According to the World Resources Institute, climate finance has to grow 10 times faster than present rates to face up to the Paris Agreement’s 1.5 degrees Celsius goal

The country showcases a phenomenal trajectory in Renewable Energy (RE) generation and adoption. The country’s renewable energy sector has grown 250 per cent from 2014 to 2021. India added a record 7.2 gigawatt (GW) of solar power in the first half of 2022, so far the highest ever capacity addition.

Cop 27: A new opportunity: The COP 27 held in Egypt, is expected to focus towards building on the progress of the last year’s goals. This would be an opportunity for world leaders to move beyond just conversation and drive climate action. The time is ripe now to pave the way for future ambition to effectively tackle climate change.

It is important to note that India is well on track towards fulfilling its Panchamrita strategy, announced at COP26. Since a quarter of the economy’s total GHG emission comes from the manufacturing sector, it is the right time for India to prioritise clean energy adoption and focus on domestic solar manufacturing to power its green goals.

A focus on solar manufacturing can save India $42 billion by 2030 from solar imports and can save fossil fuel import cost, which was $119 billion in FY22. Further, the solar rooftop segment requires a significant boost. Currently, the primary demand for solar has been dominated by the utility sector. India is trying to build a stable infrastructure to realise its rooftop solar vision (rooftop solar has a growth trend of 72 MW-227 MW per year since 2013). Considering that the potential for rooftop solar is close to 200 GW in India, the focus on C&I and the residential sector will yield great results in fulfilling the clean energy transition,

The Indian solar sector hails the government’s stance and agenda at COP27 to insist on action from developed nations to deliver on commitments pertaining to finance and technology transfer. Developed countries here must shoulder the responsibility to come forward and meet the commitment targets for collaboration. According to the World Resources Institute, climate finance has to grow 10 times faster than present rates to face up to the Paris Agreement’s 1.5 degrees Celsius goal.

However, in recent times, climate finance has failed to match the growing requirements. Additionally, the issue of disparity between the allocated finances and true estimated cost of clean technology adaptation among lower income population groups has presented another challenge in the path of success.

As an aspiring country that is playing a major role in Paris Climate Agreement, India must stand up for increased financing and greater clarity about the global goal on adaptation, making a ‘loss and damage’ fund available for those disproportionately affected by the climate crisis, better focus on climate risks in the financial system, collaboration on international best practices, improving data collection on risks, improving and analysing metrics and targets, setting up insurance and introducing carbon ratings in capital markets in COP27 ¬– all this will yield great results in climate restoration.

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