India had first proposed connecting solar energy supply across borders at the International Solar Alliance (ISA) in 2018 to allow parts of the world with excess solar power to send it to other countries.
Then in May 2021, the UK and India agreed to jointly launch GGI-OSOWOG for all kinds of renewable power, which was finally launched at COP-26 in Glasgow by a group of national leaders.
Purpose of the initiative-
1. Transmission of renewable power from areas having excess power to deficit power areas.
2. Address issue of electricity supply from solar power plants after the sunset.
3. Galvanize international cooperation for large-scale capacity addition of renewable energy.
4. Address variability in renewable energy supply.
5. Address issue of high cost of energy storage.
6. Speed up decarbonization of energy production.
7. Research and knowledge sharing.
8. Creation of 'good jobs'.
Challenges.
1. Financing for transmission infrastructure.
2. Global cooperation
3. Security risks
4. Technical compatibility
The initiative has great potential to mitigate the challenges of the climate crisis along with meeting the energy requirements.