Lightsource Invest In India
Lightsource has signed a £2 billion deal to develop 3 GW of solar PV projects in India over the next five years.
The agreement was signed during the visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the U.K during which £10 billion in trade deals was signed between the two nations.
The government's Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) recently made the decision to slash solar subsidies via the FIT by 87%, having earlier brought forward the closure of the Renewable Obligation (RO) scheme for larger-scale solar farms.
These cuts are expected to lead to the loss of around 27,000 jobs within the solar industry over the next few years, the STA argues. Lightsource, meanwhile, has calculated that this deal with the Indian government will generate around 300 jobs in the U.K. alone, bringing in some £42 million in revenue.
"We are delighted to be announcing this investment in India," said Lightsource Renewable Energy CEO Nick Boyle. "The government in India has ambitious plans to electrify India and Lightsource will contribute significantly to that goal. India will be a key market for Lightsource in the future."
The Indian National Solar Mission is targeting the installation of more than 100 GW of solar PV capacity domestically by 2022, and Narendra Modi has personally put his mark on the nation's solar aims.
