The ‘Caixa Econômica Federal’ (a federal bank) has signed this Thursday, June 21, a Memorandum of Understanding with the German agency Gesellschaft Für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), which aims to enhance and expand the technical partnership between CAIXA and GIZ, within the framework of the bilateral cooperation between the Brazilian and German governments in carrying out activities of mutual interest, such as Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy and Climate Change. The document was signed by the presidents of CAIXA, Jorge Hereda, and GIZ, Kurt Bernd Eisenblätter, at CAIXA’s stand at Parque dos Atletas.

The agreement will allow the alignment of common activities with national strategies and programs for energy efficiency, with financial incentives and specific lines of financing, involving the public and private sectors, the industrial, the commercial or the service, and the housing sectors. The memorandum covers various renewable energy sources such as photovoltaic, solar thermal and wind power and energy generation based on the reuse of biomass and waste.

The partnership between CAIXA and GIZ will also be within the National Plan on Climate Change (Plano Nacional de Mudanças Climáticas - PNMC), including areas of the Brazilian Market for Emissions Reduction (Mercado Brasileiro de Redução de Emissões - MBRE) and the Climate Fund, whose objectives are to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and to adapt society to the impending impacts from climate change.

From the signature, CAIXA will undertake a study on energy efficiency, in a partnership with the German development bank KfW Bankengruppe. The research will identify and qualify this market in Brazil, providing diagnosis and characteristics, with an analysis of demand and supply of financing for energy efficiency. The study will support the creation of a credit line by CAIXA directed to energy efficiency.

The memorandum is more a result of the cooperation between the two countries. Brazil is a strategic partner for Germany, with a history of signed agreements aimed at technological growth and sustainable development. The latest joint operation took place in the Brazil-German Energy Programme, through the support of GIZ in the development and deployment of Solar Heating Systems in undertaking the Program My Home My Life (Programa Minha Casa Minha Vida - PMCMV) in the city of Rio de Janeiro. Cooperation between Germany and Brazil is now over 45 years old, based on the common goals, strategies and interests.