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Vijaya Pushkarna
Vijaya Pushkarna

SOLAR ENERGY

India gets European impetus in its renewable energy mission

42-Gujarat-Solar-Park Representational image | File

Joins hands with European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to “deepen cooperation”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's penchant for solar energy took India to the forefront of the 42-nation International Solar Alliance (ISA). On Thursday, the ISA took one more step forward when it signed a Joint Financial Partnership Declaration with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) in order to “deepen the cooperation in support of renewable energy”.

The ISA already has a Financial Partnership collaboration with the World Bank.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, at the signing event, said India had pledged unequivocal commitment for furthering the cause of New and Renewable Energy since the Paris COP21 UN Climate Change Conference. India has huge energy requirements and wants to make optimal use of new and renewable sources of energy, he said, adding that the ISA had taken a giant leap forward to mobilise international support for investment in the solar sector.

The finance minister called upon ISA to firm up more such financial partnership deals with multilateral and bilateral donor agencies in order to meet its stated objectives of getting better technology, and aiding easier costing to improve affordability of solar energy.

Upendra Tripathy, Interim Director General, ISA said the alliance and EBRD had agreed to strengthen cooperation in persuit of their shared goals of mobilising green energy financing. The collaboration would see the EBRD support solar energy investment in the least developed countries, particularly in Africa. Solar projects would get funded all over the world. EBRD President Suma Chakrabarti said the agreement was very important for the EBRD, which has always been eager to share its expertise with new partners and also to learn from them.

Notably, the International Solar Alliance was jointly launched by Prime Minister Modi and the President of France on November 30, 2015 at Paris, in the presence of the Secretary General of the UN, on the side lines of COP21 UN Climate Change Conference. ISA is working for deployment of over 1000 GW of solar energy and mobilising more than $1000 billion into solar energy by the year 2030.

EBRD is keenly interested to increase its green financing portfolio to 40 per cent of its annual business and had launched Green Economy Transition Approach in 2015. 

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