ENERGY NEWS FEBRUARY-2020€¦ · ENERGY NEWS FEBRUARY-2020 Petroleum Conservation Research...

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ENERGY NEWS FEBRUARY-2020 Petroleum Conservation Research Association Sanrakshan Bhawan 10, Bhikaji Cama Place New Delhi 110066

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ENERGY NEWS FEBRUARY-2020

Petroleum Conservation Research Association Sanrakshan Bhawan 10, Bhikaji Cama Place

New Delhi 110066

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INDEX

S. NO. SUBJECT PAGE

1

1.1

1.2

2

2.1

3

3.1

4

4.1

4.2

5

TRANSPORT

-E-Vehicles (EV)

-Oil & Gas run vehicles

ENVIRONMENT

- Air, Water & Sound pollution

ENERGY CONSERVATION

-Oil & Gas

RENEWABLE ENERGY

-Wind

-Solar

OTHERS

1-8 8-9

10-14 14-20

20-23

24-28

28-31

This Energy News contains excerpts of articles picked up from selected daily newspapers & magazines.

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Hyundai Likely to Go More Local for EVs

Hyundai Motor India, the country's second-largest carmaker, said it was

accelerating the localisation plan for its electric vehicles (EV) as the government

is set to hike basic customs duties on completely-built as well as knockeddown

EVs and components making imports more expensive. “We understand the

government’s direction of Make in India. We will look to localise more,” SS Kim,

the managing director of Hyundai Motor India told ET. “We are already

localising some plastic parts and some interior parts on the Kona.” The

company is looking at multiple partnerships to create a manufacturing

ecosystem to ensure that EVs become mainstream and accessible, he said.

When the company launches more affordable mass-market EVs, it plans to

localise as much content as it does for its conventional vehicles, which is over

90%, he said. The company has been talking with potential suppliers to increase

localised content. It is also contacting global battery suppliers, including LG

Chem, to discuss collaboration for battery cell procurement for the local

market. “Even today in the morning I spent one hour with future potential

partners in EV ecosystem,” Kim told ET in an interview earlier this month.

Hyundai India’s planning division is already conducting customer research to

find out how much customers would be willing to pay for its electric vehicles,

Kim said. The company’s Indian arm, along with engineers at the Namyang R&D

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Centre in South Korea, has commenced studies to gauge the optimum range

and price points for the product. The company has set a timeline of 24-36

months to launch a mass-market EV and aims to ready a concept of the vehicle

for the 2022 Auto Expo in Greater Noida. The push for localisation comes as the

Centre looks to set up an EV manufacturing ecosystem in India that could

compete with the best in the world. As part of the Phased Manufacturing

Proposal, customs duty on imports of EV components will be raised in a step-

wise manner to encourage a gradual shift to local procurement. Import of

knocked-down electric vehicles presently attracts a 10% basic customs duty

which is set to go up to 15% from April.

*****

Toyota drives in self-charging hybrid electric vehicle Vellfire

at ₹79.5 lakh

Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) on Wednesdayunveiled the Vellfire, the new

luxurious self-charging hybrid electric multi-purpose vehicle, in India. The

company has already sold more than 6,00,000 units globally and is introducing

the Vellfire in CBU (completely built unit) form, priced at ₹79.5 lakh ex-

showroom. neing a hybrid, the Vellfire combines power with low fuel

consumption and carbon footprint. The 2.5-litre 4-cylinder gasoline hybrid

engine offers 86 kW (115 BHP) power and a maximum torque of 198 Nmat

2,800-4,000 rpm. The engine, which is coupled with two electric motors and a

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hybrid battery, con trols emissions. The company is claiming 16.35 km/l mileage

under standard test conditions.

For well-being of ecosystem

In addition to the high body rigidity, a new suspension has been adopted for

the rear. The Vellfire comes with a 17-speaker JBL audio syatem, and power

adjustable seats. Vikram Kirloskar, ViceChairman, Toyota Kirloskar Motor said,

“The automotive industry in India is undergoing a profound technologydriven

transformation with innovation and creativity defining the overall customer

experience. As industry leaders, it is imperative for us to provide customers

with new breakthroughs that not only promise comfort, but also contribute to

the well-being of the ecosystem.

“...our latest offering, the Vellfire, too embodies our commitment to offering

“Ever-Better Cars with Ever-Better Technology for an Ever-Better

Environment.”

