British International Investment (BII), the UK’s development finance institution (DFI) and impact investor, today announced that it has exceeded its ambitious commitment to invest US$1 billion in climate finance during its 2022–2026 strategy period.
Coinciding with the start of Mumbai Climate Week, BII confirms it has now invested US$1.1 billion, demonstrating strong momentum behind its goal to scale climate solutions across India and support the country’s transition to a low‑carbon economy.
BII also announced a further INR 430 million investment in Turno, an India-based EV battery infrastructure company that uses lifecycle intelligence and second-life battery deployment to make large-scale EV financing more economically viable. The new funding will support the launch of ElectricGo, Turno’s new e‑bus business unit, enabling the financing of 34 intercity electric buses across India. This builds on BII’s initial investment in 2024 and expands its support for India’s rapidly evolving EV sector.
Shilpa Kumar, Managing Director and Head of India, BII, said: “India is central to BII’s climate investment strategy. Reaching US$1.1 billion in climate investments reflects both the scale of India’s opportunity and BII’s long‑term commitment to supporting its transition. Our partnerships, from clean mobility to smart metering and agri‑technology, show how climate investment can drive economic resilience, innovation and inclusive growth.”
India has set an ambitious goal to reach net‑zero emissions by 2070, and BII’s growing climate portfolio is directly supporting this transition by backing clean energy, electric mobility, sustainable agriculture and climate‑resilient infrastructure across the country. Recent milestones include:
- GreenCell Mobility plans to deploy 570 electric buses in Delhi, expanding zero‑emission public transport.
- EnerGrid, following BII’s US$110 million commitment, has scaled rapidly, including commissioning India’s first standalone utility‑scale Battery Energy Storage System with 360 MWh of capacity.
- Fasal, an agri‑tech company, has launched new precision‑automation tools to support farmers across India and Southeast Asia.
- Grow Indigo recently secured Verra approval for its first regenerative agriculture project, the first VM0042 soil carbon project in India and Asia, and one of the world’s first for smallholder farmers.
The climate agenda is central to BII’s mandate, with more than 40 per cent of its annual commitments across Asia and Africa now supporting climate-related projects. In 2023, BII’s renewable energy portfolio contributed to avoiding 1.5 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions.
About British International Investment
BII is the UK’s development finance institution and impact investor. The organisation invests in businesses in developing countries to improve people’s lives and help protect the planet. BII’s work targets the underlying causes of poverty and the climate crisis, helping countries break free from aid dependency for good. Between 2022-2026, at least 30 per cent of BII’s total new commitments by value will be in climate finance. BII is also a founding member of the 2X Challenge, which has raised over US$33.6 billion to empower women’s economic development. The company has investments in over 1,600 businesses across 66 countries and total net assets of £9.87 billion. For more information, visit: www.bii.co.uk | watch here. Follow British International Investment on LinkedIn, Bluesky and X.
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