India auctioned Rs.200 billion worth sovereign green bonds in FY24

03 Jun 2024 CW Team

The government auctioned sovereign green bonds worth Rs.200 billion in FY24 as compared to Rs.160 billion in FY23 to mobilise resources for green infrastructure projects, particularly for expanding renewable energy capacity.

Besides, foreign direct investment (FDI) flows towards non-conventional energy surpassed $2 billion for the second consecutive year, the latest edition of the CEEW Centre for Energy Finance (CEEW-CEF) Market Handbook revealed.

It said that the Reserve Bank of India concluded four sovereign green bonds auctions of Rs.200 billion vs Rs.160 billion in FY23, whose proceeds may be used to finance or refinance eligible green projects, it pointed out, adding that all the sovereign green bonds (SGrB) in FY24 were oversubscribed.

The SGrB offerings were 5-year (New SGrB 2028), 10-year (New SGrB 2033) and 30-year (New SGrB 2054 and 7.37 percent SGrB 2054), the CEEW-CEF report said. Apart from the 7.37 percent SGrB 2054, all other offerings’ coupon rates were yield-based which after auctions came out to be 7.25 per cent, 7.24 per cent and 7.37 per cent, respectively, it added. In FY24, the repo rate remained pegged at 6.5.

The SBI MCLR (1-year) rate was increased by 50 basis points twice in FY24, from 8.5 per cent in April 2024 to 8.65 per cent in March 2024, it pointed out.

The proceeds from these bonds are deployed in public sector projects, focusing on sectors such as clean transportation, renewable energy and sustainable water management. This will help reduce the economy’s carbon intensity in line with the commitments made under the nationally determined contributions (NDCs).

Technology

30 Jul 2026

Twin Tracks

Digital-twin adoption in India’s rail sector is gradually making its presence felt across asset management, infrastructure planning, predictive maintenance, construction monitoring and operator training.While large-scale deployments of digital twins are still evolving, Nipun Dumpala, a Senior Technical Lead specialising in digital twins, synthetic data, simulation and mixed reality technologies, points out that several organisations are exploring BIM-integrated digital twins, IoT-enabled monitoring, AI-based analytics and simulation platforms to improve operational efficiency and reduce life..

Centre Clears Power Distribution Upgrade for Uttar Pradesh

The Central Government has approved power distribution projects worth Rs 407.39 billion for Uttar Pradesh under the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS). The investment will be used to modernise the state's electricity distribution infrastructure and strengthen network capacity across urban and rural areas. The package targets one of the country's largest distribution networks as the state experiences rapid urbanisation and rising electricity consumption. Planned interventions include the strengthening of distribution lines, modernisation of substations, replacement of ageing electrical ..

India Data Centres To Consume 191 TWh By 2040 Driving Renewables

A Wood Mackenzie report says India's operational data centre capacity is projected to increase more than fivefold to 12 gigawatt (GW) by 2030 from 2.2 GW in 2025 as artificial intelligence (AI) and cloud computing drive demand. It projects electricity consumption to rise from 10 terawatt-hour (TWh) in 2025 to 191 TWh by 2040. The study forecasts a compound annual growth rate of around 40 per cent and notes AI-dedicated capacity will surge nearly 24-fold from 275 megawatt (MW) in 2025 to 6,546 MW by 2030. The report places India's digital economy at Rs 32 trillion (tn) in 2025 and says it contr..