India Starts a New Green Grids Initiative with UK at COP26

India and the UK announced bilateral cooperation to enhance their International Solar Alliance (ISA) partnership by launching a new green grids initiative at the COP26 climate conference in Glasgow on November 2, according to the Economic Times on the same day. This initiative is the first global partnership for interconnected solar energy grids, named Global Green Grids Initiative One Sun One World One Grid (GGI-OSOWOG). India Presidency of ISA and the UK COP Presidency will jointly lead the project. At the same time, the World Bank Group also stated its presence in this new green grid initiative.

The OSOWOG initiative under the ISA is a step for India to push solar power to the core position at a global scale. They launched the project based on an objective of a “coalition of the willing,” which would mutually benefit all the parties involved from the transmission of solar electricity. It enables the integration of resources to foster interconnected solar energy infrastructure. The governments and legislators worldwide, as well as international fund providers and technology providers, will soon participate in the construction. Along with the initiative, they also published a One Sun Declaration. The declaration claimed the vision to achieve the targets of the Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals. It also stated the ambition of the initiative to upgrade the renewable power grid and to rely less on fossil fuels. So far, 80 ISA member countries supported the declaration.

In 2015, India’s Prime Minister and former President of France jointly established ISA at COP21. They establish the alliance as an inter-governmental treaty-based international organization. Being a founder of ISA marked the determination of India in the energy transition. Recently, ISA promised to provide financial support of USD50,000 for 11 least developed countries in solar power development. Meanwhile, ISA announced the partnership with Bloomberg Philanthropies to allocate USD1tr funding by 2030 to assist developing countries in expanding their solar power grids.

Sources:

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/worlds-first-partnership-for-transnational-solar-power-grid-launched-in-glasgow/articleshow/87493571.cms

https://news.yahoo.com/johnson-meet-modi-india-says-103959180.html

https://www.isolaralliance.org/

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/renewables/isa-to-give-up-to-50000-aid-to-11-members-for-demonstrative-solar-projects/articleshow/87211581.cms