MEET THE TEAM: Alfredo Caprile Team Leader, LCBA LATAM

With more than 30 years of international experience in providing financial support to organizations from the private and public sector in the energy and environment field, Alfredo has just delivered the EU funded program Energy Efficiency in Argentina with great success. We are eager to announce that he is joining LCBA as the program Team Leader for the LCBA LATAM, representing the programme among our partners and collaborators and guiding the teams in the delivery of the strategy.

1. What motivates you the most from your position and what does it mean to be a Team Leader?

Being a result driven person, I thrive on leading and guiding multidisciplinary teams in achieving a particular goal. My most important motivation is the satisfaction derived from being able to inspiring team members with enthusiasm and passion and making them feel valued, while concentrating in building quality relationships and generating empathy among the entire team.

Understanding the strengths and weakness of each team member becomes key to effectively use their talents and skills, empower them with the right tools and skills and ensure that resources are being used in an efficiently to achieve success.

Last, but not least, is the importance of being creative and innovative in setting clear goals and deadlines, communicating them concisely and tactfully while also being an active listener.

The European team of the LCBA programme has already identified over 400 European SMEs, offering innovative types of green technologies which are being demanded by LATAM companies.

2. What would you highlight as main challenge from the LCBA LATAM programme?

One of the main challenges that the LCBA LATAM program is facing has to do with the difficulties on closing the required number of legally binding contracts associated with the commercialisation of green low-carbon technologies between European companies and partners in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Colombia within the established timeframe.

The negative impact of the pandemic that has not allowed having face to face meetings, augmented by the fact that most of the European SMEs capable of offering the type of green technologies demanded in the four LATAM countries do not have experience in commercializing their technologies in the region are two factors that may jeopardize that some deals may result as “potential” rather than “actual” at the time of project closure.

Each of the four countries have different regulatory frameworks and import requirements which the European SMEs will have to get familiar with, leaving aside the time that it may take them to set up an in-country subsidiary or enter into an agreement with a local representative to provide an after-sale support, condition without which it would be very difficult to close a deal.

In spite of the great challenges that the LCBA programme faces for its successful implementation, it is important to recognize the value added that it is generating already in mainstreaming the need to zero GHG emissions in every sector of the economy across the targeted countries and in getting European SMEs to discover the market potential present in the four LATAM countries involved.

The technical assistance that the LCBA programme offers will be of great help in identifying financial instruments and institutions from EU member countries and facilitating the process of closing sales .

3. What do you consider to be the main challenge that Latin America is facing in its path towards the green economy?

Latin American companies and particularly those that depend on the export markets are aware of the need to adapting their business structures to highly demanded environmental standards and incorporating green technologies to remain competitive in the world markets. However, the difficulty in obtaining financing together with the absence of support schemes and incentives to green technologies is one of the main challenges that they are facing, aside from risks related to the political instability and /or unfriendly business environment towards foreign companies present in different degrees in each of the target countries.

The technical assistance that the LCBA programme offers will be of great help in identifying financial instruments and institutions from EU member countries and facilitating the process of closing sales of green low-carbon technologies between European companies and partners in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Colombia within the established timeframe.

The technical assistance offered by the LCBA programme can also be directed to assist with technical, environmental, legal or which other type of problems need addressing to reach final closing.

4. What opportunities are rising for European technology providers in LATAM?

The opportunities for European technology providers that the LCBA program has identified so far concentrate on technologies applicable to low carbon agriculture, forestry and reforestation, biogas production, municipal solid waste treatment, energy efficiency both in industry and buildings, electrical mobility, solar panels, biomass utilization to name a few.

The European team of the LCBA programme has already identified over 400 European SMEs, offering innovative types of green technologies which are being demanded by LATAM companies, of which more than 250 have expressed interest and registered in the LCBA platform.

The LCBA teams in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Colombia continue identifying companies with mature projects which would reduce their carbon footprint either via the incorporation of green technologies and / or that involve a transition to a resource-efficient, clean, and circular economy. This process of acting both from the demand and supply sides translates in a virtuous cycle, continuously increasing the number and type of opportunities for European technology providers as new companies from the four LATAM countries involved share their technology needs and decide to become part of the LCBA programme.