The International Solar Alliance (ISA) Summit on 11 March marks an important milestone in India’s leadership efforts to build a clean and sustainable global energy future.
China’s launch of a yuan-denominated oil futures exchange will provide it with the opportunity to create an Asian crude oil benchmark and give it more clout in crude pricing and for promoting the yuan as a truly global currency.
In 2012, the International Energy Agency (IEA) in its ‘World Energy Outlook’ said that the world was entering a ‘Golden Age of Gas’. With its lower carbon-emitting properties, gas seemed poised to claim its rightful place in the global energy mix as a bridge between polluting hydrocarbons and green renewables. Moreover, it has all the ingredients to make it as worthy a contender in the energy geopolitical game as did oil a few decades ago.
India should invest in creating a competitive solar module sector across the manufacturing chain, from procuring primary resources to the finished product.
In May 2017, some 1,200 delegates from 110 countries, including 29 visiting heads of state and government leaders, gathered in Beijing for China’s biggest diplomatic event, which was held to showcase the Belt and Road Initiative’s (BRI) achievements to date, as well as draft some new ideas. The forum also formalised the US$50 billion China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), a flagship project of the BRI, projecting it as a game-changer for Pakistan’s economy.
If India gets a stake in the proposed Aramco IPO, it would mean getting a share of profits from one of the world’s largest and most profitable companies.
India’s record in wind energy development is good. But the existing technology is fast becoming outdated. Evolving technologies like kite wind should therefore be considered.
While hydropower projects are critical for economic growth and development, it is equally important to fully assess their potential social and environmental impact in the long-term. The challenge lies in finding the right balance between the need for development and the necessity of protecting the environment.
