The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) has highlighted the need for comprehensive and ongoing research to clearly outline the pathways required for decarbonising India’s power sector.
In a recently published paper titled India’s Journey to Net Zero: A Conceptual Framework for Analysis, TERI underscores the critical transition strategies for major greenhouse gas (GHG) emitting sectors in India. In 2019, emissions from the electricity sector amounted to 1,240 MtCO2 equivalent, accounting for 39.5% of the country’s total emissions. The power sector remains the largest single contributor to CO2 emissions in India, with an average emission rate of 0.668 kgCO2 per kWh in FY20.
TERI’s paper delineates a pathway for the peaking and subsequent decline of emissions, emphasising the need to decouple economic growth from carbon emissions. For India to achieve its net-zero targets, the complete decarbonisation of the electricity sector is imperative. This decarbonisation would necessitate generating electricity predominantly from non-fossil fuel sources, thereby allowing an increase in electricity production and consumption without a corresponding rise in carbon emissions. The report projects that while India’s per capita electricity consumption will increase, the carbon emissions per unit of electricity will concurrently decline. This reduction in CO2 emission intensity will be driven by a growing share of electricity generated from renewable and other non-fossil fuel sources. The paper calls for the development of alternative demand growth scenarios and comprehensive modelling exercises to determine the timelines and cost implications of installing renewable energy (RE) systems and large-scale grid storage. These efforts are essential for reaching a point where additional electricity demand can be met without expanding thermal capacity.
Moreover, TERI highlights the necessity of accelerating the pace of creating new nuclear capacity and achieving cost reductions to make life cycle costs comparable to RE plus storage solutions. It also suggests exploring feasible transition options for Coal India and thermal power companies like NTPC to evolve into green, fossil fuel-free energy entities. The paper anticipates that as India progresses towards becoming a developed country, its per capita income and energy consumption will approach current EU levels. Achieving net-zero emissions will require decoupling economic growth from carbon emissions, with per capita CO2 emissions initially rising, peaking, stabilising at a plateau, and eventually declining. The timeline for reaching this peak will vary across sectors, depending on the adoption of carbon-free technologies.
Additionally, TERI recommends conducting studies and pilot projects with stakeholder consultation to repurpose land from exhausted coal mines for productive use and revenue generation. It stresses the importance of analysing the costs associated with transitioning away from coal, including job losses and reduced state royalties, and assessing the feasibility of offsetting these costs through land repurposing and alternative economic activities.
TERI’s report underscores the necessity for detailed, ongoing studies to clarify the decarbonisation pathways for India’s power sector, emphasising the importance of renewable energy adoption, technological innovation, and strategic policy implementation in achieving the nation’s net-zero goals.
