The journey of building non-fossil fuel based energy capacity of India from current 141 GW to 500 GW by 2030 is a long and interesting one to watch for.
New Delhi: Clean energy transitions have become a global phenomenon and India is no exception to it. India is walking on a tight rope as it tries to balance – meeting energy security for its 1.38 billion population and at the same time contributing to global efforts to reduce greenhouse emissions. India is the only G20 country which is on track to meet its 2C global warming targets. As India is traversing its energy transition journey, its success story would be written in the annals of history and would serve as a source of inspiration for clean energy transition all over the world. But the journey of building non-fossil fuel based energy capacity of India from current 141 GW to 500 GW by 2030 is a long and interesting one to watch out.
Where does India stand currently?
Currently, India’s energy mix is skewed towards the use of coal for power generation, oil for transport and industry, and biomass for residential heating and cooking. Since 1990s, over 80% of India’s energy needs have been largely met by the three fuels- Coal, Oil and Biomass (COB). Even in 2020, COB met about 82% India’s total primary energy demand (880 Mtoe), wherein coal met about 44%, oil met 25%, traditional biomass – 13%, natural gas – 6% and modern renewables met 3%. The usage of COB also adds to the pollution burden of the country. India is the third-largest global emitter of CO2 after US and China, but it barely makes within 100 rank if we consider per capita CO2 emissions. Even though coal meets 44% of India’s energy demand, it is responsible for 70% of India’s energy sector CO2 emissions. Thus, the coal-fired power plants are responsible for the great majority of the power sector emissions and that the Indian power sector is the largest contributor to its CO2 emission followed by the Industry (Iron, steel and cement), transport sector (trucks, 2-3 wheelers and cars) and buildings (residential and services). The coal-fired power generation not only is the largest CO2 emissions contributor but it is also responsible for about 80% of India’s energy sector water withdrawals.
Renewables are the answer to fighting COB fuels. In 2015, the Indian government announced a target of 175 GW of renewables by 2022 (excluding large hydro), which included 100 GW of solar and 60 GW of wind capacity. Since 2017, renewables have outpaced coal-fired capacity additions. Currently, India has about 141 GW of installed renewable energy capacity including large hydro projects which comprise of 46.3 GW. The current solar energy capacity stands at 41.09 GW, wind power at 39.44 GW, BioPower at 10.34 GW and small hydro plants at 4.8 GW. Investment in renewables, have grown by 60% over 2015‐19 to $18 billion.
What promises has India made for the future?
At the COP26, the Prime minister of India gave the “Panchamrita” mantra which are the five climate related commitments of India — To become carbon neutral and achieve net zero emissions by 2070; By 2030, 50% of the country’s energy requirements would be met using renewable energy sources; To reduce total projected carbon emissions by one billion tonne starting now till 2030; To Reduce carbon intensity by 45% by 2030; To raise the non-fossil fuel based energy capacity of India to 500 GW by 2030.
In order that the country’s 50% energy requirement is met using renewables from the current levels of 3%, 1567% of growth rate is required in the next 9 years. According to a study released by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), India would have to increase its solar power capacity to 5630 GW from its current 41 GW in order to become a net-zero emissions nation by 2070. The road ahead seems to be quite daunting and hence we should focus on effective innovation strategies and policy approaches to support the transition to a clean energy system.
Transitioning to a cleaner energy system
Power Sector
Decarbonising the power sector is key to decarbonising the energy sector. Decarbonization will depend on the business and structural improvements, as well as the deployment of clean technology.
For the business and structural improvements, some strategies that can prove to be useful are separation of rural load from urban load, separation of content and carriage, and a National Electricity Distribution Company (NEDC), which can help transform state-run discoms. The rural load could be transferred to Microgrids. Decentralized power generation can offer greater flexibility and the ability to isolate in the time of grid disturbances. Microgrids can be more cost-effective than
extending distribution lines for communities that do not have access to electricity. Microgrids can also offer resilient backup power through on-site or locally sited solar + storage systems. A National Electricity Distribution Company (NEDC) can help standardize and create uniformity in the business and structure of the state-run discoms.
