Bank of Baroda Collaborates with KfW to Provide Funding for Solar Projects in India

Bank of Baroda has announced that it has formed a strategic partnership with Germany’s KfW Development Bank to extend funding of USD 113 million to refinance solar power projects in India.

The affiliation will be backing solar power projects as a part of the Solar Partnership II – Promotion of Solar PV in India scheme, under the Indo-German Solar Energy Partnership. In 2015, Germany had devoted to providing financial support through KfW Development Bank for solar photovoltaic (PV) investments as part of an inter-governmental treaty.

In 2016, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) in association with Germany-based development bank KfW to set up two floating solar PV plants in the Maharashtra and Kerala, at an projected cost of around USD 46.15 million.

“The KfW-funded floating solar park would be a showcase project that would demonstrate the technical viability of large solar projects,” believed an MNRE senior official. “To begin with, at least 40 MW of floating solar capacity would be set up.”

In the same year, KfW also signed a € 20 million Loan Agreement with Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd. (IREDA) to be employed for “Access to Energy” by bankrolling Renewable Energy projects in India. This was the 6th Line of Credit (LoC) signed between KfW and IREDA on a standalone basis. IREDA aimed for providing financial assistance for off-grid solutions mainly through photovoltaic (PV) / hybrid mini-grids, PV irrigation pumps, household lighting systems, etc. to areas which have none or very limited access to modern energy services.