India Set to Overachieve Paris Climate Commitments

India has committed to reduce the use of fossil fuels for its energy needs by 40% and instead use clean and renewable energy by the year 2030.

Amidst a growing demand to do more for climate change, India comfortably sits at a position to overachieve the Paris climate change commitments.

India has committed to reduce the use of fossil fuels for its energy needs by 40% and instead use clean and renewable energy by the year 2030.

Anand Kumar, Secretary in the New and Renewable Energy told IANS that the actual number that India will achieve in terms of renewable energy capacity addition will be around 60% and that too without factoring in the large hydropower projects.

“Today, India has 73 GW of wind, solar and biomass capacity, and another 22 GW is under construction. Yet another 25 GW is in the process of being tendered out. That leaves 55 GW more to be set up by 2022 for India to meet its target of 175 GW,” Kumar said.

Post 2022, Auctions will be conducted each year for 30 GW of solar energy and 10 GW of wind energy till the year 2030. By the end of this period, India will have a cumulative capacity of 350 GW of solar and 150 GW of wind power, Anand shared.

Dr Harsh Vardhan who attended the climate summit had singled during the summit that India was ready to update its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) if other countries are also willing to do the same.

US-based Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis said in a report that India was on track to meet majority of goals set under the Paris deal and become a global climate leader by meeting one target a decade earlier.

Source: IANS