The latest financing builds on the World Bank’s long association with India’s rooftop solar sector. According to the Bank, its cumulative support has helped India’s installed rooftop solar capacity grow from around 500 MW to more than 27 GW.
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The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors has approved a financing package of $890 million for India’s rooftop solar programme, comprising an $820 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), a $60 million concessional loan from the Clean Technology Fund and a $10 million grant from the IBRD’s Livable Planet Fund. The multilateral lender will also mobilise an estimated $4.2 billion in private financing through commercial loans to help households install rooftop solar systems.The financing will support the Centre’s PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana, which aims to install rooftop solar systems in 10 million rural and urban households, reducing electricity bills while boosting domestic manufacturing of rooftop solar equipment.The World Bank said the programme is expected to create around 1.7 million jobs across renewable energy manufacturing, installation and related services.India has committed to achieving net-zero emissions by 2070 and increasing the share of non-fossil fuel sources in its electricity mix to 60 per cent by 2035. While utility-scale solar capacity has expanded rapidly over the past decade, residential rooftop solar adoption has remained relatively modest.“The World Bank has been supporting India’s solar rooftop sector for over a decade, mobilising more than $2 billion to catalyse market growth from 500 MW to over 27 GW of installed capacity,” said Paul Procee, Acting Country Director for India at the World Bank. “This new financing will help India scale up residential solar, while creating job opportunities across the supply chain and installation ecosystem.”According to the World Bank, the programme seeks to remove financial barriers to rooftop solar adoption while strengthening the capacity of electricity distribution companies, banks and vendors to deliver integrated services.“The programme will transform the residential solar market by removing financial barriers and building the capacity of distribution companies, banks, and vendors to deliver integrated service solutions,” said Moez Cherif, Task Team Leader for the programme. “Through collateral-free financing, households can install solar power and significantly reduce their monthly electricity bills.”The latest financing builds on the World Bank’s long association with India’s rooftop solar sector. In 2016, it approved a $648 million package for the Grid-Connected Rooftop Solar Programme, focused largely on commercial and industrial consumers, and followed it up with $165 million in additional financing in 2022 to expand support to the residential segment. According to the Bank, its cumulative support has helped India’s installed rooftop solar capacity grow from around 500 MW to more than 27 GW.Published on July 10, 2026