Managing Director Masakazu Yoshimura said, “...the launch of Toyota Kirloskar

Motor Vice-Chairman Vikram Kirloskar (right) and MD Masakazu Yoshimura at

the launch of Vellfire in Hyderabad on Wednesday Vellfire in India marks a

significant step in our mid-to-long term plan to achieve zero CO2 challenge.”

Naveen Soni, Senior Vice-President, said that the Vellfire is well-aligned with

Toyota Environmental Challenge 2050, which encourages us to movetowards a

society where people, cars and nature can coexist in harmony. In the first three

months, all 180 Vellfire imported as CBUs have been sold out.

*****

E-scooter maker Ather Energy to ride into four new cities

Ather Energy recently launched the electric scooter Ather 450X in India. At the

time of launch, Ather had confirmed its entry into four new cities beyond

Bengaluru and Chennai. With demand pouring in, Ather will be available in four

new markets in the next few months, the company said in a statement. In

January, the company had confirmed its launch in Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Pune

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and Hyderabad, based on the demand received for the scooter. Since the

national launch, Ather has received thousands of pre-orders from across the

country, with key cities like Ahmedabad, Kochi, Coimbatore and Kolkata taking

the lead. The four new cities will see installation of fast charging infrastructure

in the coming months, followed by the delivery of the scooters. Ather 450X can

be pre-ordered via the company website for a fully refundable ₹2,500. Ather

has also been receiving dealership requests from these cities. Consumers in the

new cities can expect meet-ups and test rides in their neighbourhood in the

coming months. Ather 450X owners will also receive home chargers, Ather Dot,

to charge their scooters at home.

“There’s been an amazing response for the Ather 450X across the country. We

have been receiving pre-orders from not just the major metros but also several

Tier-II and -III cities. Similarly, there have been more than 2,000 requests for

retail partnerships. By the end of this year we will be present in 10 cities and

will continue to scale up to more than 30 by 2023. Our focus now is scaling the

experience of Ather 450X all over the country” said Tarun Mehta, CEO and co-

founder, Ather Energy.

*****

Tirupur’s CK Motors in pact with PURE EV

CK Motors, an arm of Tirupur-based ₹800-crore CK Group companies engaged

in textiles business, has entered into a joint manufacturing and marketing

agreement with PURE EV, an electric vehicle start-up incubated by IIT-

Hyderabad. As part of the pact, CK Motors is setting up a factory at an initial

investment of ₹50 crores at Coimbatore to manufacture EVs with a capacity of

5,000 electric scooters per month. The factory will be operational in a couple of

months. In the second phase, the company aims to invest another ₹50 crores.

“We have developed the necessary eco-system with supplier base in

Coimbatore for our electric vehicle manufacturing. We will initially have at least

50 per cent localisation and increase to 100 per cent soon. Our scooters will

come with the patented lithium-ion battery technology,” C Guna Sekaran,

Business Head, CK Motors Pvt Ltd, said here. PURE EV is reported to have sold

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more than 2,000 units of its electric two-wheelers that include ePluto 7G, a high

speed scooter at a starting price of ₹79,000 (on-road price will be about

₹91,000), ePluto (low speed scooter), priced at ₹71,999, among others. In

addition to manufacturing, CK Motors plans to set up at least 50 dealers in Tamil

Nadu in the next few months and will expand to other States in the next phase.

Gopinath, Head – Sales & Marketing, CK Motors, said the company would also

sell the PURE EV’s patented lithium batteries separately for home inverter/UPS,

genset and solar power storage applications as it would provide better benefits

when compared to lead-acid batteries. He said the company is also working on

introducing electric motorcycle, electric three and four-wheelers this year. CK

Motors also showcased electric bicycles that offer a range of 50 km on a single

charge and electric moped with 60 km range.

*****

Electric cars may get same power specs

In a bid to standardise the various parts of the electric vehicle (EV) ecosystem,

several constituents, including original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), have

come together to define standards. The move is primarily aimed at commercial

vehicles that will ply with swappable batteries. OEMs like Mahindra &

Mahindra, Lucas TVS, Okinawa, Kinetic, GEM, Ashok Leyland, Exicom, Amara

Raja Batteries and Exide are involved in preparation of these specifications.

