Climate hazards such as droughts, flood, and cyclones are becoming more severe and frequent, posing a threat to the resilience of renewable energy. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), India, in collaboration with the Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy (CSTEP), conducted a study across four states in India (Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan) with a high percentage of wind and solar energy infrastructure. The study employed the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Assessment Report 5 (AR5) risk assessment framework. Risk was computed as the product of the probability of occurrence of a hazard, the exposure of the solar and wind energy infrastructure to hazards, and its inherent vulnerability. The hazards chosen for this study were droughts, floods, heatwaves, tropical cyclones, earthquakes, and hailstorms. The resilience of assets was qualitatively reported. Subsequently, the findings from the study informed a set of evidence-based policy recommendations to address the drivers of risk and enhance the resilience of solar and wind energy assets.
Kanchan Kargwal, Bidisha Banerjee, and Dhruv Rajeev co-authored the report.
