GOING GREEN INSIDE AND OUT – NAMIBIA’S FIRST CARBON EMISSIONS AND ENERGY REDUCTION COMPANY OPENS DOORS

Following the successful launch of Namibia’s first green charity in November last year, the Principal Officer of GAWA, Gareth Amos, in co-operation with International company Global Carbon Exchange (GCX), has developed a new Namibian entity: an end-to-end carbon and energy measurement and management organisation, offering a full range of carbon- and energy-related products and services. Currently, GCX has offices in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Sydney, Jakarta, London, the Ukraine and the USA and through this new joint venture, Windhoek Namibia.

The vision of this joint venture between Mr. Amos and GCX, is to be the preferred and trusted advisor to any Namibian company on carbon and energy management. Says Ed Gluckman, GCX Director: International Operations:

“Historically, corporate interest in the environment has been met with a lukewarm response. However, with the visibility of climate change and the current financial crisis there is now a significantly different attitude. More and more companies understand the business/environment interdependency and have begun capitalising on the ‘eco-advantage’: the opportunity for growth and profit through a focus on environmental sustainability. We are delighted to have joined the GAWA team as the preferred provider of carbon and energy services which can now benefit Namibian businesses and organisations.”

The current overview on Namibia’s Carbon and energy status is as follows; Namibia has not yet signed up to Kyoto Protocol; our total carbon emissions is 2.47 million tons in 2007 and thus ranking puts Namibia at 130th in the world.

But pressure is mounting due to several factors: there is no carbon tax legislation in place; there is an energy crisis, with a constant increase in electricity tariffs (18% in 2008), expect to increase between 20% and 30% in 2008; in the dry season, Namibia is dependent on up to 80% of its energy usage on coal- and diesel- generated electricity, mainly from the Van Eck Power Station and South African suppliers; and a reliance on South Africa for up to half of its electricity consumption. In addition an levy based on corporate carbon emissions targets, was introduced into the budget speech this year.

However, with the assistance of this new joint venture, there is much that Namibian businesses can do to turn the tide:

Assess your business’s carbon footprint so you know your total emissions
Call for an energy audit aimed at investment grade energy reductions (the results of which have a direct positive reflection on a company’s balance sheet)
• Implement reduction strategies
• Manage your carbon footprint using specialised software
• Monitor emissions of all buildings in real time
• Offset part (or al)l of your carbon footprint

The impact of these strategies can have far reaching, positive effects for both the Namibian economy and the environment. Mr. Amos is excited about the joint venture’s future prospects when gauging the response from the Namibian business community.

“Since launching GAWA, we’ve been continually overwhelmed, not only by local response, but by international interest in Namibia as a market and Namibia as a blank canvas in terms of implementing green projects. What we’re most proud of is that this new joint venture means that highly skilled “green collar” jobs will be developed through this alliance, continually proving that engaging in good environmental business practices is not only and imperative, but also has economic benefits which affect our customers and country directly.”

Source: Gareth Amos
Tel: (061) 245 828