Storage crucial for transition; expect massive capacity in battery, pumped storage: Prashant Kumar Singh, Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy
Considering the variable nature of renewable energy, India must look at storage as an important factor for energy transition, said Mr Prashant Kumar Singh, Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, Government of India. He was speaking at the session on ‘Collaborative Climate Solutions: Bridging Clean Technology and Finance’ at the 29th CII Partnership Summit, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), in partnership with the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Ministry of Commerce and Industry in New Delhi on 2 December.
Mr Singh said that India is looking at massive capacity coming up in the next seven years in battery and pumped storage.
Talking about challenges in the transition to renewable energy, he said that there is a financing requirement of Rs 30 lakh crore over the next 7-8 years. Mr Singh noted that the 500 GW renewable energy capacity target by 2030 is achievable.
“Solar capacity was 2 GW in 2014. Today, we stand at 92 GW. In our aim of 500 GW, solar is expected to be a major player, which is expected to be about 290 GW by 2030,” Mr Singh added.
The Secretary underlined the need to ramp up bank financing for the sector. He also urged to leverage all financial instruments into the sector including subsidies, incentives, financing from multilateral institutes, green bonds, and infrastructure investment trusts, among others.
Prof Tetsuya Watanabe, President, Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia, Indonesia said that decarbonization cannot be done in silo. “We need an integrated strategy that aligns finance, technology, infrastructure and supply chain in a unified framework. Clean technology, renewable energy, green hydrogen and carbon capture must be scaled up,” he said.
Prof Watanabe lauded the ‘One Sun, One World, One Grid’ initiative and said that green and transition technologies will play a critical role in achieving decarbonization in Asian countries. “Integrating smart grid technology, artificial intelligence and the internet of things will optimise energy consumption and enhance efficiency, making them essential components of a low carbon future,” he added.
Mr Jan Teichmann, Senior Vice President and President-APAC, Fluence Energy, USA highlighted that storage localization, manufacturing locally and making storage in the context of making renewables more usable in India will make the energy transition more cost-effective.
Mr Niro Somasekeran, Head of Resources, Energy & Infrastructure International & Corporate Finance South & Southeast Asia, ANZ, Singapore said that energy demand is rising in Asian countries. “By 2040, regional energy demand will increase by 60 per cent. Between now and the end of the decade, USD 20 billion will be needed to be spent on transition alone,” he said. To finance this transition, he noted five key fund sources -- private sector financing; government-led organizations or multilateral institutions; state funding for transmission; private equity houses and philanthropic funds.
Mr Sanjiv Puri, President, CII and CMD, ITC Ltd said that the availability of finance, creating the right taxonomy and accessibility of technology are crucial to facilitate energy transition. Noting that technologies are expensive, he said that economic viability is critical for private investments to play a role in this transition. He underlined the need for developed economies to facilitate accessibility to these technologies for the developing world.
2 December 2024
New Delhi