Energy for Sustainable growth”: Budget Webinar on 4th March

• GoI is holding a series of webinars including Energy for Sustainable growth webinar across various key sectors to facilitate efficient and speedy implementation of Union Budget 2022 announcements.

Context

• Webinar on “Energy for Sustainable Growth” to discuss the initiatives of the Government of India in the energy and resources sector.
• The objective is to brainstorm with experts from the public and private sectors, academia and industry.
• To elicit ideas and suggestions for effective implementation of these initiatives.
• Identify strategies on how to move forward towards implementation of various initiatives under different sectors.

Energy for Sustainable growth

• India’s energy transition journey by promoting a low-carbon development strategy is in line with the Panchamrit strategy of COP 26.
• This strategy will enable India to meet its energy requirements in a sustainable manner.
• Various Near Term and Long Term Actions:

1. Promotion of EV vehicles and special mobility zones with zero fossil-fuel policy
2. Rollout of battery swapping policy and formulation of interoperability standards
3. Encouraging the private sector to develop sustainable and innovative business models for ‘Battery or Energy as a Service’.
4. Additional allocation of Rs.19,500 crore for Production Linked Incentive for manufacture of high efficiency solar PV modules.
5. Addressing important cross-cutting issues relating to circular economy transition such as infrastructure, reverse logistics, technology upgradation and integration with the informal sector.
6. Co-firing of 5-7% biomass pellets in thermal power plants.
7. Promoting energy efficiency and savings measures in large commercial buildings through the Energy Service Company (ESCO) business model.
8. Setting up four pilot projects for coal gasification and conversion of coal into chemicals required for the industry.
9. Issuance of sovereign Green Bonds for mobilizing resources for green infrastructure.
10. Inclusion of Energy Storage Systems including dense charging infrastructure and grid-scale battery systems in the harmonized list of infrastructure.
11. Higher duties for unblended fuel to promote ethanol blending.

Themes For the Webinar

• Developing Energy Storage for RE Expansion.
• Lifestyle for Environment (LIFE): Energy Conservation: ESCO Model, Promoting Electric Mobility: Battery Swapping and Circular Economy.
• Coal Gasification.
• Promoting Biomass as an Alternative Energy Source: Compressed Biogas, Co-firing of pellets and Ethanol blending.
• Agro and Farm Forestry.
• Scaling up of Renewable Energy: Solar Manufacturing and Hydrogen Mission.