India to emphasis concerns relating to energy, during G20 presidency

New Delhi, India: In order to further encourage the adoption of energy-efficient and sustainable practices in the area, India recently inked a memorandum of understanding with the Indonesia-Malaysia-Thailand Growth Triangle Joint Business Council while holding the G20 presidency.

Alok Kumar, India’s power minister, claimed that the member nations well received the necessity for diversified supply chains and energy security. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi said how India’s energy consumption has greatly increased and will reach 11 percent of the global demand as compared to 5 percent today during the opening of the recently held India Energy Week (IEW) 2023 in Bengaluru. The growing demand and India’s commitments to its energy transformation provide a variety of chances for energy companies to invest there. India must invest in renewable energy to achieve its national and global climate goals.

India’s Budget 2023 also saw the allocation of Rs 35,000 crore as a priority capital investment toward energy transition. The allocation is in line with the government’s objective to achieve the goal of net zero emissions by 2070.

India’s energy transformation is being taken into consideration as these crucial policy decisions are made. However, India’s commitments and policies also put its citizens first. Policies for reducing climate change must be accessible, secure, and long-lasting. Green hydrogen will play a significant part in achieving the net zero by concentrating on the hard-to-abate sectors, which are sectors where decarbonisation choices are few or expensive (production of iron and steel, cement, non-ferrous metals, and chemicals).

India wants to lead the world in exporting and producing green hydrogen. Green hydrogen has been given a budget of Rs 19,444 crore under the National Green Hydrogen Mission. By 2030, this should produce 5 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen yearly.

India has come a long way in transitioning from a nation that relied largely on coal to one that may be a global leader in renewable energy. India ranks fourth globally in terms of installed renewable energy capacity, according to the most recent data released by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, according to NewsonAir.

Key government projects include programmes like PM-KUSUM, which uses solar energy to give farmers water and financial stability, and National Smart Grid Mission (NSGM). Another move in that direction is the government’s signature programme, the Green Energy Corridor (GEC), which aims to synchronise electricity generated from renewable resources, such as wind and solar, with the conventional power stations on the grid.

According to information provided by the New and Renewable Energy Ministry, substations with an aggregate capacity of approximately 15268 MVA had been charged as of December 31, 2021, and work related to the installation of transmission towers and their stringing totalled approximately 8468 km.

India has always supported the transition to renewable energy sources, and the International Solar Alliance is one of its endeavours in this area. The International Solar Alliance (ISA) Framework Agreement was recently delivered by New Zealand’s Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta on her visit to India, opening the door for New Zealand to join this project.

India has taken a number of steps in the direction of energy storage. Additionally, to allow DISCOMS to utilise storage facilities on-demand, Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) announced a tender for a 1000 MWh Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) in October 2021. To combat the unstable nature of renewable energy, one of the most significant emerging technologies in the Indian market for renewable energy, known as BESS, can deliver both 24-hour electricity and peak power supply.

In addition, the International Energy Agency’s India Energy Outlook 2021 predicted that by 2040, India might have the greatest battery storage capacity of any nation, measuring 140–200 gigawatts (GW).