“We have coordinated this effort and did iterations in the documents based on

feedback from all different stakeholders,” said Prabhjot Kaur, CEO of the Centre

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for Battery Engineering and EVs (C-BEEV). The centre comes under the

department of electrical engineering at IIT-Madras. The project is spearheaded

by professor Ashok Jhunjunwala.

“We don’t want to commit the mistakes of mobile handset companies that did

not standardise chargers, etc, when it would have made sense. We will

continue to work towards setting up more common standards for the industry,”

Kaur The standards are grouped under ‘Lock Smart - Vehicle Battery Charger

Cloud Protocol’ (or LS-VBCC). They will act as the cornerstone for EVs. “The

batteryswapping industry standard has been designed with a group coming

from different segments — charger manufacturers, vehicle OEMs, battery

manufacturers and other stakeholders,” Kaur said. The purpose of the standard

is to promote interoperability between energy operators, vehicles, batteries

and chargers.

“Using Esmito’s platform at C-BEEV in IIT-Madras and several other locations,

we have done several three-wheeler and two-wheeler pilots using the standard

swapping platform. Esmito is now offering this solution as a SaaS platform for

energy/fleet operators,” Kaur said. For example, the standards will involve

vehicle identification number (VIN) and battery identification number (BIN) in

specified formats that will help identify where the parts were produced,

including if the batteries are lead acid, lithium-ion or cobalt-based, among

others.

*****

Ather Energy to look beyond 2-wheelers in 5 years

Bengaluru-based electric scooter manufacturing

start-up Ather Energy is considering expanding

beyond the two-wheeler space that it currently

operates in, in the next 4-5 years, said the

company’s co-founder and chief executive officer,

Tarun Mehta. It is looking at raising more funds

through a Series D route after July, once its new

product, the 450X, is on the road, he said. The Hero

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Moto Corp Ltd-backed start-up will be directing these funds more towards

operations, expansion and sales this time, as opposed to the earlier

pronounced focus on research and development, he said. The last round of

fund-raising was through the Series C route. The company has raised ₹675

crores through equity funding so far. After focussing on expanding in the

premium segment with the 450X, and expanding geographically in the next two

years, Ather Energy may look at building a more mass market product, said

Mehta. Also, in 4-5 years, it may look at expanding beyond two-wheelers to

other categories.

“The reason it makes sense to go beyond two-wheelers is because, ultimately,

we see ourselves as a company that is in the energy business — in the long

term. Which is why I am super excited about charging, in batteries and the

usage of them. (That is), the overall product usage, more than just the

manufacturing,” said Mehta.

While he did not comment on the exact electric product category it will be

looking at foraying into, he said that trucks are where the real energy

consumption happens. He said he is “not that excited about cars”.

“I think we have some really good players in the car space. I don’t think it will

make sense for Ather to come four years later with a car — it is unlikely,” he

said.

Geographic expansion

The company’s focus for the next two years will be on its geographic expansion

than on bringing in products, though the products may get some

improvements, said Mehta. Currently, present only in Bengaluru and Chennai,

it is looking at being in 10 more cities by the end of FY21, and 24 cities by FY22.

It will be adding Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad and Pune by July, he said. Every city

is likely to get one dealership at least, but cities such as Mumbai and Delhi will

get multiple dealerships, he said. It currently has two products, Ather 450 and

Ather 450X. The company’s charging stations, called ‘Ather Grid’, will also see

an expansion to more than 200 charging points by FY21, and more than 1000

charging points by FY22. Until now, the company was importing cells and

motors for its products, but from March onwards, motors are going to be

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localised. Only the cells will be imported from March, said Mehta. Meanwhile,

mainstream internal combustion engine players such as Bajaj Auto and TVS

Motor Company have forayed into the electric vehicle space recently. When

asked about this, Mehta said that the anchoring provided by this factor has

helped Ather Energy.

“I think legacy players launching EVs really helps with interest and awareness

that we otherwise can’t drum up ourselves. It is expensive for us,” he said.

He said the 450X wouldn’t have procured the kind of pre-ordering it did if not

for the increased awareness about EVs post the launch of the Chetak by Bajaj

Auto.

