India to provide 24×7 power by 2019: Piyush Goyal.
By Raghavendra M
The power and energy ministers of India and United States have agreed upon a bilateral collaboration and technical assistance in the energy sector during the India-US Ministerial Energy Dialogue held at the US Department of Energy, Washington, DC, on September 21.
The Indian delegation led by Piyush Goyal, Minister of State for Power, Coal, New and Renewable Energy, held dialogues with the American delegation led by US Energy Secretary Dr. Ernest Moniz.
On the occasion, Goyal invited US firms to invest in the Indian energy sector to support the country’s energy needs with the resources and technology of the US.
During the dialogue, the two sides reviewed the progress made by the six working groups of the energy dialogue and identified new areas for cooperation. They also reviewed various energy related issues agreed in the India – US Joint Statement during President Obama’s visit to India in January 2015.
Goyal stressed on the objective of the Government of India to provide 24×7 power across India by 2019 by creating cost effective infrastructure which was sustainable and inclusive of clean energy solutions.
While emphasizing that India was committed to pursue a green path to growth, Goyal also elaborated on India’s ambitious plans for deployment of 175 GW Renewable Power capacities by 2022, including 100 GW of solar and 60 GW of Wind, which may require an investment of around US $ 150 billion in the next seven years.
The Indian minister also expounded on the government’s objective of construction of 100 smart cities which would include in its blueprint adequate provisions for power generation, usage of renewable and energy efficiency technologies, comprehensive waste management program.
During the dialogue, presentations were made on the progress made under various joint research programs like Partnership to Advance Clean Energy – Research.
The need to develop a robust energy data management system to develop a better simulation of the energy scenario in India in the future was also recognized.
The Working Group on Coal identified some areas of coal mining where both countries could collaborate. It was recognized that India had proven reserves of shale gas and US had well developed recognized for shale gas extraction.
Collaboration in the area of fracking of shale gas, especially water- less fracking in India was identified as areas of future cooperation under the Energy Dialogue. Discussions were also held in the working group on financing of clean energy technology as well as on innovative financing for renewable energy microfinance and micro enterprises.
While recognizing that coal based power plants would continue to be the mainstay of India’s electricity generation source in the coming decades, The Indian delegation urged the US to share technology related to super-critical coal plants as well as share best practices and tools to improve efficiency and carbon footprint of existing power plants.
Goyal will also be participating in the first India-US Strategic and Commercial Dialogue on September 22.