Clean energy sources make up 50% of India’s generation capacity

NEW DELHI: Non-fossil fuel sources now make up half of power generation capacity, a milestone the country has achieved five years ahead of the target set under its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) committed in to the Paris Agreement climate agreement.“In a world seeking climate solutions India is showing the way,” renewable energy minister Pralhad Joshi said in a social media post, crediting the progress to prime minister Narendra Modi’s stewardship of “Bharat’s green transformation towards a sustainable future”.Modi has been pushing clean energy since taking over the country’s reins in 2014. In 2015, he gave the mantra of “India moving from megawatts (MW) to gigawatts (GW)” and raised the clean energy target from 20,00 MW to 175 GW by 2022. In 2021, India upped the game at the COP 26 Glasgow climate meet by announcing a target of 500 GW renewable energy capacity by 2030.Subsequently, the government’s renewable energy policy focus shifted from merely raising solar or wind energy capacity to promoting “non-fossil fuel” sources, including large hydel projects that were excluded in the earlier clean energy discourse.This shift was driven by a commitment to energy security, climate action and ensuring sustainable economic growth. While renewable energy is a key component, the broader strategy encomapsses other initiatives such as nuclear, green hydrogen, geothermal energy and emerging technologies.India’s total installed generation capacity stands at 484.8 GW as of June. Renewable energy capacity, including large hydel projects, is pegged at 234 GW and together with 8.7 GW of nuclear capacity make up a little more than 50% of the total generation capacity. Thermal generation capacity stands at 242 GW.