India’s energy market is amongst the sunrise sectors of the economy and has been a point of attention for global investors and players. The India Energy Week 2024, a global event converges policymakers, industry leaders amongst other thought-leaders to drive discussions on energy security, sustainability, and innovation.
The second edition, taking place in Goa, under the aegis of the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas, the Government of India is also being backed by the Federation of Indian Petroleum Industry. Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurates the session at the ONGC Sea Survival Centre, besides holding a roundtable with global oil & and gas CEOs and experts.
The global energy will bring forth 17 Energy ministers from different countries, 35,000 attendees, and over 900 exhibitors. The Minister announced that the current edition would have six dedicated country pavilions including that of Germany, Canada, Russia, the Netherlands, the USA and the UK. It is anticipated that over 300 exhibitors by the Indian Medium and Small Enterprises will also demonstrate innovative solutions in the energy sector. The number of exhibitors is 30 per cent higher at 900, while the revenue from exhibitions is expected to grow by 46 per cent.
India Energy Week 2024 is expected to witness 46 strategic sessions and 46 technical sessions, even as the number of submission papers doubled from 1000 in 2023 to 2000 in 2024. The addition of new technical categories namely, Shipping, Logistics and supply Chain, Manufacturing and industrialization, Future Mobility, and Mining & Minerals are expected to further spur business activities.
With India’s growing international influence and G20 priorities being a focus, the IEW will have several side events covering important themes like Global South Cooperation, Carbon Capture and Utilisation, and PM’s roundtable with Oil & Gas CEOs, India-US investment roundtables etc. Further, it would have having greater focus across the energy value chain, including three sessions on Hydrogen, three sessions on Biofuels, and two sessions in CCUS.
Rationale of the IEW
As the 3rd largest energy consumer globally, India is projected to witness the largest increase in energy demand, making it a significant contributor to global energy demand growth. The country however aims to both tackle climate change and provide secure, accessible, affordable, and sustainable energy to its citizens. In this context, the energy supply chain provides significant investment opportunities for global energy companies.
It is estimated that India will add over 30 GW of renewable power annually and will also become the third largest economy by 2030. Prime Minister had Narendra Modi launched the concept of “Panchamrit” at COP 26, representing a blend of five essential elements. “Panchamrit” underscores India’s commitment to addressing climate change and fostering sustainable growth on a global scale.
The country has an ambitious plan of 500 GW installations of renewable energy by 2030 and also reduce its carbon intensity by 45 percent. Further, it has already announced transitioning to Net Zero by 2070, a gargantuan target.
Rise of India’s Clean Energy Sector
As India aspires to become a USD 5 trillion economy, growing energy consumption will entail rapid energy production. However, the country is also making a conscious effort towards transitioning to sustainable forms of energy including wind and solar.
The President of India Ms. Draupadi Murmu, in her joint address to the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha recently, spoke about the country’s renewable energy capacity reaching 188 Gigawatts (GW). The installed capacity has more than doubled in a decade, just 81 GW, especially due to the stupendous 26-fold increase and doubling of solar and wind power capacity during this time.
It is noteworthy to see the above capacity additions catapulting the country to being the fourth globally in renewable energy, being the 4th in wind and 5th in solar power capacity. The result has been due to supportive policies by the Govt, a global push towards clean energy transition as well as private sector investments.
As per Infomerics Ratings, a credit rating agency, India’s promising outlook for the renewable energy sector will entail an investment of Rs. 137,500 crore (approximately USD 16.5 billion) just in 2024. The report says solar will lead but wind power will also contribute significantly.
The announcement of National Green Hydrogen Mission in the 2023 budget was a landmark move, announced through an allocation of Rs 19,700 crore, to produce 5 MMT by 2030 and reducing fossil fuel dependence. Furthermore, over Rs 35,000 crore were earmarked for focusing on net-zero objectives, energy transition and enhancing energy security. In the recently concluded interim budget, the Govt. announced a solar rooftop installation scheme aiming to support over 1 crore families. This will not just reduce electricity bills but also contribute electricity to the power market.
Youth Focus
The government announced an energy start-up challenge called Avinya, which received 120 applications. From these, five start-ups were selected and will be provided mentorship by Industry leaders as well as an opportunity to exhibit their ideas at India Energy Week 2024 to a global audience.
COP 28 & India’s Energy Landscape
India Energy Week allows the world to learn from India’s journey of ensuring accessible, affordable and clean energy to citizens. The country’s response to its surging energy needs through ethanol blending in petrol to reduce imports and deploying large-scale renewable power capacity at a lower cost has been commendable. Further, the event will showcase the country’s continuing leadership against climate change while enabling stakeholders.
The IEW provides an opportunity for the world to learn from India’s dynamic decision-making in the face of volatility to ensure accessible, affordable, and clean energy to its citizens. It is also expected to highlight India’s leadership in the battle against climate change while allowing stakeholders across the energy spectrum to freely exchange ideas and explore opportunities under one roof. This becomes important as the recently concluded COP 28 reached a consensus across countries for setting up a USD 475 billion loss and damage fund, to support vulnerable nations grappling with repercussions of climate change. Despite having over 17 percent of the global population, India is only responsible for 4 percent of the total emissions and is making active interventions to achieve Nationally Determined Contributions. Prime Minister Modi made a strong pitch for countries to accelerate the green mission. At the summit, he advocated for Green Credits and conceptualized the ‘Green Credits Initiative’ in collaboration with the UAE and COP 28 Presidency. The programme encourages voluntary environmentally friendly actions and can contribute towards carbon sinks and SDGs.
Further, PM Modi’s proposal to host COP 33 in India underscores its commitment to sustainability and decarbonization. With energy playing a crucial role in mitigating the climate crisis, especially by harnessing modern technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, IoT amongst others to optimise energy consumption and make data-driven decisions. The multifaceted approach has immense potential in reducing emissions and enabling environmentally friendly infrastructure.
At the G20 last year, India had also announced the Global Biofuel Alliance, an alliance of the leading biofuel producers and consumers, to work together to facilitate cooperation and intensify the use of sustainable biofuels, including in the transportation sector. The Alliance emphasizes strengthening markets, facilitating global biofuels trade as well as developing concrete policy lesson-sharing and provision of technical support for national biofuels programs worldwide. Furthermore, it will work in collaboration with and complement the relevant existing regional and international agencies as well as initiatives in the bioenergy, bioeconomy, and energy transition fields.
As many as 22 countries and 12 international organizations have already agreed to join the Global Biofuel Alliance. These include the likes of Argentina, Brazil, Canada, India, Italy, Japan, South Africa, USA amongst the G20 countries. The international organizations include the likes of Asian Development Bank, World Economic Forum, World LPG Organization, UN Energy for All, UNIDO, Biofutures Platform, International Civil Aviation Organization, International Energy Agency, International Energy Forum, International Renewable Energy Agency, World Biogas Association and the World Bank.