*****

UK to ban new petrol car sales from 2035

Britain will bring forward a ban on sales of new petrol and diesel vehicles to

2035, including hybrids. Prime Minister Boris Johnson will make the

announcement at an event launching the 2019 United Nations Climate Change

conference, COP26, to be held in Glasgow in November. The changes bring

forward the ban by five years -- and now include hybrid vehicles. Britain has

pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050, with a

mixture of cuts and off-setting pollution measures such as planting trees. At the

COP26 launch event in London, Johnson will be joined by Italian Prime Minister

Giuseppe Conte and naturalist David Attenborough. Johnson will urge other

countries to join Britain in striving towards the 2050 net zero emissions goal

through investment in cleaner technology and efforts to protect natural

habitats. Edmund King, president of Britain’s AA motoring association, said the

new target on car sales was incredibly challenging.

“We must question whether we will have a sufficient supply of a full cross-

section of zero emissions vehicles in less than 15 years,” he said. He also urged

the government to cut the sales tax on electric vehicles to make them more

affordable.

*****

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Maruti launches BS-VI petrol Vitara Brezza

India’s largest passenger cars maker Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL) on Monday

announced the prices of the all-new Vitara Brezza, priced between ₹7.34 lakh

and ₹11.40 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi). Unveiled at the Auto Expo earlier this

month, the new form of the compact sports utility vehicle (SUV) will come only

with a petrol engine (1.5 litre K-series) now, as the company does not have a

BS-VI-ready diesel engine now. The SUV offers enhanced sportiness, bolder

looks, stronger stance, premium interiors and a host of new features, the

company said, adding that it will come with five-speed manual and advanced

automatic transmission systems and Smart Hybrid.

“Vitara Brezza has evolved to become a powerful brand over the past four

years. Keeping up with its strong, urban and premium appeal, the all-new Vitara

Brezza is bolder, sportier and more powerful,” Kenichi Ayukawa, Managing

Director and Chief Executive Officer, MSIL, said. Launched in 2016 in the BS-IV

diesel variant, MSIL has sold over five lakh units of the Vitara Brezza. Its

competitors include Hyundai Motor Venue, Tata Motors’ Nexon and

Mahindra’s XUV300.

*****

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TERI partners with four cities to launch clean air project in

India.

Lucknow and Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh and Pune and Nashik in Maharashtra will

launch the ‘Clean Air Project in India’ (CAP India) initiative to improve the air

quality in their cities. This project will be implemented by The Energy and

Resources Institute (TERI) in partnership with city authorities. CAP India was

announced at the World Sustainable Development Summit 2020 held in New

Delhi. The CAP India programme will focus on improving data measurement,

enhancing capacities of city and State authorities to implement clean air

policies and action plans, and raising public awareness for clean air action.

These four cities were selected after conducting a scoping study, which

considered several factors such as the severity and sources of air pollution,

population density and associated health impacts, economic standing of the

State, and the readiness or preparedness of the State in terms of

policies/regulation etc. Supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and

Cooperation (SDC), the long-term project aims to support National Clean Air

Programme (NCAP) by demonstrating viable approaches for cities to address

air pollution. NCAP was launched in January 2019 with the goal of meeting the

prescribed annual average ambient air quality standards across the country.

Arvind K Nautiyal, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate

Change, described in a press statement the state of air quality in India and the

progress made under NCAP. “Under the NCAP, State pollution control boards

are key stakeholders to address city-level sources of air pollution. We are

implementing waste management rules, promoting clean mobility/electric

vehicles, and finding alternatives to crop burning to improve India’s air quality.”

During its research phase, the project will review the existing air quality

management plans as well as suggest potential technological interventions in

each of these four cities for mitigating air pollution.

*****

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Tackling air pollution

Amidst the larger national debates on CAA, NRC, Kashmir, rape-related

violence, dwindling economy, and several others, which are important matters

to debate on, air pollution seems to be dying yet another season. It shall only

form a formidable agenda to be actually receiving the needy attention of the

official policymakers (read the government) when the AQI (Air Quality Index)

readings reach hazardous levels next year during Deepavali, even though we

continue to breathe unclean air now. There’s need for a mass revolution, like

the most recent one on proving citizenship, demanding from the government

that it takes necessary steps throughout the country to provide its citizens

better quality of breathable air. Failure to curb the issue of air pollution is

primarily due to lack of political will, political negligence and refusal to accept

the fact that exposure to poor quality of air does have a negative impact on

health Irresponsible statements such as air pollution does not reduce people’s

lifespan, made by influential public figures, only trivialises the issue.

