The Georgia Rural Energy Program (REP), implemented by Winrock International, was a four-year (2005-2009) project designed to develop the basic regulatory, technical, financial and operational building blocks for commercial generation of small hydro power and other renewable power sources in rural Georgia. The program expanded clean, renewable energy and energy-efficiency measures in rural Georgia. Technical assistance and training helped rehabilitate small hydropower plants, introduced and promoted renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies, increased access to financing for small hydropower and strengthened the capacity of the energy sector in Georgia.
The REP had the following overarching objectives:
- Increase the supply of grid-connected and off-grid renewable energy in rural areas;
- Improve access to rural energy project financing, creating a favourable financing environment for sustainable small hydro power;
- Improve the management of local renewable energy production;
- Build in-country capacity in renewable energy and energy efficiency;
- Improve in-country capacity for integrated natural resource management and planning; and
- Implement public outreach activities in support of all of these objectives.
REP offered a balanced combination of:
- market development interventions and promotion of a favorable legal and regulatory environment for increased energy supplies from local, renewable sources;
- efforts to establish an affordable credit facilities to finance rural independent power producers; and
