Reforms improved financial viability of the power sector: VK Singh, REC director-technical

economictimes.indiatimes.com:

REC, a subsidiary of Power Finance Corp., plans to expand its lending in the renewable energy space to Rs 2.4 lakh crore by 2030, says its director-technical, VK Singh. While land and grid availability can be challenging for developing new green energy projects, policies of the government and support from states have been encouraging, he tells Shilpy Sinha. Edited excerpts:The renewables space has been gathering pace. How is REC positioned considering India's target of achieving 500 GW capacity by 2030? India is at 175 GW and needs to add 325 GW by 2030.

REC aims to build a renewable portfolio and explore opportunities in solar, wind, hydro, storage, hydrogen and methanol initiatives. We are financing pumped storage projects & hydrogen / ammonia projects and supporting e-mobility efforts. Recently, we raised $750 million through green bonds to finance green energy and clean transportation projects.

We plan to expand our loan book in the renewable energy space and increase it to₹2.4 lakh crore by 2030. This year alone we aim to sanction ₹75,000 crore to renewable energy and disburse ₹ 30,000 crore, which will be 25% of our total disbursements.What is the kind of demand from the green hydrogen sector? REC is actively supporting the growth of the green hydrogen sector through various initiatives. We have provided funding for energy-related projects, expanded lending to infrastructure sectors, and are exploring opportunities in hydrogen and ammonia projects.