Budget allocation- Lack of political will to address this issue also translates to

inadequate Budget allocation, which drives home an important point that

controlling air pollution is surely not on the priority list for the present

government. With a Budget cut of 50 per cent on pollution-control measures

(from ₹20 crores in 2018-19 to ₹10 crore in 2019-20), and non-elaboration on

financial allocation to National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), we can only

expect more number of days with hazardous level of AQI readings. Ironically,

the BJP government in its manifesto for the 2019 general elections had vowed

to ‘work towards substantially reducing air pollution’ as well as ‘completely

eliminating crop residue burning’ to tackle air pollution. The present Budget

allocation, however, does not point to that. There is ample global evidence now

that supports the fact that air pollution is a silent killer. WHO Director General,

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, during the first global conference on air

pollution and health (Geneva 2018) has already declared air pollution as a

“silent public health emergency”.

Public health disaster- Air pollution, in fact, is very much on its way to becoming

a public health disaster, unless controlled in a timely and sustainable manner.

Air pollution accounts for around eight million premature deaths annually

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across the globe, mostly from the developing counties. According to a joint

study by ICMR, PHFI and IHME, which was published in 2017, in India, air

pollution is linked to a child’s death every three minutes, and every eighth

death in the country is linked to exposure to poor quality of air. Will our

policymakers wait for another ‘Great Smog of London’ (which killed more than

10,000 people) to happen in our country before taking concrete action to tackle

this menace?

Constant exposure to polluted air is slowly damaging the overall quality of life,

more severely that of children. Increased incidence of respiratory illness among

children, apart from similar diseases among adults, along with heart disease,

diabetes and several other ailments are known to get aggravated due to

polluted air. It may not be wrong to say that we would be raising a complete

generation of morbid individuals, who will only end up paying for our

wrongdoings, in the name of stubble burning, bursting crackers, driving more

and more cars, greater dependency on fossil fuel-based energy, and so on. Our

future workforce may not be able to contribute its best, as constant exposure

to unclean air would have a bearing on their productivity and quality of life. We

ought to fight for clean air today for a better tomorrow. The writer is Assistant

Professor, Jindal School of Government and Public Policy, Sonipat

*****

Malaysia should cut down on plastic for cleaner seas: WWF

An analysis of Asia’s worst ocean polluters shows Malaysians are the biggest

individual consumers of plastic packaging, green group WWF said on Monday,

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urging the government to limit single-use plastics and work with companies to

fund a recycling push. The WWF report on plastics looked at China, Indonesia,

Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam - which contribute 60% of the

estimated 8 million tonnes of plastic that enter the world’s oceans each year. It

focused on household consumption of plastic packaging - the plastic most likely

to end up in seas - and found that 27mn tonnes were consumed across all six

nations in 2016, the most recent year for which reliable data was available.

Globally the volume of plastic waste going into the ocean is set to quadruple

between 2010 and 2050, meaning that the sea could contain more plastic by

weight than fish by mid-century, the report noted. Meanwhile, carbon

emissions associated with plastic - from production to burning - reached 860mn

tonnes in 2019, greater than the annual emissions of Thailand, Vietnam and the

Philippines combined. Malaysia ranked highest among the six countries

analysed in terms of annual per-capita plastic packaging consumption, at about

16.8kg per person, followed by Thailand at 15.5kg. Thomas Schuldt of WWF said

Malaysians consumed the most plastic because they were among the

wealthiest.

*****

Carbon Clean Gets $16m to Grow

Carbon Clean Solutions has raised $16 million in fresh

funding from US-based WAVE Equity Partners and

Chevron Technology Ventures, and Japan’s Marubeni

Corporation, as the clean-tech startup shores up

capital in a highly competitive and evolving carbon

capture industry. The company had earlier raised $6

million from investors such as Blume Ventures and

had received grants from the US Department of

Energy and UK’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

Carbon Clean said the fresh capital will be used to deliver an existing pipeline

of projects globally and develop a containerised solution that it says will bring

down the cost of CO2 capture to $30 per tonne by next year. The firm works

with industries to help reduce their carbon emissions, with its biggest

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installation in Thoothukudi in Tamil Nadu, which it says captures CO2 emissions

at a cost of around $35 per tonne. “This investment demonstrates the

confidence our new investors have in our technology and its commercial

scalability. We can now grow our company to a size that can help deliver

projects to make a ‘net zero’ emissions world possible,” said Aniruddha Sharma,

CEO of Carbon Clean Solutions. In a statement, the firm said it was keen to

jointly develop carbon capture utilisation and storage businesses along with

Carbon Clean Solutions. The firm was among the nominees in the ‘Top

Innovator’ category at The Economic Times Startup Awards 2019.

