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Govt will set up $350 million fund to finance solar power projects: Power Minister
Jan-19-2018

Power Minister R.K. Singh has said that the central government will set up a $350 million fund to finance solar power projects, as it steps up efforts to achieve its ambitious goal of to increasing renewable power capacity to 175 gigawatts (GW) by the year 2022. He also said that International Solar Alliance (ISA) shall help mobilise sufficient funds for solar energy projects. Underlining the immense financing challenge ahead, he pointed out that India will need at least $125 billion to fund its ambitious plan to increase the share of renewable power supply in the country’s grid by 2022.

The minister has stated that over the years, renewable energy has become cheaper and is set to replace conventional energy, which is a healthy development. Besides, he noted that India, which receives twice as much sunshine as European nations, wants to make solar central to its renewable expansion. Adding further, he said that the government expects renewable energy to make up 40 percent of installed power capacity by 2030, compared with 18.2 percent at the end of 2017.

Singh further highlighted that installed renewable power capacity is currently about 60 GW, and India plans to complete the bidding process by the end of 2019/20 to add a further 115 GW of installed renewable energy capacity by 2022. He also said that India's Yes Bank has committed to financing solar projects worth $5 billion, while state-run NTPC will contribute $1 million to an ISA fund. He added that the country wants foreign capital to account for a bulk of its investments to meet its renewable energy target. 

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