New Delhi: Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited (IREDA) Chairman & Managing Director Pradip Kumar Das on Monday underscored the agency’s crucial role in supporting Odisha’s clean-energy transition and advancing India’s sustainability goals at the Global Energy Leaders’ Summit in Puri.
Speaking during a panel discussion titled “Green and Clean: Balancing Ecology & Economy,” Das said India’s renewable energy journey and decarbonisation efforts cannot be driven only by national and corporate leadership. “Responsibility must be shared at every level — states, districts, panchayats, villages, and even families — to achieve net zero,” he said, stressing the need for a holistic approach that builds a strong ecosystem for renewable-energy development while maintaining ecological balance.
Das highlighted IREDA’s emergence as India’s largest pure-play green lender, with over Rs 2.7 lakh crore sanctioned and more than Rs 1.7 lakh crore disbursed across the country. Supported by robust governance standards, digital and paperless processes, and industry-leading asset quality, IREDA continues to attract significant interest from both domestic and global climate-finance investors, he said.
Focusing on Odisha’s industrial landscape, the IREDA CMD said the state — a major producer of steel and aluminium — is well positioned to adopt circular-economy solutions, including metals recycling and green hydrogen integration. This, he said, can accelerate the production of premium green steel for export and significantly enhance Odisha’s GDP.
Das also spoke about the potential of developing a “Green Hydrogen Highway” across Odisha, supported by over 7 MTPA of announced green ammonia capacity and multiple industrial clusters. Co-locating hydrogen production facilities with steel, aluminium, cement and chemical plants, he said, could improve industrial efficiency and competitiveness.
On carbon markets, Das pointed out that Odisha’s extensive forest cover and India’s largest mangrove ecosystem provide strong opportunities for climate-finance mobilisation through carbon registries and advanced monitoring, reporting and verification systems.
Reaffirming IREDA’s commitment to the state, Das said the agency has already disbursed more than Rs 2,400 crore in Odisha and maintains a loan book of about Rs 1,800 crore across sectors including hydro, solar, ethanol and manufacturing. IREDA is also prepared to finance shared hydrogen infrastructure, plug-and-play renewable-energy parks, distributed solar projects, and foreign-currency loans through its GIFT City subsidiary, he added.
“Circularity, climate finance and nature-positive development must move together. IREDA stands ready to partner with Odisha to deliver sustainable, community-centred growth for the future,” Das said.
The event was attended by Odisha Deputy Chief Minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo, Principal Secretary (Energy) Vishal Kumar Dev, senior Government officials, industry leaders, researchers and other dignitaries.
The panel also featured former Swedish Enforcement Director Lena Backer, Royal Foundation for Peace Global Fund Chairperson for Life; Prof. Madhavi Srinivasan, Executive Director, Energy Research Institute, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore; and was moderated by Dr. Dhruba Purkayastha, Advisor (Climate and Energy), Observer Research Foundation.
The summit, organised by the Government of Odisha in association with the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change and IIT Kanpur, was held from December 5–7 in Puri.
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