India stands to benefit from a $1.1 billion loan to develop rooftop solar projects from the German development bank KFW.
The loan, Reuters reported recently quoting a senior bureaucrat at MNRE, is besides the $1.55 billion funding that KFW extended to the Asian country earlier to develop its “green corridor” of power lines passing through nine states.
The Indian government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a renewable energy expansion target of 175 gigawatts by 2022. It is about four times the existing capacity.
According to Upendra Tripathy, secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, the government had also sought $750 million from the World Bank and $500 million from the Asian Development Bank to support its clean energy programme.
A recent report stated that India was planning to expand its solar power capacity to 10 gigawatts by the end of this year.
Last fiscal year, India showed significant increase in renewable energy investments — from $3.4 billion in the previous fiscal year to $4 billion in this fiscal which ended on March 31.
Also the country added 12 percent more renewable energy resources than in the previous year and helped reduce carbon emissions 8.78 million tonnes, the report stated.
Another target that the country is expecting to achieve is the increase of clean energy business opportunities in India to $160-billion worth over the next five years. The country has already attracted international players such as SunEdison and First Solar to its market.
India also expects further progress in renewable energy deals during Prime Minister Modi’s ongoing visit to China.
Ajith Kumar S
editor@greentechlead.com