*****

HPCL Dec quarter net trebles to ₹747 crores on inventory

gains

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) on Wednesday reported trebling

of net profit in December quarter as inventory gains made up for lower refinery

margins. Net profit in October-December at ₹747 crores was higher than net

profit of ₹248 crores in the same period a year-ago period, HPCL Chairman and

Managing Director Mukesk K Surana told reporters here.

“In Q3 of the last fiscal we had an inventory loss of ₹3,465 crores. As compared,

we made an inventory gain of ₹343 crores,” he said, adding the inventory gains

were partly offset by lower exchange gains. HPCL had a foreign exchange gain

of ₹82 crores in the December quarter as compared to a forex gain of ₹557

crores a year back, he said. A company records inventory gains when it buys

raw material (crude oil) at a particular price but by the time it is able to process

and convert it into fuel, international oil prices have gone up. Since fuel prices

are benchmarked to international rates, inventory gains are booked. Inventory

losses are booked when the reverse happens. The company earned $1.79 on

turning every barrel of crude oil into fuel in Q3 as compared to a gross refining

margin of $3.72 per barrel a year back.

“The lower GRM is primarily due to lower cracks of fuel oil and LPG and planned

shutdown of secondary units at Visakh refinery,” he said.

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Sales was also lower at ₹74,288 crores in October-December as against

turnover of ₹76,884 crores.

*****

Access to Petronet, IGL boards key USP for BPCL divestment

Automatic access to the boards of two valued energy firm—Petronet LNG Ltd

(PLL) and Indraprastha Gas Ltd (IGL)—will be one of the key selling points of

state-run Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd’s (BPCL) strategic disinvestment, the

process for which will start this month, two officials with knowledge of the

matter said.

A private investor, by virtue of acquiring ownership of the BPCL, will become

one of the promoters in both the PLL and IGL, the officials said requesting

anonymity. The petroleum secretary will, however, remain the chairman of PLL,

and in the case of IGL, the company’s managing director will be nominated by

the other promoter, GAIL (India) Ltd, according to their respective articles of

association, they said. The PLL is unique. The government holds 50% equity

stake in it through four public sector companies with the petroleum secretary

as its chairman. The PLL is treated as a private company because combined

equity stakes of state-run firms in it is less than 51%. The four promoters of the

PLL are Oil and Natural Gas Corp. Ltd (ONGC), Indian Oil Corp. Ltd (IOC), GAIL

(India) Ltd and BPCL with 12.5% shareholding each. Balance stakes in the

company are held by financial institution and retail investors. The IGL is again a

public sector-promoted private entity, which is promoted by state-run GAIL and

BPCL with equal shareholding of 22.5% each. Balance equity in the company is

held by banks, financial institutions and the public. Two people involved in the

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disinvestment processes said on condition of anonymity that the PLL and IGL

are two valued companies and being their promoter would be a major incentive

for the prospective buyer. But no private entity would like undue interferences

of the government or its nominees at the board level. “Although the IGL and

PLL offer great values to prospective private bidders, direct or indirect control

of the government is certainly a dampener,” one of the people said.

Spokespersons for the Union finance ministry, IGL and PLL declined comments

on this matter.

“Preliminary processes for divesting government’s entire 53.29% equity stake

in the BPCL, minus its subsidiary NRL (Numaligarh Refinery Ltd), have been

completed. An EoI (expression of interest) is expected very soon,” one of the

officials mentioned above said. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs

(CCEA) on November 20 gave in-principle approval to strategic disinvestment

in five state-run companies, including a sale of the government’s entire stake

in the BPCL, while retaining its ownership of NRL through another public sector

company. The four other companies in which the cabinet approved strategic

stake sales are Shipping Corp. of India Ltd (SCI), Container Corp. of India Ltd

(Concor), Tehri Hydro Development Corp. India Ltd and North Eastern Electric

Power Corp Ltd.BPCL’s disinvestment is expected to fetch ₹60,000 crores.

