Blended Finance: Mobilising Capital for India's Energy Transition
Key Ideas
  • India aims for 'net zero by 2070' with investments of $10-20 trillion, with a focus on green hydrogen and renewable energy capacity.
  • Blended finance, leveraging capital grants and concessional debt, can de-risk investments in emerging technologies like battery storage and offshore wind.
  • Government interventions like the Viability Gap Funding scheme aim to reduce the tariffs for battery storage and offshore wind, aiding in achieving commercial parity.
  • By reducing green hydrogen prices through blended finance, India can align with its energy transition goals, mobilising commercial capital for sustainable development.
The article discusses how blended finance can play a crucial role in supporting India's energy transition towards achieving 'net zero by 2070.' India aims to invest $10-20 trillion in this transition, with a significant portion allocated to the power sector, especially in green hydrogen. The focus is on increasing renewable generation capacity and accelerating green hydrogen production. However, integrating renewable energy into the grid poses challenges, particularly in terms of affordable energy storage and offshore wind technologies. Blended finance is proposed as a solution to attract commercial capital by pooling resources like capital grants and concessional debt to de-risk investments in high-risk areas. The article emphasizes the importance of reducing tariffs for technologies like battery storage and offshore wind to achieve commercial parity with conventional energy sources. Government initiatives like the Viability Gap Funding scheme aim to lower these tariffs, with the potential to further reduce costs through blended finance models comprising capital grants, concessional debt, and equity. By leveraging blended finance, India can reduce green hydrogen prices and align them with its energy transition goals. This approach involves creating a structured facility with different financial instruments to de-risk investments in emerging technologies. The article highlights the role of various stakeholders, including development finance institutions and multilaterals, in mobilizing concessional capital for sustainable development. Overall, blended finance emerges as a promising strategy to drive commercial investments in renewable energy and emerging technologies for a sustainable future.
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