IREDA CMD Highlights India’s Decentralised Solar Model at WEF Davos 2026

Shri Pradip Kumar Das, Chairman and Managing Director of Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd. (IREDA), participated in a panel discussion at the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting 2026 in Davos on the theme “Scaling Solar Where It Matters: India’s Lessons on Rooftop, Agriculture and Decentralized Energy for the Global South.”

Earlier in the day, Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy Shri Pralhad Joshi delivered the keynote address at the forum, highlighting India’s leadership and experience in advancing solar energy solutions to support inclusive and sustainable development.

During the session, Shri Das underscored India’s growing global relevance in distributed solar energy, particularly for emerging economies. He stated that the adoption of decentralised renewable energy systems can enhance overall system efficiency, reduce government subsidies and aggregate technical and commercial (AT&C) losses, and significantly lower costs, thereby improving affordability.

Addressing concerns around risk in emerging renewable energy segments, Shri Das noted that robust project design and prudent risk management can substantially de-risk such projects. He cited IREDA’s track record as evidence, pointing to a cumulative write-off of only ₹149 crore over more than 38 years of operations, despite financing approximately ₹1.81 lakh crore since inception.

He further highlighted that IREDA finances 70–80 per cent of project costs under the Rooftop Solar and PM-KUSUM schemes in aggregator mode, playing a key role in accelerating clean energy access across rural India.

Shri Das thanked Union Minister Shri Pralhad Joshi for providing IREDA the platform at WEF Davos to showcase India’s renewable energy growth, enabled by a mature and well-developed ecosystem. He added that the forum offered an opportunity to highlight IREDA’s pivotal role in India’s renewable energy transition and noted that India’s institutional framework and experience could serve as a valuable reference for other countries pursuing similar energy pathways.

Referring to Maharashtra’s progress in agricultural solarisation, Shri Das stressed the importance of building an enabling ecosystem that effectively de-risks the sector and attracts long-term global capital.