Washington, DC

October 20, 2015

1. Mr. Piyush Goyal, Hon'ble Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministries of Power, Coal and New & Renewable Energy, Government of India visited Washington DC on an invitation from the United States Secretary of State Mr. John Kerry to participate in the Climate and Clean Energy Investment Forum 2015 hosted jointly by the US Department of State, Georgetown University and Google on October 20-21, 2015.

2. During the Session on 'Unlocking Investment in Developing Countries' the Hon'ble Minister elaborated on the government-led efforts to reduce barriers to financing for clean energy projects in India, as well as India's policy and regulatory support for its clean energy goals. The discussion was moderated by Michael Liebreich, Bloomberg New Energy Finance and the other panelist was Amos Hochstein, Special Envoy and Coordinator for International Energy Affairs, U.S. Department of State.

3. The Minister emphasized the need for long term low cost funding to keep energy cost affordable considering the development imperatives of India's fast growing economy. He highlighted India's huge capital investment requirements estimated at around US$ 250 billion over the next five to six years to meet its renewable energy goals. The role of developed countries in this regard was also underlined.

4. In his remarks, the Minister emphasized the ambitious plans of his Government to reliably meet the demand for energy of all sectors including the needs of vulnerable households, in all parts of the country in a technically efficient, economically viable and environmentally sustainable manner. He underlined India's commitment to pursuing a green path to growth through its plans for deployment of 175 GW of renewable power capacity by 2022, including 100 GW of solar and 60 GW of wind power.

5. The Hon'ble Minister said in order to sustain the process of environment friendly economic development in the long run, development of new and renewable sources of energy acquires utmost importance for India. India's renewable energy potential is vast and holds a great promise. It provides ample opportunities for trade and investment to set up manufacturing, leapfrog technologies and create volumes.

6. In this context, he spoke about the Government's concerted efforts to introduce new means of financing and innovative financial instruments that can leverage greater investments and broaden the investor base. He outlined the steps being taken to improve the contractual/ counter-party risk framework which is critical to all investors; unlocking investment from domestic banking and capital markets; and significantly scaling of international capital flows. He spoke about initiatives such as Greening the Grid;National Solar Mission: LED Program for enhancing energy efficiency etc. He also announced that a fund focusing on renewable energy within the National Infrastructure Investment Fund is under active consideration of the Government.

7. The Minister reaffirmed the Government of India's commitment to take all necessary steps to create a conducive environment for promoting investment in the renewable energy sector and strengthening the regulatory and institutional framework. He welcomed foreign investors, developers and manufacturers to be a partner in India's renewable energy story and drew attention to the Make in India programme for investing and manufacturing in India, which would in the long run be essential to remain competitive in the market.

8. Minister Goyal met with the United States Secretary of State Mr. John Kerry on October 20th, 2015. He will also be meeting with other prominent members of the U.S. administration, including United States Energy Secretary Dr. Ernest Moniz, US Trade Representative Ambassador Michael Froman and Ms. Nancy Pelosi, House Democratic leader.

9. Both sides acknowledged a major positive shift in the trajectory of US-India relations and committed to explore new opportunities for co-operation. The US officials appreciated India's efforts to promote new and renewable energy sources and India's commitment towards climate and clean energy.

10. During the course of his visit, the Minister will also be meeting with major energy sector investors to showcase business opportunities in India and India's tangible progress in the doing business environment.

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