonesia has every reason to be a solar leader: a fast-growing economy, vast renewable resources, and ambitious 100 GW solar energy delivery, anchored by the immediate Quick Win 17GW program. Realizing that potential requires more than ambition. It demands industry associations with the standing to engage government directly, a pragmatic approach to translate ambition into deployment, and evidence-based regulatory framework that evolves alongside market growth. That is exactly what this investment makes possible.”
Dave Jones, co-founder of Ember, said: “Most of the world’s energy growth is happening in emerging countries, and it’s happening in electricity. Solar paired with battery and wind is now the cheapest way to get dispatchable round-the-clock electricity in most countries. What is slowing deployment are structural barriers, among them a lack of quality of data and analysis to drive policy decisions. This investment will give industries, governments, and investors the information, metrics and forecasting they need to unleash clean energy’s potential.
Dr. Shezra Mansab Ali Khan Kharal, Pakistan Minister of State for Climate Change and Environment Coordination, said: “Across emerging economies, renewable energy is being held back not by economics but by market structures designed for a different era. With this investment, Bloomberg Philanthropies is helping to close the gap between clean energy potential and what reality requires by tackling these systemic challenges head-on.”
Rachel Kyte, UK Special Representative for Climate, said: “In too many markets, renewable energy industries are still playing catch-up against incumbents that have spent decades shaping energy market rules. What this moment calls for is exactly what this investment delivers: the capacity, expertise, and institutional weight for clean energy industries to engage on their own terms. We know what works when those conditions are in place. The question is how we can help each other get there fast enough.”
Dr. Rethabile Melamu, CEO of the South African Photovoltaic Industry Association, said: “In South Africa, eight of our ten gigawatts of solar capacity were installed in just the past three to four years. That kind of rapid deployment doesn’t leave room to build all the supporting infrastructure at once. We’ve learned that the industry’s ability to bring expertise to grid planning and regulatory processes isn’t a nice-to-have; without it, projects don’t get built, energy security is compromised and economic growth stunted. Support that strengthens that capacity, for South Africa and for markets across the continent, is exactly the kind of targeted intervention that moves deployment from starting line to scale.”
Ali Mohamed, Special Envoy for Climate Change, Government of Kenya, said: “For countries across Africa, renewable energy potential is enormous. What has held back deployment is not a lack of ambition or resources on the ground. It is the gap between that potential and the capacity to translate it into investment, projects, and power on the grid. Long-term offtake to de-risk investment and innovative financing solutions to achieve future-proof investments, that can close that gap, is precisely what developing economies need right now, and it is what will determine whether the energy transition delivers for the people who need it most.”
Subrahmanyam Pulipaka, CEO of the National Solar Energy Federation of India (NSEFI), said: “The pace of India’s solar deployment is nearly unmatched. As India enters the next phase of its energy transition, it is imperative to build on this strong foundation to accelerate seamless grid integration, scale energy storage, and unlock next-generation market mechanisms. This investment directs support precisely at these places where there is real opportunity for progress.”
Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission for a Clean, Just and Competitive Transition, said: “Clean energy is no longer a question of ambition. It is also a question of security and social fairness. The rationale for accelerating the transition has never been clearer. In Europe, we have seen what happens when you back strong institutions and legal frameworks: deployment accelerates. Helping emerging economies build that same capacity is the most direct path to a cleaner, more affordable, and more secure global energy system.”
Dr. Rodrigo Sauaia, cofounder and CEO of the Brazilian Solar Photovoltaic Energy Association (ABSOLAR) & cofounder and chair of the Global Solar Council (GSC), said: “Solar was responsible for more than 75% of all new renewable generation capacity deployed around the world in 2025. It is the cheapest, most readily accessible, and most versatile clean energy technology currently available. Yet, sustaining this trajectory requires more than affordability: we need strong solar and energy storage associations with the capacity to engage regulators, refine market design, and ensure the policy environment keeps pace with deployment. This investment is crucial, as it recognizes and addresses exactly those needs.”
Suzanty Sitorus, Executive Director of ViriyaENB, said: “Indonesia’s energy choices today will shape not only its own future, but also the trajectory of Southeast Asia’s transition. The President’s ambition to deploy 100 gigawatts of solar power reflects the scale of the opportunity. Realising it requires strong institutions, effective planning, and the capacity to deliver projects that provide affordable, reliable, and inclusive benefits for communities across the country. Support for these enabling conditions is often less visible than power plants, but it is what turns ambition into megawatts.”
Prof. Yassierli, Minister of Manpower of the Republic of Indonesia, said: “The true engine of energy transition is people, which is why a successful transition must place human readiness at its core. President Prabowo Subianto has made human capital development and productivity central to Indonesia’s national transformation, taking concrete steps to build a future-ready workforce for the opportunities ahead. At the Ministry of Manpower, we are advancing this agenda by developing Indonesia’s Green Jobs Outlook, strengthening green competency standards, and revitalizing vocational training curricula with green skills. Indonesia’s energy transition must strengthen national resilience, create quality jobs, and drive shared prosperity. Above all, this must be a just transition, guided by the principle of leaving no one behind.”
Today’s announcement builds on more than a decade of work by Mike Bloomberg to accelerate the global transition toward cleaner energy systems. Bloomberg Philanthropies first supported the Beyond Coal campaign in the United States in 2011, then expanded internationally in 2017. Since then, Bloomberg Philanthropies-supported efforts have helped drive the global shift from coal to clean energy, contributing to the cancellation of nearly 450 coal plants across four continents, including over 60 percent of Europe’s coal plants Together with partners around the world, Bloomberg Philanthropies has also helped create the conditions for the deployment of over 1,100 GW of clean energy capacity – enough to power approximately 300 million homes.
Building on more than a decade of climate and energy work, this commitment aims to help ensure that the countries driving future electricity demand have the capacity, expertise, and investment needed to build cleaner, more affordable, and more secure energy systems.
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About Bloomberg Philanthropies
Bloomberg Philanthropies invests in 700 cities and 150 countries around the world to ensure better, longer lives for the greatest number of people. The organization focuses on creating lasting change in five key areas: the Arts, Education, Environment, Government Innovation, and Public Health. Bloomberg Philanthropies encompasses all of Michael R. Bloomberg’s giving, including his foundation, corporate, and personal philanthropy as well as Bloomberg Associates, a philanthropic consultancy that advises cities around the world. In 2025, Bloomberg Philanthropies distributed $4.3 billion. For more information, please visit bloomberg.org, sign up for our newsletter, or follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube, Threads, Facebook, and X.