Climate resilience investment could avert $28 billion in losses across India’s renewable energy pipeline

India could avoid nearly $28 billion in climate-related losses across its planned renewable energy pipeline by investing around $4.6 billion in resilience measures, according to a report by Zurich Kotak General Insurance and Zurich Resilience Solutions. The investment, equivalent to about 2% of project capital expenditure (CapEx), could reduce projected climate-related losses from $55 billion to $27 billion and deliver an estimated sixfold return through avoided losses.

The findings point to a significant opportunity for policymakers, investors, developers, lenders and insurers to protect the renewable energy build-out as climate hazards intensify.  India became the world’s third-largest renewable energy capacity holder in 2026, with installed non-fossil capacity reaching 283.5 GW by March. Renewable generation is expanding at around 11% annually, keeping India on track towards its national 2030 target of 500 GW from non-fossil sources. 

The study analyses 871 planned renewable energy generation sites across ten Indian states and union territories, representing around 90% of the country’s planned renewable energy capacity. Together, these projects account for around 267 GW capacity.

The study finds 729 renewable energy generation sites, accounting for around 239 GW, or 90% of the total assessed generation capacity (267 GW), is at high or critical risk of being adversely affected by climate risks by 2030.

This underscores both the scale of exposure and urgency of resilience focused investment.

Tornadoes, wildfires, floods and hail are identified as the most significant threats, with potential impacts including civil works damage, substation failures, module degradation, mounting structure damage and prolonged operational disruptions.

Solar carries the most pronounced near-term exposure. It accounts for 593 of the 871 assessed sites and 182,286 MW of planned capacity, representing nearly 70% of total assessed capacity.

The commercial case for early action is compelling. By embedding resilience into planning, financing, design and construction, asset owners can reduce avoidable losses, improve insurability and bankability, and strengthen the long-term reliability of clean power generation that will be critical to economic growth, industrial development and energy security.  

Ajey Hegde, Head – Commercial Insurance, Zurich Kotak General Insurance said, “The renewable energy transition will require climate finance at significant scale, and that capital must be directed towards infrastructure that can withstand climate risks. Building resilience in from the start can help protect investment value, improve insurability and reduce future losses, while giving public and private capital greater confidence to invest.” 

The report sets out five practical actions to help governments, investors, developers and operators move from risk identification to resilience investment: 

• Make climate risk screening mandatory at planning and permitting: Forward-looking climate screening should become a standard requirement for site selection, project approval and permitting. Historical baselines are no longer sufficient for assets expected to operate into the 2050s and beyond. Early screening also allows resilience measures to be introduced when costs are lower and design flexibility is greatest. 

• Stress-test the highest-risk assets first: With 66% of assessed renewable energy capacity projected to sit in Categories 4 and 5 by 2030, Zurich recommends prioritising the most exposed projects for multi-hazard stress-testing. This can help quantify potential losses, identify the main risk factors and create a roadmap for stronger protection. 
• Build hazard-specific resilience into procurement: Long-term resilience is often determined before an asset is built. Zurich recommends embedding requirements such as wind loading, hail resistance, flood elevation, drainage, fire protection, corrosion resistance and redundancy into design and procurement standards, rather than treating them as optional upgrades.

• Treat system resilience as part of asset resilience: Renewable energy assets depend on the wider network around them, including grid infrastructure, interconnection, access roads, water systems, communications and emergency response. Zurich recommends extending resilience planning beyond the project boundary to support faster recovery after severe climate events.
• Use resilience quantification to unlock capital: Resilience can be translated into financial terms. By showing how upfront design investment can reduce value at risk, improve insurability and strengthen bankability, asset owners and developers can create a stronger basis for engagement with lenders, insurers and investors. 

Zurich’s analysis shows that resilience measures are most effective when embedded during the design and construction phase, when engineering flexibility is greatest and costs are lower. Beyond reducing physical damage, resilient assets are also easier to insure, easier to finance and better positioned to deliver reliable long-term performance. 

Mark Fletcher, Head of Zurich Resilience Solutions, Asia Pacific, Zurich Insurance, said: “India’s renewable energy pipeline is expanding at a pace and scale that few markets can match. Through our work with clients throughout the region on climate resilience and adaptation, we see that when climate resilience is built into projects early, while site selection, engineering and planning decisions are still flexible, there is the opportunity to materially reduce potential losses for a relatively modest upfront investment. This in-turn drives insurability and bankability, improving confidence for insurers, lenders and investors.”