In the backdrop of India’s commitment at COP26 of reaching net zero by 2070, the Budget recognised energy transition and climate action as a key priority area.

The budget focused on the blueprint of the ‘Amrit Kaal’ — a roadmap towards India @100 — with a clear emphasis on building the foundation for long-term and sustainable growth. The themes of inclusion, embracing technology, futuristic, pro-growth and re-imagining the economy with a low carbon footprint were all pervasive. Building modern infrastructure and aiding an enabling ecosystem — spanning across agriculture to digital economy — by supportive policies, higher outlays for public capital expenditure in the PPP mode and emphasis on ease of doing business and ease of living were some of the key focus areas.

In the backdrop of India’s commitment at COP26 of reaching net zero by 2070, the Budget recognised energy transition and climate action as a key priority area. Green energy and clean mobility systems were recognised as sunrise industries and both of these areas present an enormous potential for capital deployment at scale. With the government’s target to reach 500 GW of renewable energy capacity by the end of this decade, the development of domestic manufacturing ecosystem for renewable technologies is imperative. The Budget presented an additional allocation of Rs 19,500 crore for PLI for manufacture of high efficiency solar modules. This will facilitate the goal of reaching 280 GW of solar capacity by 2030.

Rollout of a battery swapping policy during the year will be a turning point in faster adoption of clean mobility systems.  Additionally, co-firing of 5-7% biomass pellets in thermal power plants and higher duties for unblended fuel are steps towards reducing carbon footprint.

The Budget also focused on promoting energy efficiency in large commercial establishments through the energy service company (ESCO) business model.

Granting infrastructure status for data centres and energy storage systems is a big positive. Further, plans for issuing green bonds for investing in green infrastructure projects and blended finance for sunrise sectors are some of the steps in the right direction.

The Budget marks a progressive step in partnering with states. The introduction of a Digital Rupee is landmark and futuristic.  Overall, it is heartening to witness a Budget with a focus on measures, the benefits of which will accrue over the long term.

https://www.financialexpress.com/budget/budget-2022-green-roadmap-towards-india-100/2429051/