Big Announcements At ISA Conference

• At the founding conference of the International Solar Alliance (ISA), India announced a $1.4 billion credit line for solar power projects
• It will cover 27 projects in 15 member nations, of which 23 are in Africa
• France increased its total commitment to the promotion of solar energy under ISA to €1 billion ($1.23 billion)
• ISA also signed several cooperation agreements with international organizations, including IEA, AfDB, ADB, NDB, AIIB and the GCF
• ISA also constituted International Committee of Chambers of Industry and Business (ICCIB)

The founding conference of the International Solar Alliance (ISA) in India on March 11, attended by heads of states of various nations, resulted in some major announcements. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a $1.4 billion credit line for 15 countries, where 27 solar power projects will be supported. Of these projects, 23 are in African nations.

The credit line will be offered at interest rates cheaper than Chinese commercial loans, reported local media.

French President Emmanuel Macron committed to an additional €700 million ($862.48 million) for the ISA. This takes its commitment to the ISA to €1 billion ($1.23 billion) to the agency.

ISA member nations plan to work together to raise a trillion dollars to develop 1 TW of solar energy capacity by 2030. Recently, ISA issued a request for proposal (RFP) for solar rooftop demonstration projects in its member countries (see ISA Issues RFP For PV Demonstration Projects). 

Cooperation agreements with international agencies

A series of MoUs were signed at the event. India's Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE) signed a MoU with the National Solar Energy Institute (INES) of France. This will allow the two state research institutes to work on projects in ISA member nations in the area of solar PV, storage technology, among others.

 ISA also signed a joint declaration with the International Energy Agency (IEA) on March 10, 2018, which will be valid for a period of three years. It may be renewed for another three years. With this, the two will deepen their cooperation to support the deployment of solar energy. IEA has been an observer to the ISA since April 2017.

Another joint financial partnership declarations were signed between ISA and the African Development Bank (AfDB), Asian Development Bank (ADB), Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and the New Development Bank (NDB). Along with ADB, ISA will promote solar energy in Asia and the Pacific.

In a related development, the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) signed a €150 million ($184.8 million) loan agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB) (see IREDA To Receive €150mn From EIB).

Constitution of ICCIB

The ISA has also constituted an International Committee of Chambers of Industry and Business (ICCIB). This committee is open to all member nations to help the corporate sector contribute to the ISA Framework Agreement and also to realize the objectives of the Paris Declaration. The idea has been proposed by the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICC), the international branch of the French Business Federation (MEDEF International) and the French Renewable Energy Business Association (SER).