India's green journey: Why the country must tone down its reliance on thermal energy, according to Pranav Adani

At the recent United Nations COP28 climate summit in Dubai, two terms took centre stage in discussions: mitigation and adaptation. The former refers to efforts made to decrease carbon emissions, urging nations to commit to reducing the release of greenhouse gases. The latter focusses on the adjustments that countries need to make to address these transformations.

Though it has one of the lowest per capita CO2 emissions and energy consumption rates in the world, India has done remarkable work on both counts. Qatar has the highest CO2 emissions per capita at 36 tonnes per person; for the US, the figure is around 15 tonnes per person, while in India it is only 2 tonnes, much lower even than the world average of 5 tonnes. In simple terms, it means that the average Indian household consumes only a tenth of the electricity consumed by an average household in the US.

Notwithstanding this, India has not only met but also exceeded its commitment made at the COP21 summit held in Paris in 2015 by generating 40% of its power from non-fossil fuels. The achievement is more impressive if one were to consider the strong relationship between income, health, water, infrastructure, education, life expectancy, and energy consumption per capita. India’s proactive approach towards sustainable energy sources has allowed it to surpass expectations almost a decade ahead of schedule.

These climate initiatives were recognised as the fourth strongest globally in the latest Climate Change Performance Index brought out by the NGO Germanwatch e.V., which assesses the performance of countries on four indicators—total emissions, renewable energy deployment, energy use, and climate policy. In fact, India outperforms every major economy.

India is now the most populous nation with 1.4 billion people, almost a sixth of the world’s population of 8 billion, and its energy needs are increasing at a fast clip, more than that of any other country in the coming decades. Peak power demand in India touched 239.9 GW on September 1, 2023, much more than the Central Electricity Authority’s projection of 230 GW. This forces the country to rely on fossil fuels for power generation even though it has an installed non-fossil fuel capacity of 179.33 GW, with an additional 128 GW under development or bid out.

Adani Green Energy (AGEL) has a locked-in growth trajectory up to 20.4 GW and an operating renewable portfolio of 8.4 GW, the largest in India. AGEL’s operating portfolio has cumulatively offset over 41 million tonnes of CO2 emissions.

We are playing a crucial role in India’s impressive strides in renewable energy by building the world’s largest renewable energy park. Just 150 km away, in Mundra, we are creating one of the world’s most extensive and integrated renewable energy manufacturing ecosystems for solar and wind.

As announced by Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani, the group is committed to achieving 45 GW of renewable energy by 2030; this will help cut annual emissions by an amount equivalent to 80 million tonnes of CO2.

But renewables alone will not address the growing demand for electricity; storage solutions, like pumped hydro and green hydrogen, will be required to address the intermittency of renewables and the variability of demand.

Decarbonisation is a priority for the group, with five businesses—Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone, AGEL, Adani Energy Solutions Limited, ACC and Ambuja—committed to achieving net zero by 2050 or earlier. To make green hydrogen adoption feasible, its cost must decrease drastically from the current $3-5 per kg. Once this happens, green hydrogen and derivatives will start becoming cost-effective against fossil fuel alternatives in sectors like mobility, shipping, fertilisers, and as green feedstock for industry and chemicals with the right regulatory support.

As we embrace clean technologies, it is crucial not to overlook the conventional sources of energy production that enable the country to ensure holistic, aspirational, and equitable growth for the vast multitude. This necessitates a careful and calibrated phasing down of thermal energy while reducing our carbon footprint and paving the way for a sustainable and eco-friendly future.

The author is Director at Adani Enterprises. Views are personal