90 pc of India’s renewable energy portfolio faces high climate risk by 2030: Report

NEW DELHI: Around 90 per cent of India’s renewable energy portfolio could face high or critical climate risks by 2030, highlighting the need for urgent resilience measures as the country rapidly expands its clean energy capacity, according to a report released by Zurich Kotak General Insurance and Zurich Resilience Solutions.

The report assessed 871 renewable energy sites across the ten states with the highest renewable energy capacity. Together, these sites represent a planned capacity of around 267 GW.

It stated “Across 871 sites in the ten states with most renewable energy capacity, with a combined planned capacity of approximately 267 GW, the data highlights concentrated exposure to tornado, wildfire, flood and hail with 90 per cent of assessed assets as high or critical risk, of which 66 per cent are rated critical by 2030”.

The report said India is building its renewable energy future at an extraordinary pace, but the climate conditions facing these assets are also changing rapidly. It stressed that resilience measures need to be integrated while many projects are still in the planning and construction stages, when the cost of adaptation remains relatively low.

The report said, “Acting now – through smarter design, better site selection and targeted resilience measures – could protect them from the worst of the changes to come”. Solar energy dominates India’s renewable energy pipeline in both capacity and number of project sites. Wind and hydropower projects also contribute to the portfolio, although at a smaller scale.

According to the report, climate risks facing renewable energy assets are manageable if action is taken early. It estimated that a resilience investment of around USD 4.6 billion, equivalent to about 2 per cent of the portfolio’s replacement cost, could significantly reduce the financial impact of climate-related risks.

The study estimated that such investments could lower potential climate-related losses from USD 55 billion to USD 27 billion. The report described this as a return of around six times for every dollar invested in resilience measures.

To strengthen the sector, the report outlined five key recommendations. These include making climate risk screening mandatory during project planning and permitting, stress-testing high-risk assets, integrating hazard-specific resilience measures into procurement, extending resilience planning beyond individual assets to supporting infrastructure, and using resilience assessments to attract investment.

The report emphasised that resilience should be treated as an enabler of growth rather than an added cost. It said stronger resilience can help protect reliability, reduce avoidable losses and improve confidence among investors, insurers and businesses.

According to the report, India’s renewable energy transition presents a major opportunity, but ensuring long-term durability of assets will require climate resilience to become a standard part of how clean energy projects are planned, financed and operated. (ANI)