- GGI-OSOWOG has been launched by the Indian and UK governments to interconnect 140 countries to round-the-clock solar power
- It aims to ensure interconnectivity across the Middle East, South Asia and Southeast Asia while leveraging African power pools
- The initiative will bring together a global coalition of national governments, international financial and technical organizations, legislators, power system operators and knowledge leaders
- It will be implemented in partnership with the ISA and the World Bank
- ISA has also launched a partnership with GEAPP to support LDCs and SIDS with solar power generation
India and the UK governments have launched the Green Grids initiative (GGI)—One Sun One World One Grid (GGI-OSOWOG). This is aimed to establish the world’s 1st international network of globally interconnected solar power grids. It is seeking to connect 140 countries to round-the-clock solar power.
It will be a cost-effective energy solution leading to affordable, renewable electricity supplies to ‘historically underserved’ markets.
The initiative was launched at the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow, in partnership with the International Solar Alliance (ISA) and the World Bank. It is aimed at ensuring interconnectivity across the Middle East, South Asia and Southeast Asia while leveraging African power pools.
“This network has the potential to be a modern engineering marvel, and a catalyst for greatly expanding renewable electricity generation, and effectively mitigating climate change in the next decade,” said ISA Director General Dr. Ajay Mathur. “At a global level, almost 2600 GW of interconnection capacity may be possible up to 2050, delivering estimated power savings of €226 billion per year.”
As the name suggests, GGI-OSOWOG will harness the power of the sun wherever it shines, ensuring that generated electricity flows where it is needed the most.
It aims to bring together a global coalition of national governments, international financial and technical organizations, legislators, power system operators and knowledge leaders to accelerate the construction of the new infrastructure needed for a world powered by clean energy.
Endorsed by 80 ISA member nations the idea was initially suggested by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is also credited as being the brain behind the ISA, with French government’s help (see India’s MNRE Launches RFP For OSOWOG). The UK government has pledged technical, financial and research support for the OSOWOG.
Clean energy for least developed countries and small islands
At the same event, COP26, the ISA announced a partnership with The Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) to champion significant solar capacity generation globally while supporting grid-based and distributed renewable solutions. The partnership will be focused on least developed countries (LDC) and small island developing states (SIDS).
Over the next decade, the duo will unlock $100 billion in public and private capital to ‘tackle 3 profound human problems’ simultaneously. One of these is called power with an aim to bring 1 billion people with reliable, renewable energy, leading to directly creating more than 150 million jobs, and thereby avoiding 4 billion tons in CO2 emissions. The ISA will be GEAPP’s delivery partner.
