India could well be on its way to becoming a global leader in the development of solar power, a new report suggests.

That’s due to the nation’s green growth agenda – the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM) – which has seen its installed solar capacity rise from around 30MW to more than 2,000MW in three years.

The World Bank suggests the scheme has been key in bringing down the cost of solar power to $0.15 per kWh, making India among the “lowest cost destinations for grid-connected PV in the world”.

It believes solar power can trim the nation’s dependence on imports of diesel and coal for power, cut greenhouse gas emissions and contribute to energy security.

The JNNSM aims to add 20GW of solar capacity by 2022.

Onno Ruhl, World Bank Country Director in India said: “In a short span of three years, India has made impressive strides in developing its abundant solar power potential. With more than 300 million people without access to energy and industry citing energy shortage as key growth barrier in India, solar power has the potential to help the country address the shortage of power for economic growth.”

However Mr Ruhl suggests the nation needs to address barriers to scaling up the solar programme.