The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Wednesday said it has approved $240.5 million in loans to finance rooftop solar systems in India that will help the government expand energy access using renewable energy.

The financing will support tranches 2 and 3 of the Multi-tranche Financing Facility (MFF) Solar Rooftop Investment Programme approved by ADB in 2016. The programme was restructured in 2023 to focus on deploying residential solar rooftop systems.

“India aims to achieve about 50 per cent of cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel energy sources by 2030 in line with its global commitments to reduce carbon emissions. ADB’s financing supports these goals and will contribute to the Prime Minister Surya Ghar program, which encourages people to install rooftop solar systems across the country,” ADB’s Principal Energy Specialist Kaoru Ogino said.

The financing will be made available to the State Bank of India (SBI) and the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) to provide loans to developers and end-users throughout India to install rooftop solar systems.

ADB will provide SBI with $90.5 million from its Clean Technology Fund (CTF), while NABARD will receive $150 million, comprised of $80 million from ADB’s ordinary capital resources and $70 million from CTF.

Installation of rooftop solar systems can benefit the overall power distribution system by reducing the technical and operational burden. Rooftop solar facilities are allowed to generate electricity close to where it is consumed, reducing the need for long-distance power supply and resultant system losses. Such a power distribution system provides a degree of energy independence with less power supply disruption.

ADB is committed to achieving a prosperous, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable Asia and the Pacific, while sustaining its efforts to eradicate extreme poverty. Established in 1966, it has 68 members, 49 of whom are from the region.

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