BII and CIP have launched the $300 million North Star renewable energy platform in India
The platform is the maiden investment under BII’s British Climate Partners initiative
North Star will focus on solar, wind, hybrid, and storage projects to support India’s clean energy expansion
British International Investment (BII) and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) have launched North Star, a $300 million platform aimed at accelerating renewable energy projects in India.
BII will provide $150 million in funding to North Star, while CIP will contribute another $150 million through its Growth Markets Fund II. The duo unveiled North Star at the Global Partnerships Conference in London.
North Star will invest in solar, wind, hybrid renewable energy, and storage projects. The platform is expected to generate more than 4 million MWh of clean electricity annually and avoid approximately 4 million tonnes of carbon emissions each year.
BII previously invested $100 million in Indian renewable energy independent power producer (IPP) Ayana Renewable Power, alongside National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) and Eversource. It was later acquired by the joint venture between ONGC and NTPC subsidiaries for $2.3 billion (see ONGC-NTPC JV to Acquire Ayana Renewable Power for $2.3 Billion).
According to BII, India’s renewable energy sector continues to face funding and development challenges despite rapid growth in renewable energy tenders. The country plans to more than triple its renewable energy capacity by 2030 and requires around $160 billion annually to achieve that target.
BII Chief Executive Leslie Maasdorp said North Star is ‘the first embodiment’ of BII’s strategy to mobilize private capital for development and climate goals. He added that the partnership with CIP is expected to attract further private investment in the coming years.
At North Star’s launch, UK Minister for Development Baroness Chapman said that countries are seeking partnerships to attract investment and strengthen domestic systems. She added that ‘traditional development finance alone cannot meet that call’ and called for broader partnerships and new ideas to address global challenges.
For BII, the UK government’s development finance institution, the platform is the maiden investment under British Climate Partners, a £1.1 billion climate finance initiative introduced by the agency as part of its new 5-year strategy.
BII said British Climate Partners is expected to mobilize £3.5 billion in private capital during the lifetime of its investments, bringing total expected commitments to £4.6 billion. The initiative focuses on mobilizing large-scale institutional capital into climate solutions in fast-growing and coal-dependent economies across Asia, including India, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines.
In 2025, BII also invested $100 million to support ReNew Energy Global’s solar manufacturing business (see India Solar PV News Snippets).