ReNew Power of India has secured $74 million from the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) for a 100 MW solar power project in the southern state of Telangana. This was announced during the 22nd session of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of Parties (COP22) in Marrakech, Morocco.
ReNew and OPIC, the U.S. Government's development finance institution, have formed a ReNew Master Financing Facility of $250 million, which is to be used to develop, construct and operate solar energy projects awarded through the National Solar Mission (NSM) in India. Under this facility, the two plan to finance up to 400 MW of new solar power generation capacity across multiple projects in the Asian nation.
The Master Financing Facility is provided by OPIC and will be used by ReNew to streamline the timeline for financing new renewable energy projects. The Telangana project is the first project approved under this Master Financing Facility.
OPIC President and CEO Elizabeth L. Littlefield said, "OPIC's partnership with Renew Power Ventures will have a transformative impact by helping India both reduce its emissions and increase energy capacity in the country through a diversified power generation mix."
OPIC is a development finance institution set up by the US government. It works with the private sector in the US, mobilizing private capital to address developmental concerns, while in return helping US businesses get a stronghold in emerging markets, among other factors.
ReNew Power has 1,400 MW solar proeject that are either commissioned or under construction, while for wind its portfolio of commissioned and under construction capacity is over 1,000 MW. In June 2016, it signed PPAs for solar power plants with 286 MW capacity in Telangana (see ReNew Power PV Projects in Telangana & Delhi). The company is backed by investors as Goldman Sachs, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), Asian Development Bank (ADB), among others.
Another $20 million for distributed solar
Through OPIC, the US government will formally launch a $20 million distributed solar facility, called the US-India Clean Energy Finance Program (USICEF). This will be in partnership with the Government of India and leading philanthropies. This facility will fund early-stage project preparatory work in the Indian distributed solar market. According to the US Department of Energy (DoE), "USICEF is anticipated to unlock up to $400 million in long-term debt financing from OPIC and private sector investors."
Another initiative is to bring more efficient appliances to 1,000 rural Indian villages under Rockefeller Foundation's Smart Power for Rural Development Initiative. The initiative will deploy energy-efficient devices at selected smart power supported mini-grid sites. This is subject to Congressional notification.