Two U.S. Companies in Deals to Provide Solar Power in India
Following bilateral talks this week at the White House between President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Narenda Modi of India, the two countries announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding on cooperation on energy security, clean energy, and climate change.
The MOU confirmed the commitment of the United States government to support India’s goal to deploy 175 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2022.
At the same time as the MOU was announced, the White House also announced new commitments from U.S. renewable companies that are investing in India.
Among the terms of the MOU on energy security, the two governments plan to extend their cooperation on rooftop solar technology; large-scale integration of renewable energy into India’s power grid; and enhancing the quality and accuracy of India’s solar resource maps and data to help developers and policymakers identify high-quality solar energy projects.
The commitments by U.S. companies announced at the White House are expected to double the current installed solar energy in India.
8minutenergy Renewables will pursue a 4 GW solar photovoltaic project pipeline in India to help meet the Indian government’s renewable energy goals. The projects are expected to generate over 10,000 Indian construction jobs.
“We have recently expanded our focus to include international markets where clean energy is needed most, and we are particularly excited about our work in India,” said Martin Hermann, founder and CEO, 8minutenergy. “With its complex project development environment, mandates for utility-scale growth, and auction award mechanisms, we see a lot of similarities between the highly-competitive California solar market and India’s.”
The California-based company currently enjoys a 15-percent share in California’s solar market.
8minutenergy has also committed to contribute to the Clean Energy Finance Forum, which provides broad multinational private sector feedback and support to the U.S.-India Clean Energy Finance Task Force and toward Government of India’s vision of deploying the capital needed to achieve it’s 100 GW solar target.
“We are dedicated to bridging U.S-India partnerships across the development spectrum, from financing to project construction and operations, in order to make this pipeline a reality,” said Tom Buttgenbach, president and co-founder of 8minutenergy. “We will bring cutting-edge technology and deployment solutions, including many U.S.-designed solar and storage options, to our global energy projects. It is 8minutenergy’s mission to make clean energy abundant, and our commitment to the U.S. and Indian solar markets are key to achieving this objective.”
The other U.S. company to commit to the Indian market was SunLink Corporation, which is partnering with domestic Indian companies with a deployment target of 1.4 gigawatts over the next five years. The introduction of SunLink’s technology into the Indian solar market, said a White House statement, will help the country realize its renewable energy goals on an accelerated timeline.
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