BALANCING GROWTH, SECURITY, AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR SUSTAINABLE ENERGY FUTURE

We will have to continue using a mix of coal and other fossil fuels alongside renewable/ green energy; there is no shortcut to this.

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Our long-term goal is a sustainable energy economy based on carbonneutral systems. We must consider energy security, development, and reducing emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases. We have to progressively reduce carbon intensity, reduce the peak of carbon dioxide emissions and reach the transition point to clean energy as early as possible. We will, however, have to continue with a mix of coal and other fossil fuels alongside renewable/green energy. The equation, incrementally, will have to move towards green energy each year at a designated pace. There is no shortcut to this.

Balancing reliance on coal with renewable energy sources

India must immediately accelerate growth in electric power generation to address its development and poverty-alleviation goals. In an optimistic scenario, electric energy generation will increase from 800 TW hours to over 3250 TW hours per year by 2032. This capacity will correspond to 0.25 kW per person and achieve what we designate as a poverty elimination goal. We must also accomplish the near-term growth in electric power in ways that simultaneously create a robust framework for a rapid transition to a carbon-neutral economy post-2032 and commit to cap CO2 emissions at a maximum of five gigatonnes per year.