Coal needs to be gradually replaced by renewables. India needs to focus on making the solar sector its “core competency”. For deploying clean technology, the government should also consider strategies to encourage domestic manufacturing of solar and energy storage systems as a means of ensuring both energy security and decarbonization. Distributed renewables could be encouraged by strengthening Commercial & Industrial open access. Both industry and the masses should be
encouraged and incentivized to adopt roof-top solar installations.
Transport
The energy transition in transport sector requires a major policy push, technology developments and behavioural changes. In terms of policy push, the government should proactively formulate policies which provide the below three in an integrated way, 1) Fuels/ energy carriers produced from renewable energy sources; 2) Vehicles that use renewable energy fuels and 3) Infrastructure for energy and fuel distribution. At the same time, government should focus on implementing zero emission vehicle mandates and public procurement of renewable carriers of transport. The two major buckets in the transport sector are- passenger and freight. India’s freight transport share is much skewed with 71% being road-based and 17% being rail-based. The government could come up with a policy which mandates- “All road freight by renewables” which can prove to be instrumental to reduce India’s oil burden. Alternatively, several electric freight corridors could also be developed to promote the electrification of the medium- and heavy-duty truck segment.
The introduction of Bharat VI emissions standards for LDVs (Light Duty Vehicle) and HDVs (Heavy Duty Vehicle) will also play an important role in lowering emissions. Transport’s share of NOX emissions is expected to decline from 40% today to less than 20% in 2040. India should anchor on its Make in India initiative to expand its share of R&D, manufacturing, design and export of vehicles and components, especially for EVs.
Industry
The share of the industry sector in total final energy consumption (TFEC) increased from 28% to 36% between 1990 and 2019 and it is predicted to increase from 36% in 2019 to 41% by 2040. Currently, Industry is the largest end‐use sector today in India. Within the heavy industrial sectors, the largest potential for material and energy intensity improvements lies in the steel sector. Coal which remains a mainstay of several industries should be replaced by renewables. More than 60% of India’s
industrial energy demand today is met by the direct use of fossil fuels, more than half in the form of coal.
Renewables should be used for industrial heating and cooling operations. Renewable heating solutions are less prevalent and renewable cooling solutions are even less prevalent. Policy interventions are necessary to overcome economic and non-economic barriers. There are instances, where several nations have mandated solar water heating in new buildings, often through building codes at either the national or state level. Space heating and cooling are very important for emerging economies like India. Energy efficiency, material efficiency and electrification are essential strategies for reducing emissions from industrial processes. India should also explore its significant potential to become an international hub for hydrogen technologies which could give India a competitive edge in attracting gas‐based and electricity‐based industries in the future.
The Green Workforce
India’s target is to raise the non-fossil fuel based energy capacity to 500 GW by 2030. The deployment of 500 GW of non-fossil fuel based energy sector would employ more than half a million workers. India’s energy transition will create ample new green jobs, the new green workforce should see higher women participation too. Globally, women account for nearly 32 per cent of the renewables workforce but they comprise only around 11 per cent of the rooftop solar workforce in India. Gender parity should be a high priority for companies wishing to walk the renewables path. Engagement of youth is also extremely critical if the energy transition needs to be smooth and sustainable. The young green innovators and entrepreneurs would provide the technical and social solutions for the future.
India is one of the biggest oil-importing nations as it largely depends on imports to fulfill its domestic oil requirement. From 78.3% import dependence on crude oil in FY15 to 83.8% in FY19, India has been largely energy dependant. It is time that India needs to become “Energy Aatmanirbhar”. We not only need to focus upon “Made in India products” but also need to focus upon “Made in India Energy” from “Made in India products”. Focus should be on support for innovative clean energy startups. The Government should help innovators bring their new ideas to market in three main ways – funding of the riskiest R&D, use of incentives and regulations to create early markets and providing grants or helping innovators access services and tools such as intellectual property consultancy and lab space. Every new technology that is upcoming and adopted should have minimum carbon footprint. For example, Bitcoin mining has major carbon footprints. Should bitcoin mining be made compulsory on renewables needs to be thought through. The patterns of India’s foreign energy trade have to be changed if it wishes to walk on a sustainable renewable path.
https://energy.economictimes.indiatimes.com/amp/news/renewable/opinion-indias-transition-to-a-clean-energy-system/88247507
