VIENNA, Austria, March 04, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — A brand new report produced by Sustainable Vitality for All (SEforALL) and Local weather Coverage Initiative analyses India’s energy sector investments to evaluate progress in opposition to the nation’s local weather and vitality objectives.
Paris Alignment of Energy Sector Finance Flows in India: Challenges, Alternatives and Modern Options finds that India has made important progress in reaching its Nationally Decided Contributions underneath the Paris Settlement and is predicted to fulfill the targets set earlier than 2030, together with growing the share of non-fossil gasoline primarily based put in capability to 40 p.c by 2030.
Nevertheless, the report highlights how fossil fuels, particularly coal, proceed to be the mainstay of India’s electrical energy technology combine. Regardless of renewable sources representing 38 p.c of the ability system producing capability in 2020-2021, coal nonetheless accounts for 74 p.c of India’s electrical energy technology.
Most finance commitments have gone in the direction of grid-connected renewables lately, however funding in coal-fired energy vegetation continues in India. Tracked energy sector commitments for India stood at USD 17.5 billion in 2019, of which at the least USD 2.8 billion funded coal-fired energy plant growth, and it is a lower-bound estimate.
This ongoing help for coal-fired energy initiatives could maintain India’s carbon depth properly above what’s required to align with a world imply temperature rise of lower than 1.8° Celsius (a degree in step with the Paris Settlement-aligned Worldwide Vitality Company’s Sustainable Growth State of affairs). It would additionally undermine the nation’s lately introduced goal from COP26 of lowering the carbon depth of its economic system by greater than 45 p.c by 2030.
“Scaling deployment of renewable vitality is essential for nations to be appropriate with the Paris Settlement and keep away from the immense human and financial prices of local weather change,” mentioned Barbara Buchner, World Managing Director at Local weather Coverage Initiative. “Each authorities and the personal sector want to point out elevated dedication by investing within the clear vitality transition.”
Continued operation of carbon-intensive energy vegetation, together with the commissioning of latest coal capability, is more likely to expose buyers to the monetary threat of closures and probably stranded property. The Indian banking sector is estimated to be burdened with USD 40–60 billion in non-performing or stranded property from the thermal technology sector, in keeping with the Institute for Vitality Economics and Monetary Evaluation.
The report highlights how dangerous coal investments could be higher directed in the direction of vitality system upgrades to help dependable entry and the combination of renewables. To realize common entry to dependable electrical energy, the Worldwide Vitality Company estimates that USD 35 billion must be spent yearly between 2021 and 2030 on development and refurbishment of transmission and distribution infrastructure.
“India has made nice strides in offering electrical energy entry to its in depth inhabitants,” mentioned Tamojit Chatterjee, Vitality Specialist at SEforALL. “The nation now must spend money on decarbonizing its energy system and bettering reliability in order that electrical energy can spur inexperienced progress. There’s actual alternative for industrial finance establishments to aggressively broaden their renewable vitality portfolio together with investments concentrating on innovation in sectors resembling storage and distributed vitality techniques.”
Recognizing the necessity to catalyse investments that may enhance the share of renewables in India’s electrical energy combine, the report outlines a sequence of suggestions for monetary establishments:
- Part down coal financing and refinancing together with upstream actions like coal mining and transport that use coal-fired energy technology.
- Help initiatives that speed up decommissioning of coal-fired energy vegetation.
- Proceed investments in renewables while scaling lending in inter-state and inter-region transmission infrastructures, vitality storage, deployment of good grids, and so forth.
- Allocate a sure portion of funding portfolios in the direction of low-carbon applied sciences and new enterprise fashions (like inexperienced hydrogen) via progressive monetary mechanisms, blended financing, ensures and credit score enhancement.
- Speed up investments to varied buyer segments to finance energy-efficient applied sciences in new buildings and retrofits and so forth.
- Combine local weather threat into credit score assessments; local weather stress testing of personal funding portfolio; measurable and clear decarbonization targets; and report progress to regulators and buyers.
- Advise shoppers on methods to construct a climate-resilient portfolio and facilitate a transition to low-carbon actions.
The report is out there for obtain right here.
Notes to editors
Contact
For additional particulars on the experiences or any interview requests, please contact: Sherry Kennedy, Sustainable Vitality for All: Sherry.Kennedy@SEforALL.org / media@seforall.org or +43 676 846 727 237.
About Sustainable Vitality for All
Sustainable Vitality for All (SEforALL) is a global group that works in partnership with the United Nations and leaders in authorities, the personal sector, monetary establishments, civil society and philanthropies to drive sooner motion in the direction of the achievement of Sustainable Growth Aim 7 (SDG7) – entry to inexpensive, dependable, sustainable and fashionable vitality for all by 2030 – according to the Paris Settlement on local weather. SEforALL works to make sure a clear vitality transition that leaves nobody behind and brings new alternatives for everybody to meet their potential.
SEforALL is led by Damilola Ogunbiyi, CEO and Particular Consultant of the UN Secretary-Normal for Sustainable Vitality for All and Co-Chair of UN-Vitality. Observe her on Twitter @DamilolaSDG7. For extra data, comply with @SEforALLorg.
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