“Ambition to Impact: Opportunities for Global Collaboration in India’s Clean Energy Economy”

(24 September 2021)

Welcome Address by Shri T.S. Tirumurti

Permanent Representative of India to the UN

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Hon’ble Minister of State, New & Renewable Energy, Shri Bhagwant Khuba

Excellencies,

Friends,

It is my pleasure to welcome you all to our virtual Side Event, ahead of the High Level Dialogue on Energy today, I commend the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy of India and Council on Energy, Environment and Water for putting this event together.  I welcome the Hon’ble Minister of State for New and Renewable Energy. I also welcome Secretary, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy; CEO of Council on  Energy, Environment and Water; and other distinguished speakers from India as well as from other countries.

2. India is honoured to be chosen as one of the Global Champions in the Energy Transition theme at the Dialogue. I am also happy to share that apart from the National Energy Compact of India, 10 other Indian companies have submitted their voluntary compact commitments - My warm congratulations to them.

3. I would like to thank Secretary General for initiating this important Dialogue on Energy. I would also like to take a moment to appreciate the initiatives taken by United Nations on clean energy. The Sustainable Energy for All is one such initiative. It is a multi-stakeholder partnership between governments, the private sector, and civil society, launched by the UN in 2011 with three interlinked objectives to be achieved by 2030: universal access to modern energy; doubling energy efficiency; and the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix. UNDP has also been promoting and scaling up energy access around the world, with creative partnerships.

4. India has emerged as one of the leaders in the area of energy transition and clean energy initiatives. We have some of the largest and fastest growing programs for climate adaptation, mitigation and resilience. India ranks 4^th in terms of installed renewable energy, installed wind power capacity and 5^th in solar, an increase of 13 times in the last six years. Share of non-fossil sources in India's installed capacity of electricity has grown to more than 38 percent now. We have recently launched a programme for use of hydrogen as fuel. We are also expanding nuclear energy, promoting liquid natural gas and working on bio-fuel-ethanol goals. But the audience I speak to today already knows that.

5. Our ambitious energy target is paired with an inclusive energy agenda. The focus of all energy initiatives has been on our people and to considerably enhance their standard of living by sustainable citizen friendly initiatives. India aims to deliver universally accessible and sustainable energy at rational prices. Several citizen-centric measures and new technologies such as solarisation of agriculture, scaling up clean cooking; distributing LED bulbs and solar roof top programme have been introduced for transforming the consumer into a producer.

6. On the issue of combatting climate change, India is determined to continue contributing to climate action. According to Climate Action Tracker, we are the only G20 country with Paris compatible targets. We are also working consistently with the international community including through the global initiatives undertaken by Prime Minister Modi like International Solar Alliance (ISA) and Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI). The International Solar Alliance is growing by the day and CDRI has already had 25 countries and 7 international organisations as its members. Energy is definitely at the centre of India’s ambition and we are committed to producing a cleaner energy mix.

7. But we can all agree that action on climate change is contingent on the delivery of finance and transfer of technology, which is key to enhancing adaptation and mitigation measures. Challenges lie also in access to viable cutting-edge technologies at affordable costs. And that is why it is even more important for developed countries to fulfil their pre-2020 commitment of US$ 100 billion.

8. I would like to reiterate here  the importance of being fully sensitive to the energy-mix and national circumstances of developing countries. We should not demonise energy sources without understanding the overall context of the the energy mix of developing countries and the efforts they are putting in to do transition sustainably. India will continue its partnership with other countries to ensure that the climate architecture can both achieve the overall objective of tackling climate change; as well as be equitable to developing countries – like India – that still require carbon space to grow and provide for its people. Global climate discourse must deliver on the fair way of sharing the global carbon budget with developing countries in coming decades. This is truly Common But Differentiated Responsibility in practice.

9. While you will no doubt be listening to other speakers on these issues, let me emphasise that India would like to visualize ourselves as an inspiration for Clean Energy Transition across the world. And partnerships play a pivotal role in escalating the pace of this transition– by directing investments and visibility towards climate action in India.

10. I look forward to your insights and perspectives on India’s energy transition while exploring opportunities for multistakeholder partnerships and international collaboration.

Thank you.