The agencies which make up a U.S. Government mission overseas are not merely an alphabet soup of acronyms along for the ride. Working long hours behind the scenes both before and after the mission itself, applying skill and expertise to complex international negotiations under deadline pressure, they provide the very substance that makes foreign policy real, and which might just make the world a little smaller and a little more interconnected.

For that reason, one such agency – the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the U.S. Government’s development finance institution – appreciated Commerce Secretary Bryson’s shout-out during his remarks to the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce in Mumbai last week.

“I have a good piece of news from OPIC,” Secretary Bryson said. “I’m sure that many of you are familiar with India’s Infrastructure Development Finance Corporation – IDFC. Yesterday (March 29), OPIC’s Board approved $250 million in financing to help IDFC expand lending for renewable energy projects, including solar, wind and energy efficiency, as well as for infrastructure projects. This will help meet an important need for more long-term capital to support India’s growing renewable energy sector.”

Indeed, it will. IDFC is India’s premier infrastructure lender, with an enviable track record in the sector.  As a specialized financial institution, it provides end-to-end infrastructure financing and integrated project implementation services for India’s most important priority sectors.