Additional $80 billion investment required to achieve India’s 2022 renewable target: MNRE secretary
Additional Regional Energy Management Centres (REMCs) were being set up to increase the share of renewable energy and to mitigate investment risks in the sector and a Payment Security Mechanism has been implemented.
To aid the growth of the renewable energy sector and encourage investments in the sector, Anand Kumar, secretary of the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy, said that the government is working towards managing curtailments and improving ease of doing business for developers in the sector at the India Pavilion at COP 25 in Madrid on Monday.
Additional Regional Energy Management Centres (REMCs) were being set up to increase the share of renewable energy and to mitigate investment risks in the sector and a Payment Security Mechanism has been implemented, he said.
Speaking about the government’s efforts to enhance the adoption of renewable energy in the country, he added, “On the demand side, the Ministry is working with farmers and Commercial & Industrial (C&I) consumers to embed them into the renewables value chain as direct stakeholders.”
In his address, Kumar emphasized the importance of encouraging private investments, mitigating risks through innovative solutions and aggregation instruments to achieve market growth in the clean energy sector. According to him, till 2022, additional investments in the sector would be around $80 billion (at current prices) and around $300 billion investments would be required by the sector till 2030.
Initiatives were being taken to attract private capital for the under-served segments of the sector. Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency’s (IREDA) ‘green window’ initiative has been devised for the same and segments which best qualify for the green window include storage, electric mobility, distributed renewable and energy efficiency, he stated. Further, IREDA is also launching an Alternate Investment Fund to provide financial assistance to the sector, added Kumar.
He also briefed about the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM- KUSUM) scheme which is aimed at providing efficient, clean and reliable power to rural areas; power for agricultural purposes; and ensure long-term income for landowners. The primary components of the scheme include helping farmers in procuring solar pumps and aid the installation of grid-connected renewable power plants. The scheme targets to generate 26 GW and reach 1.7 million farmers by 2022.
Source: economictimes.indiatimes
