Study on the role of finance in enhancing access to clean energy in India

• Mar 22, 2021
• 1 min

The World Wildlife Fund hypothesized that transitioning people in remote rural India from wood-based fuel to clean energy would minimize deforestation and the threat to biodiversity. In this light, MSC conducted a study on the role of finance in enhancing access to clean energy.

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) identified that the exploitation of forest resources and the burning of wood for fuel as some of the key threats to the survival of the forest ecosystem and local biodiversity in India. It envisaged that transitioning people in remote rural India from wood-based fuel to clean energy would minimize deforestation and the threat to biodiversity. WWF also envisaged that access to clean energy might be limited in such communities because of the upfront cost of adoption. The challenge for WWF was to validate its hypothesis through research and reach out to a community of financial institutions to support its objectives.

In 2014, MSC undertook a study based on the hypothesis formulated by WWF. It studied and documented the nuances of financing mass-market clean energy solutions. The study involved a range of stakeholder interviews including microfinance institutions, banks, NGOs, clean energy solution providers, and sectoral experts. The result of the study was an exhaustive guidance note on financing access to clean energy by pivoting the distribution prowess and financial strength of the grassroots financial organization.