The 1^st UN High Level Roundtable on Decarbonizing the Built Environment: One Building At a Time; [Tuesday, 25 July 2023]

Session: Permanent Representatives Reflect on Decarbonization

Remarks by Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj

Permanent Representative of India to the UN

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At the outset, I extend my gratitude to Ms. Maimunah Mohd Sharif, Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN-Habitat, for inviting me to share my reflections on Decarbonization.

2. Climate change stands as the most critical existential challenge facing humanity and our planet. It is imperative that we take concerted action worldwide to effectively mitigate its impact and meet the temperature targets set by the Paris Agreement.

3. In this context, the significance of 'Decarbonizing the Built Environment' cannot be understated, as it can significantly contribute to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, both directly and indirectly.

4. India submitted its Long-Term Low-Emission Development Strategy (LT LEDS) towards net-zero by 2070 to the UNFCCC in November 2022. The document mentions of seven strategic low-emissions development transitions in the country. One of these transitions focuses on promoting an economy-wide decoupling of growth from emissions and the development of an efficient, innovative low-emission industrial system.

5. The current policies and targets for low-emission industrial systems are:

1. National Missions for Enhanced Energy Efficiency and Sustainable Habitats, Standards and Labelling Schemes, and the Energy Efficiency Financing Platform.

2. Fuel switching through promotion of natural gas and the National Policy on Bio-Fuels.

3. Materials efficiency through policies on resource efficiency, plastic and e-waste, and steel recycling.

4. Green hydrogen technology and infrastructure promotion.

5. Decarbonisation of hard-to-abate sectors such as steel and cement through Research & Development.

6. National Solar Mission.

6. India’s updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) will be implemented over the period 2021-2030 through programs and schemes of relevant Ministries /departments and with due support from the States and Union Territories.

7. Solar Parks Scheme: To facilitate large scale grid-connected solar power projects, a scheme for the “Development of Solar Parks and Ultra Mega Solar Power Projects” is under implementation with a target capacity of 40,000 MW capacity by March 2024.

8. Solar power projects of an aggregate capacity of 10,117 MW have already been commissioned in 17 parks and the remaining parks are at various stages of implementation. Solar projects of capacity 922 MW have been commissioned in various Solar Parks during period January to November, 2022.

9. The breakup of India’s installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based sources (as of February 2023) is: RE- 122.11 GW; Large Hydro: 46.85 GW; Nuclear: 6.78 GW.

10. India’s total non-fossil fuel based installed capacity stands at around 43.6% of the total installed power generation capacity.

11. Renewable energy deployment plans for the next decade are likely to generate business prospects of the order of around US$ 20 billion per year. This is a tremendous opportunity to invest in projects, manufacturing, and new technologies like battery storage and green hydrogen. India welcomes investors, developers and businesses to be a part of India's renewable energy journey.

12. The National Green Hydrogen Mission has been recently approved in India. The initial outlay for the Mission will be Rs.19,744 crore, including an outlay of Rs.17,490 crore for the Strategic Interventions for Green Hydrogen Transition Programme (SIGHT) programme, Rs.1,466 crore for pilot projects, Rs.400 crore for R&D, and Rs. 388 crore towards other Mission components.

13. The Mission will have wide ranging benefits- creation of export opportunities for Green Hydrogen and its derivatives; Decarbonisation of industrial, mobility and energy sectors; reduction in dependence on imported fossil fuels and feedstock; development of indigenous manufacturing capabilities; creation of employment opportunities; and development of cutting-edge technologies. India’s Green Hydrogen production capacity is likely to reach at least 5 MMT per annum, with an associated renewable energy capacity addition of about 125 GW.

14. The Leadership Group for Industry Transition (LeadIT Group) was launched by India and Sweden, with the support of the World Economic Forum (WEF) at the UN Climate Action Summit in New York on 23rd September 2019. The initiative is one of the nine action tracks identified by UN Secretary-General to boost climate ambitions and actions to implement the Paris agreement. The Secretariat of this Group is hosted by Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI).

15. The Leadership Group is envisioned as a group of countries, companies, and other actors committed to enhance climate action and to support the implementation of NDCs in the countries, particularly in areas of hard to abate industrial sectors.

16. The LeadIT Group now has 37 members including 18 countries and 19 companies including Dalmia Cement, Mahindra Group, SpiceJet, and Tata Steel from India.

17. A Leadership Summit was held on November 9, 2021, in the side-lines of COP26, and Honourable Minister Shri Bhupender Yadav along with his Swedish counterpart and the US Special Climate Envoy Mr John Kerry participated in the meeting.

18. A joint ministerial statement released at the Summit called for countries and companies to come out with roadmaps for deep reductions in emissions throughout all heavy industries and value chains in the coming decade.

19. I could list various other initiatives taken by India, but paucity of time prevents me from doing so. I will however dwell very briefly on Mission Life.

20. Embracing environmental consciousness comes naturally to us, as it is deeply rooted in our cultural and traditional wisdom in India. Our Prime Minister's initiative, Mission LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment), derives its strength from this philosophy, aiming to turn each individual into a climate champion contributing to Decarbonization.

21. In conclusion, I emphasize the importance of adhering to the principles and values of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capacities (CBDR-RC) of the UNFCCC for effective climate action.

Thank you!