Norwegian Climate Investment Fund to take up 49-pc stake in solar power plant in Rajasthan

New Delhi: As part of the Norway-India global energy transition partnership, the Norwegian Climate Investment Fund will take up a 49-per cent stake in a 420-MW solar power plant in Rajasthan, the Scandinavian nation's embassy here said on Monday.

The new Norwegian Climate Investment Fund, managed by Norfund and KLP, Norway's largest pension company, will take a 49-per cent stake in the Thar Surya 1 solar energy project for approximately Rs 280 crore, according to a statement issued by the embassy.

The 420-MWDC (300-MWAC) solar power plant is being built in Rajasthan by Italian firm Enel Green Power.

"Norway and India are partners in the global energy transition. Through the Climate Investment Fund, managed by Norfund, Norway is delivering on its climate finance commitments while contributing to India's energy security and clean power supply," Norwegian Ambassador Hans Jacob Frydenlund was quoted as saying in the statement.

When up and running, the project will deliver more than 750 GWh per year. The climate investment fund will allocate 10 billion Norwegian Krone (approximately USD 1 billion) over the next five years, with India being a priority market, the statement said.

"This summer with extreme heat and drought in many parts of the world has shown us, more clearly than ever, that there is no time to waste in the fight against climate change," Norway's Minister of International Development Anne Beathe Tvinnereim said.

"That is why it is such good news that in record time, the Climate Investment Fund's money is already working for these crucial investments in renewable energy," she added.

Norfund, the Norwegian government's development finance institution, has stitched up a strategic investment partnership with Enel Green Power in India, the statement said.

"This is the first investment we are making with Enel and together, we have great ambitions to contribute with similar investments in India in the years to come," Norfund CEO Tellef Thorleifsson was quoted as saying in the statement.

"KLP and Norfund have been investing in developing countries together for a decade and we are very excited to enter a market like India where there is such a great need for renewable energy," KLP CEO Sverre Thornes said.