(HT)
If India adds 50 gigawatts of renewable energy every year, it could completely stop importing thermal coal by 2029 and save about $66 billion in foreign exchange between 2025 and 2029, according to a new report published on Monday.
The total savings could be at least $173 billion from 2025 to 2034, the report prepared by think tank Climate Risks Horizon said.
The climate and energy think tank said the country’s electricity sector remains heavily dependent on coal imports, with around 20% or 206 million tonnes of thermal coal imported in 2023-24 at a cost of $21 billion.
Thermal coal imports have risen by 58% between 2013 and 2023, but the value of these imports has increased by 124% due to volatile global prices and a weakening rupee, it added.
The report said imports surge during the summer months, when cooling demand pushes up electricity consumption.
Over the said period (2013 to 2023), India imported around 2,128 million tonnes of coal, mostly thermal coal used for power generation.
The import of thermal coal has been increasing steadily at 3.7% annually and has gone up to 40% since 2013.
The think tank said India’s dependency on imported coal poses both physical and financial risks.
Physical risks arise with any disruption in the supply of imported coal, either due to unforeseen political changes or natural disasters. The volatility in energy prices poses a significant financial risk to power companies and consumers dependent on imported coal, the authors of the study said.
The report warned that India’s energy demand will continue to grow due to urbanisation, industrial growth and the greater use of electric technologies.
The per capita electricity consumption rose from 957 kilowatt-hour in 2013 to 1,331 kWh in 2022 and heatwaves linked to the climate crisis are further pushing up the power demand, it said.
The think tank said a focused plan to aggressively expand renewable energy could significantly reduce coal imports.
In 2023-24, India updated its renewable energy targets and now aims to have 500 gigawatts of non-fossil fuel energy capacity by 2030.
To achieve this, the government plans to add 50 gigawatts of renewable energy every year until 2027-28.
Currently, India has about 151 gigawatts of renewable energy from solar and wind and around 200 gigawatts if hydro, small-hydro and biogas is included.
