British International Investment Invests $89 mn in India to Scale Up Renewable Energy

British International Investment, formerly CDC Group, the UK's development finance institution (DFI) and impact investor, announced an $89 million commitment to scale renewable energy capacity in India today. The increased capacity will increase the power supply to the company's C&I customers while avoiding nearly 400,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per year.

"Both investments will target renewable power expansion in India and help accelerate the country's energy transition over the long term," the company said in a statement, adding that the $47 million commitment to Fourth Partner Energy will fund approximately 294 Megawatts of greenfield renewable generation capacity across India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Vietnam.

The $42 million debt investment by BII in Thar Surya 1 Private Limited is part of a $200 million total project to fund the development, construction, and maintenance of a 300 MW solar project in India. The project is intended to displace thermal generation in the grid, reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 697,000 tonnes per year, and meet the equivalent demand of 151,000 consumers in the country.

"Investing in renewable energy in India is a critical strategic step toward ensuring the country's growth ambitions align with its goals to achieve a net-zero carbon future," said Srini Nagarajan, BII's Managing Director and Head of Asia.

BII has set a target of 30% of new investments in climate finance under its new five-year strategy, with a strong emphasis on investing in clean and renewable infrastructure.

The DFI's new strategy is motivated by its mission to assist in addressing some of the most pressing challenges posed by climate change, such as decarbonizing the energy mix, increasing green energy capacity, and catalyzing the growth of the renewable sector in the countries in which it invests.

"We are delighted to put into action the BII's pledge to provide $1 billion in climate finance to India over the next five years." "By channelling the best of British finance, the BII is excited to help expand economic productivity, promote inclusive access to clean energy, and facilitate long-term growth in India," he said.

British International Investment (under CDC Group) made key clean infrastructure investments in India over the last strategy period, including a $30 million directed green lending facility to Tata Cleantech Capital to improve water and energy efficiency and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in India, as well as a $10 million investment in Reserve to support wastewater treatment and increase water efficiency in the country.

In 2018, BII also established Ayana Renewable Power and has committed $230 million to date, assisting in the mobilization of additional capital to accelerate green energy capacity for India's long-term economic development.