Climate Trends Report Identifies Challenges For Renewable Energy In Jharkhand

A recent report by Climate Trends and Ernst and Young LLP released on Tuesday hinted at numerous bottlenecks that the renewable energy sector in Jharkhand is grappling with. It comes when the state has already started planning the energy transition from a coal-dominated region to a less carbon economy. 

The report said that secondary data hinted that the eastern Indian state had solar potential up to 150 Gigawatt (GW). It, however, pointed out the lack of investment in the sector in the state. The report said that owing to the state’s financially stressed discoms, there was limited possibility of introducing more investments in the renewable energy sector. It also said that more investments in the industry are confined to renewable-rich states like Gujarat and Karnataka due to land and grid infrastructure in such regions. . 

The report also talked about the challenges of low absorption of the workforce in green jobs in the state. “Another challenge associated with renewable energy sources is job displacement. Many jobs associated with setting up and running renewable energy plants are semi-skilled or skilled. While the initial increase in jobs is expected to absorb some skilled coal sector workers, it has been noted that the renewable energy sector does not have the capacity to absorb all displaced coal sector workers,” the report said. 

The state government recently brought its new Solar Policy, which planned to increase the installed solar energy capacity in the state up to 4,000 Megawatt (MW) by 2026. The policy also intended to make Giridih a solar city of the state with a total of 18 MW of grid-connected solar energy. 

The Climate Trends report said such moves are also likely to increase employment in the sector. However, a 2020 report from the Initiative for Sustainable Energy Policy (ISEP) noted that for Jharkhand, the main hurdles in the pathway towards just transition included – a lack of investment and policy, besides poor institutional capacity and over-reliance on coal for energy needs. 

The report also said that due to the closure of coal mines, as many of their workers would be out of work, the renewable energy sector alone could not give adequate jobs to the sector. 

“While it has been predicted that within the energy industry, the rise of renewable energy may provide some employment opportunities, this number would be insufficient with regard to the number of displaced workers,” the report said. 

“This report establishes the need for skill development to help local communities tide over the transition to clean energy systems. In addition, it offers recommendations to confidently embrace the policy level, sectoral level, and individual level changes the energy transition goals will bring,” said Aarti Khosla, Director, Climate Trends.