- The first World Solar Technology Summit will be inaugurated by International Solar Alliance (ISA).
- The objective of the event is to bring the spotlight on state-of-the-art technologies as well as next-generation technologies which will provide impetus to the efforts towards harnessing solar energy more efficiently.
World Solar Bank
- International Solar Alliance (ISA) aims to create a World Solar Bank with authorised capital of $15 billion to fund projects.
- A special finance vehicle is needed for funding solar projects, the official added.
Why the summit is important
- This summit assumes significance in view of India’s ambitious target of having 100GW of solar energy by 2022.
- India’s installed solar power generation capacity stood at over 35 GW by July this year, according to the Central Electricity Authority data.
ISA Journal on Solar Energy
- ISA would also launch a journal on Solar Energy (I JOSE) that would help authors from across the globe to publish their articles on solar energy.
- The articles in this journal would be reviewed by global experts and will reach the member countries through ISA’s vast network of NFPs (National Focal points) and STAR (Solar Technology and Application Resource centres) centres.
- Besides, there is need for huge funding for solar projects across the world for increasing share of renewable sources in the overall energy mix.
What is International Solar Alliance or ISA
- The ISA is an alliance of 121 countries to create a global market system to tap the benefits of solar power and promote clean energy applications.
EESL and ISA
- State-run firm EESL (Energy Efficiency Services Limited) has been entrusted by the ISA to do this exercise for a potential order of 47 million home power systems worth about $28 billion.
- This is basically a price discovery tender.