‘There is no alternative’: India aims for 90% renewable energy by 2047

‘The challenge is huge and if we don’t succeed in promoting local manufacturing, India’s energy transition will be very, very, difficult,’ says India’s Power Secretary Alok Kumar

India’s top energy official has warned that the country needs to “succeed” in local manufacturing if it is to meet its goal of 90 per cent renewable energy by 2047.

India’s Power Secretary Alok Kumar said that the coal-reliant country must more quickly deploy clean power plants to meet its global climate commitments. Coal currently fuels 70 per cent of electricity output in India.

“The challenge is huge and if we don’t succeed in promoting local manufacturing, India’s energy transition will be very, very, difficult,” Mr Kumar saidon the sidelines of a G-20 energy meeting on Monday, according to The Economic Times.

“There is no alternative.”

India aims to increase clean energy to 50 per cent by 2030 from 42.6 per cent at present. The country also aims to achieve energy self-sufficiency by 2047, India’s centenary year of independence.

Government officials say that to achieve this ambitious goal, India must build out its domestic manufacturing in green technologies such as solar modules, battery storage, and electrolysers for making green hydrogen.

The government is offering incentives for production of green components to meet domestic needs, as well as serve the export markets, challenging China’s dominance in the sector.

India’s renewable energy capacity has grown rapidly in recent years, making it the fourth-largest in the world in hydro, wind, and solar power.

However, the country is also the world’s third-largest greenhouse gas emitter and faces significant challenges in achieving its ambitious clean energy targets in a secure and reliable manner while trying to balance development for the 1.4 billion population.

The country is set to issue tenders for the installation of 250 gigawatts (GW) of green energy capacity by March 2028, according to a government memo on Monday, as it looks to cut emissions by 45 per cent from 2005 levels.

The country is also looking to acquire critical mineral assets for the green energy shift, such as lithium, from abroad. The country is also exploring possibilities of its own newly found mineral reserve in Jammu and Kashmir.