New Delhi: US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate Change John Kerry has termed India, the red-hot investment destination for solar power. Kerry said that harnessing the full value of solar energy will require countries to invest in storage, grid infrastructure and inflexibility in both demand and supply.
Kerry was delivering his special address as the envoy of the US president at the fourth assembly of the International Solar Alliance on October 20. “It is really terrific to see India leading the ISA. India is a close partner and the United States strongly supports India’s goal of reaching 450 GW of renewable energy by 2030. We believe that it’s absolutely doable and will be done. India has already set an example for emerging economies by reaching 100GW of renewables,” Kerry said.
The fourth assembly of the International Solar Alliance (ISA) started with one-minute silence of prayers for those who lost their lives due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The meeting was chaired by the Union Minister for Power and Renewable Energy RK Singh who is also president of ISA. Representatives from 106 countries are participating in discussions at ISA.
Secretary Kerry applauded the International Solar Alliance saying that ISA is critical to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and has an opportunity to accelerate the growth of the solar energy sector with member countries blessed with the world’s strongest sunlight.
RK Singh informed the ISA members that India is targeting to reach the capacity of 450 GW of renewable energy by 2030. “We have 154 GW of installed non-fossil generation capacity and another 67 GW under construction. India’s non-fossil fuel-based capacity is on track to surpass the target of 40 percent of Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) of India,” Singh said.
ISA members agreed that solar energy is the most viable option to achieve universal access to sustainable energy due to its affordability and amenability to off-grid solutions. It is the most viable option for rapidly de-carbonize the energy sector.
International Solar Alliance was founded to bring the global community together, synergize the efforts and leverage the complementarities to overcome barriers aimed at providing energy access to all.
European Commission Executive-Vice President for the European Green Deal, Frans Timmermans participated in the opening session of the ISA Assembly and announced the imminent launch of a project worth around 1 million Euro to be funded by the EU and aimed at further strengthening the engagement of EU, the EU Member States, and EU academic, business, and financial communities with the ISA.
