India to create US$2 billion renewables equity fund – reports

November 2, 2016
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
There may be a shortage of equity in India next year. Flickr: Gopal Vijayaraghavan

The Indian government and three of its state-run companies are setting up a US$2 billion equity fund to help renewable energy companies meet the country's ambitious targets, according Reuters citing two government sources.

From next financial year, an initial fund of more than US$1 billion will be available to both private and public companies. Reuter’s sources said that India is particularly keen to attract pension and insurance funds from Canada and Europe, as reported in PV Tech Power last year. Indeed, such funds tend to suit the renewable energy sector where projects can have lengthy contract lifetimes of up to 25 years,

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

The National Investment and Infrastructure Fund, part of the finance ministry, will give US$600 million for the first provision of the equity fund. The rest will come from India’s largest utility NTPC, the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) and Rural Electrification Corporation.

One of the sources told Reuters: “As we expand our clean energy capacity, there may be a shortage of equity next year. Private equity is seen as risky in India, but if the government itself creates a fund, that gives a lot of confidence.”

A Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) report yesterday described solar as the “King of Indian Renewables”, but it said that another US$100 billion needs to be leveraged to meet prime minister Narendra Modi’s 175GW renewables target by 2022.

The report stated: “Indian project developers are trying to meet this capital requirement through various means, including increasing borrowings from multilateral organisations and issuing green/masala bonds. While the Securities and Exchange Board of India is still finalising the modalities for the formation of quoted infrastructure investment trusts (similar to US yieldcos), Indian renewable energy developers are already planning to list assets adding up to US$1.3 billion under this mechanism.”

Read Next

October 27, 2025
Waaree Energies has secured four solar module supply contracts totalling 692MW – three for projects in India and one in the US through its subsidiary.
October 27, 2025
Premier Energies has acquired a 51% stake each in transformer maker Transcon and inverter producer KSolare Energy. 
October 16, 2025
Jakson Green and Blueleaf Energy have reached financial close for the 840MWp Bikaner solar projects in Rajasthan, western India. 
October 15, 2025
Wood Mackenzie has warned of a supply bottleneck as the renewable energy shift drives a spike in global copper demand over the next decade.
October 15, 2025
Ciel & Terre has launched a new floating PV structure designed to address the increasingly large scale of floating solar projects.
October 15, 2025
Indian module manufacturer Saatvik Green Energy, through its subsidiary Saatvik Solar Industries, has secured solar PV module orders worth INR6.89 billion (US$78 million).

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Upcoming Webinars
November 12, 2025
10am PST / 1pm EST
Solar Media Events
November 25, 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Solar Media Events
December 2, 2025
Málaga, Spain
Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK
Solar Media Events
March 10, 2026
Frankfurt, Germany