Noida, July 10 (APAC Media): The World Bank Group has committed USD 890 million in funding support to accelerate India’s national rooftop solar programme, a move aimed at expanding clean energy access to millions of households and generating around 1.7 million jobs across the renewable energy manufacturing, installation and services sectors.
The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors has approved the project, the multilateral development institution said in a statement on Friday.
The programme’s financing package includes an USD 820 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), a USD 60 million concessional loan from the Clean Technology Fund, and a USD 10 million grant from the IBRD’s Liveable Planet Fund, the World Bank said.
The World Bank will also mobilise USD 4.2 billion in private financing through commercial loans to support the installation of rooftop solar systems for households, it added.
India has set a target of achieving net-zero emissions by 2070 and increasing the share of non-fossil-fuel-based energy resources to 60 per cent of its electricity mix by 2035.
While utility-scale solar capacity has expanded rapidly, residential rooftop solar adoption has remained limited.
To bridge this gap, the Government of India launched the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana programme to accelerate rooftop solar adoption among 10 million rural and urban households, lower electricity costs, and promote domestic manufacturing of solar rooftop equipment.
“The World Bank has been supporting India’s solar rooftop sector for over a decade, mobilising more than USD 2 billion to accelerate market growth from 500 MW to over 27 GW of installed capacity,” said Paul Proccee, World Bank Acting Country Director for India.
The new financing will support the expansion of residential solar adoption while generating employment opportunities across the supply chain and installation ecosystem, he added.
“The programme will transform the residential solar market by addressing financial barriers and strengthening the capacity of distribution companies, banks, and vendors to provide integrated service solutions,” said Moez Cherif, Task Team Leader of the programme.
Under the initiative, households will have access to collateral-free financing to install rooftop solar systems, helping them reduce monthly electricity expenses, he said.
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