Loss and damage fund must be set up to meet climate change goals: ReNew chairman Sumant Sinha

Sumant Sinha, Chairman & CEO, ReNew

Sumant Sinha founder, chairman, and chief executive officer (CEO), ReNew, is batting for the setting up of a ‘loss and damage’ fund given its criticality in achieving climate change goals, he told Moneycontrol in an exclusive interaction.

Last year, the 27th edition of the United Nations Climate Change Conference, better known as COP, included a historic commitment by developed nations to extend financial support to poor and developing nations as compensation for the damage and economic losses they face from ongoing climate change.

"It's very important for this fund to be there because there is no fund for mitigation (of the ravages of climate change). The $100 billion  that was promised (to developing countries), never showed up,” Sinha said.

Sinha, who started the Nasdaq-listed ReNew as a renewable energy company, is now growing the company as a decarbonisation solutions provider.

“It's important that the fund is activated, because a lot of the smaller countries, especially those which have low-lying coastal areas, islands, etc., can get wiped off the face of the earth," Sinha added.

Sinha has recently authored a book focussing on decarbonisation, titled, ‘Fossil Free — Reimagining Clean Energy In A Carbon Constrained World.’

What is the 'loss and damage' fund?

The fund would provide financial support to vulnerable countries  impacted by the effects of climate change. A key task for climate negotiations at COP28 is to fully operationalise the fund. Negotiators will need to decide where the fund will be hosted, which countries will contribute, and which countries are eligible for financial support.

The agreement for the fund was reached last year during the UN COP27 talks in Egypt, however, governments have not reached a consensus on the details of the fund.

On Nov 5, 2023, governments from developed and developing nations drew up a blueprint for a new `loss and damage’ fund after a tense two-day meeting under the guidance of the United Nations in Abu Dhabi. However, developing nations and the United States expressed their reservations about the same.

Insufficient investments in renewable power

Asked about India's pace of investments in the renewable energy sector, Sinha said, “On the power generating side, we need to increase investments by about three times.  We were investing in about 1,520 gigawatts (GW) of new capacity every year, we need to increase that to 50 GW, as per the government's target. "

Last month, media reports, citing a KPMG report, said that India needs to invest about $400 billion annually by 2047 to meet its clean energy goals.

"We are  probably investing a fair bit,  but we need to ramp it up very sharply, to be able to make progress," Sinha added.

ReNew currently has a clean energy portfolio of 13.7 GW on a gross basis. Earlier this year, the company, and clean energy solutions provider Gentari, announced a 50:50 joint venture to explore avenues to invest in 5 GW of renewable capacity in India.