Universal access to energy is vital

By delaying climate finance, the West is blocking the expansion of green energy access, which is hindering India’s socio-economic growth and pushing the world towards a dangerous future

The centrepiece of Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi’s pitch to the world’s richest nations at the G-7 summit in Germany was equity in energy access. Mr Modi said that access to energy shouldn’t be the privilege of only the rich at a time when geopolitical tensions are propelling energy costs and pointed out that while providing energy access to its citizens, India has also been meeting its climate commitments, such as generating 40% of energy from non-fossil sources nine years before the target of 2030, and completing the blending of 10% ethanol in petrol five months ahead of the stated deadline. India, the PM added, has the world’s first fully solar-powered airport, and its railway system will become net zero in this decade, while the delivery of LED bulbs and clean cooking gas has shown that millions of tonnes of carbon emissions can be prevented while ensuring energy for the poor.

While coal will remain an energy mainstay till 2030, India’s thrust on renewable energy (RE) has been remarkable. But the expansion of the RE sector and funding for the transition process will need access to finance under reasonable terms and access to green technology from the West (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

This is not the first time the PM has underlined the need for universal access to energy. At TERI’s World Sustainable Development Summit in February, he said India’s energy requirements are expected to double in the next 20 years, and added that “denying this energy would be denying life itself to millions”. In the past eight years, the government has focussed on ensuring basic access to energy sources, both electricity and clean cooking fuel. Still, India has a way to go before it can claim to have a 24X7 uninterrupted universal supply of electricity. A study conducted by NITI Aayog in 2020 showed that around 92% of household customers with a grid-based electricity connection have a low sanctioned load of 0-1 kW (76% of customers) or 1-2 kW (16% of customers). The immediate challenge is also to get the states to revitalise the thermal energy sector with better governance and climate-friendly technologies.

While coal will remain an energy mainstay till 2030, India’s thrust on renewable energy (RE) has been remarkable. But the expansion of the RE sector and funding for the transition process will need access to finance under reasonable terms and access to green technology from the West. To date, the West has failed to keep its promise of $100 billion per year, and this has been a sticking point in all climate meets. Every year, India requires at least $170 billion to tackle the climate crisis. By delaying climate finance, the West is blocking the expansion of green energy access, which is hindering India’s socio-economic growth and pushing the world towards a dangerous future.

By delaying climate finance, the West is blocking the expansion of green energy access, which is hindering India’s socio-economic growth and pushing the world towards a dangerous future.