Islamic Azad University

South Tehran Branch

Name of Course
Research Metholodgy

Research Title
International Renewable Energy Agency
(IRENA)

Student's name
Raed sachit obaid

Date
08.08.2021
Introduction

The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) is an intergovernmental organisation

mandated to facilitate cooperation, advance knowledge, and promote the adoption and sustainable
use of renewable energy. It is the first international organisation to focus exclusively on renewable
energy, addressing needs in both industrialised and developing countries. It was founded in 2009
and its statute entered into force on 8 July 2010. The agency is headquartered in Masdar City, Abu
Dhabi. The Director-General of IRENA is Francesco La Camera, a national of Italy. IRENA is an
official United Nations observer.
One of IRENA’s core projects is REmap 2030, or the Renewable Energy Roadmap 2030. An
unprecedented study examined the potential of renewable energy in 26 of the most major energy
markets, which represent three quarters of global energy demand. The study demonstrates how
energy efficiency and the share of renewable energy in the world’s energy mix can be doubled by
2030 (target: 36% in 2030), which would involve reducing annual CO2 emissions by 8.6 gigatons.
To reach those targets, it is vital that use of renewables be promoted more effectively and
particularly expanded in the construction, transport, industrial and electricity sectors.

History

The proposal for an international agency dedicated to renewable energy was made in 1981 at the
United Nations Conference on New and Renewable Sources of Energy, held in Nairobi, Kenya.
The idea was further discussed and developed by major organisations in the field of renewable
energy, such as Eurosolar.
As global interest in renewable energy steadily increased, world leaders convened in several
settings to focus on renewable energy policies, financing and technology. Key meetings included
the World Summit for Sustainable Development 2002 in Johannesburg, South Africa, the annual
G-8 Gleneagles Dialogue, the 2005 Beijing International Renewable Energy Conference, and the
2004 Bonn International Renewable Energy Conference.
The Bonn conference’s concluding resolution included support for the establishment of the
International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), supported by the International Parliamentary
Forum on Renewable Energies. It would take just a few years more for the idea to become reality.
Objectives

IRENA aims to become the main driving force in promoting a transition towards the use of
renewable energy on a global scale:
Acting as the global voice for renewable energies, IRENA will provide practical advice and
support for both industrialised and developing countries, help them improve their regulatory
frameworks and build capacity. The agency will facilitate access to all relevant information
including reliable data on the potential of renewable energy, best practices, effective financial
mechanisms and state-of-the-art technological expertise.
IRENA provides advice and support to governments on renewable energy policy, capacity
building, and technology transfer. IRENA will also co-ordinate with existing renewable energy
organizations, such as REN21. And we can breif IRENA Aims:
1- Developing a Comprehensive knowledge base
2- Networking
3- Advising national governments on developing integrated approaches to promoting
renewable energy
4- Integrating renewable energy into the urban environment
5- Strengthening strategic cooperation in rural areas
6- Identifying training needs and opportunities for developing renewable energy
7- Increasing the proportion of renewable energy used in existing energy systems
8- Raising the profile of renewable energy in the energy and climate debate

How To Become Member Of IRENA

The statute to gain IRENA membership requires that a state be a member of the United Nations
and to regional intergovernmental economic-integration organizations. States that gain
membership to IRENA must uphold the organizations statute to the best of its abilities.
As of March 2019, 160 states and the European Union are members of IRENA, and a further 23
are in the process of accession. On January 9, 2019, Canada became IRENA's 160th member.
Growth in IRENA Membership

Serevices To The Members

The Global Atlas zoning service involves GIS based spatial analysis using a method developed
by IRENA for utility scale and off-grid applications. In the analysis, key parameters such as
resource quality, transmission grid distance, population density, topography and protected areas
are combined to deduce highly suitable zones for solar and wind energy development, and provide
an indicative estimate of the technical potential. The service is offered to member countries in
support of the national and regional scale renewable energy planning.

The site appraisal service involves the use of high quality and site specific solar and wind time
series data sets, in power and financial models developed by IRENA, that help to establish the
viability of the prospective sites. The service aids public utility and government backed project
developers in identifying, characterizing and screening prospective sites for solar and wind energy
deployment.
IRENA will act as an international governmental organisation, focusing on the promotion of
renewable energy and welcoming all UN members to join. Its main tasks are to provide relevant
policy advice and assistance to its members upon their request, improve pertinent knowledge and
technology transfer and promote the development of local capacity and competence
in Member States.
Considering the tasks of IRENA, an annual budget of US $25 million and a team of 120 are a
realistic approximation in order for it to properly operate for the first years.
IRENA will be unique in combining:
 A clear mandate from its member governments;
 A worldwide geographical scope, including industrialised and developing countries;
 A complete range of services to support governments in facilitating the use of renewable
energy;
 High level expertise in the use of all forms of renewable energy and their integration into
energy systems, covering technological, economic, institutional, cultural, social and
environmental aspects;
 An extended network base with research and government institutions worldwide;
 Global collection, elaboration and dissemination of information and knowledge concerning
renewable energy, and lastly;
 Methods, tools and networks for promoting experience exchange and accelerating an
international learning process.
In addition, IRENA’s work will explicitly take into account cultural and social aspects. This is
especially important as renewable energies offer opportunities for more decentralised energy
supply systems, involving changes in behaviour and governance structures.
Refrences

• "Francesco La Camera Appointed as New IRENA Director-

General". /newsroom/pressreleases/2019/Jan/Francesco-La-Camera-appointed-as-new-
IRENA-Director-General. Retrieved 21 April 2019.
• "World Wind Energy Association". Archived from the originalon 11 April 2012.
Retrieved 30 November 2015.
• "Renewable Energy News". Retrieved 30 November 2015.
• "World Wind Energy Association". Archived from the originalon 11 April 2012.
Retrieved 30 November 2015.
• "IRENA Membership". /irenamembership. Archived from the original on 6 April 2019.
Retrieved 6 March 2019.
• Hub, IISD's SDG Knowledge. "IRENA Council Meeting Addresses Strategic, Budgetary
and Programmatic Issues | News | SDG Knowledge Hub | IISD". Retrieved 6 March 2019.
• "Renewable energy agency to call United Arab Emirates home". Deutsche Welle. 29 June
2009. Archived from the original on 7 July 2009. Retrieved 29 June 2009.
• EUROSOLAR-Memorandum zur Einrichtung einer Internationalen Agentur für
Erneuerbare Energien (IRENA)[permanent dead link], May 2001
• "World Wind Energy Association". Archived from the originalon 31 October 2014.
Retrieved 30 November 2015.