Norfund's Norwegian Climate Fund to Invest in a Wind Power Facility
The Norwegian Climate Investment Fund, run by Norfund, and KLP, Norway's largest pension organisation, have pledged equity and guarantees for an Enel Green Power 168 MW wind power facility in India.
Enel Green Power, a subsidiary of the Enel Group created in 2008 to develop and manage renewable energy projects around the world, has over 59 GW of installed renewable capacity in Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Norfund and Enel Green Power signed a cooperative investment agreement for renewable energy projects in India in July 2020. The first collaborative project, a 420 MW Thar solar facility, was announced in August 2022.
Gujarat's second project is a 168 MW wind farm. Enel Green Power, like Thar, was awarded the ability to sell power through a government auction and has a 25-year power purchase agreement. Norfund brings along KLP, Norway's largest pension organisation, through the investment partnership KNI India, with joint pledges of about NOK 317 million (INR 2,4 billion) in equity capital and loan guarantees of up to NOK 530 million (INR 4 billion) towards the project's completion. (The Climate Investment Fund holds 51% of KNI India, while KLP owns 49%).
The project, which is now operational, is expected to produce approximately 700 GWh per year. Given India's present energy sources, a significant percentage of which is coal, the project will avoid 573,000 tons of carbon emissions