Quarterly Performance Report: October – December 2011 for Central Asian Energy Efficiency Support Program (CAEESP)

The program aims to lower existing barriers to energy efficiency improvements in Kazakhstan by focusing on enabling activities in commercial, residential, and industrial energy efficiency opportunities. The primary outcome of CAEESP is improved use and management of energy through the development of energy efficiency measures and applications. The program comprises five major tasks: initial assessment and quick start prioritization, stakeholder awareness raising and training in energy efficiency approaches and technologies, energy efficiency project development and financing facilitation, support for private sector energy efficiency service providers, and regional analysis and recommendations in the area of energy efficiency. During the first quarter of the program, ICF focused its efforts on project start-up and mobilization, completing early planning, management, and initial stakeholder consultation and analysis activities under Task 1. The team made progress on each of the primary objectives for the quarter, including program start-up and staff mobilization, early outreach and program coordination with key stakeholders, work plan development, and development of program management and administrative systems. However, the team encountered typical start-up obstacles, including working within the complex legal structure of Kazakhstan and acquiring legal support and addressing legal requirements for local staffing and registration. The project team was able to meet a variety of stakeholders and conducted three visits to Kazakhstan during the quarter. The approved Chief of Party, Evgeniy Nadezhdin, began the project but was not able to fulfill his requirements and had to be replaced. This contributed to additional project delays as the ICF team had to recruit and seek approval for a replacement candidate. The emphasis during the end of the first quarter was to build up a strong momentum to recover time lost on technical program implementation during the early phase of the project start-up and mobilization. This required refining the research and intelligence gathering activities of the program to maximize and optimize impact in the next phases. The logistical preparations for CAEESP were almost complete, and early meetings with stakeholders had been positive. Administrative actions and issues dominated the first quarter, with a significant amount of time devoted to mobilizing short-term and long-term staff to Kazakhstan, seeking an office space, and obtaining legal support for registration. ICF secured the GRATA Law Firm in Kazakhstan to provide legal support and advice for project start-up, staffing, and registration. The team also focused on settling logistical arrangements for the program, including establishing a project office and addressing cost-sharing requirements. Personnel actions, subcontracts, program facilities, program registration, and related activities were also discussed during this quarter. The identification and establishment of a project office was a major goal during this start-up period, and the ICF team's approach was to address cost-sharing requirements and build upon its early relationship with the "Shafik Chokin" Energy Research and Design Institute.