U.S. Ex-Im Bank funds India’s largest solar power project

India’s Reliance Power, Ltd has received U.S. government funding for its major solar power project.

The Export-Import Bank of the United States or Ex-Im Bank has granted Reliance Power a US$80 million direct loan to fund acquisition of solar power technology from American companies.

Reliance Power will use the funds to acquire solar technology from companies in eight U.S. states that will be used to expand its solar power project in Rajasthan state, India’s largest solar power project. The project is being co-financed by the Asian Development Bank and the Netherlands Development Finance Company, the Dutch development bank.

The Rajasthan plant will have a capacity of 40 megawatts and there are plans to add another 100MW capacity next year. After commissioning the plant, Reliance Power plans to boost the plant’s capacity to 300MW in two years’ time.

Reliance Power is part of the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group that is presently developing 13 medium and large-sized power projects with a combined planned installed capacity of 33,480 MW along with other Ambani subsidiaries.

Ex-Im Bank is the official export credit agency of the U.S. federal government that finances and insures foreign purchases of U.S. goods for customers unable or unwilling to accept credit risk. The bank’s mission is to create and sustain U.S. jobs by financing sales of U.S. exports to international buyers.