*****

India’s dependence on fossil fuels will continue to remain

high

Every country has to find its own solutions to bring down its dependence on

fossil fuels, and India is no different. The country’s dependence on fossil fuel

will remain high and the Indian subcontinent will experience the world’s

greatest growth in LNG over the next 30 years.

“While we forecast the global dependence on fossil fuels will come down to 50

per cent from the current 80 per cent by 2050, India’s dependence will be

higher at 65 per cent by 2050,” said Liv Astri Hovem, Chief Executive Officer, Oil

& Gas, DNV GL. Hovem, who was recently in India for the World Energy Policy

Summit, said, “Solutions for energy transition depend on what natural

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resources are available and the historical infrastructure available in a country.

This enables developing an easier route for transition to cleaner energy.”

Norway-headquartered DNV GL provides integrated technical assurance and

advisory services to operators, suppliers and regulators across the oil and gas

value chain, from project initiation to de-commissioning.

Liv Astri Hovem, Chief Executive Officer, Oil & Gas, DNV GL

“What we see in India is that still 65 per cent of the energy demand will be met

through fossil fuel in 2050 compared to 80 per cent today, while globally the

split between fossil fuels and renewable energy will be 50-50 by mid-century.

And the reason for this will be the high growth in energy demand, which India

has,” she told BusinessLine. Globally, according to DNV GL’s Energy Transition

Outlook, the demand for energy will peak in the mid-2030s — meaning the

world will need less energy, mainly due to electrification and increased

efficiency. India will not see similar decline due to its growth. Hovem is quick to

point out that there is an increasing understanding that it is very difficult to

jump quickly to a 100 per cent carbon free energy system. “Our Energy

Transition Outlook takes a practical look at world energy supply and demand

over the next three decades. Our model is based on the thinking that, in the

longer run, it is cost that will decide which energy sources will be used,” she

said. “Of course, there is an element of energy security and geopolitics, but if

we take these away and look at the costs, then our Outlook reveals that in 2050

about 50 per cent of the world’s energy system will be composed of fossil fuels,

a big shift from today’s reality. Globally, we forecast that the only energy

sources that will be in higher demand in 2050 than they are today are natural

gas and variable renewables: wind and solar.” ndergoing huge growth from 11

per cent today. It predicts a close to four-fold increase in consumption of

natural gas in real terms to 2050 in the region, as coal and oil demand declines.

Non-fossil sources- “We have also done survey with senior industry

professionals for the year ahead. Asked what they think about investing outside

oil and gas, 66 per cent of leaders in India said they will do so. Wind and solar

were the favoured non-fossil based energy sources to invest in. Of course in

India there will still be huge investments in gas and oil,” she said. The Outlook

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forecasts that India will experience the world’s greatest growth in import of

LNG (liquefied natural gas) over the next 30 years.

*****

Government permits faster monetisation of oil and gas

discoveries

The government has allowed companies to monetise oil and gas discoveries

without undergoing the time-consuming procedure of government approvals

for field development plans and other bureaucratic process. “There are no

restrictions on monetization of discovery at an early stage within these timelines

(provided under the contracts); rather it would be in public interest that a

discovery is monetized early as a step towards energy security of the country,”

the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) said in guidelines on early

monetization of hydrocarbon discoveries. The contracts give licensees up to

eight years to explore. Following a discovery, licensees undertake appraisal,

development and production sequentially. The new guidelines will help cut this

sequence, save time and bring in early revenues for licensees as well as the

government, according to an industry executive. A company will be able to start

production and sale from a discovery even during the exploration phase “The

contractor may develop and monetize such early stage discovery/discoveries

before completion of appraisal, declaration of commerciality (DoC) and

submission of development plan (DP)/ field development plan (FDP) etc. in

blocks under exploration period,” the DGH said. This will, however, be subject to

a few conditions. The contractor will have to submit to DGH its plan to develop

that specific discovery, along with estimated cost and production profile. It will

also have to seek petroleum mining lease (PML). The output from such

discoveries shall be treated as commercial production and the contractor will be

expected to pay all levies as well as the share of profit petroleum or revenue as

per the contract.

*****

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AGR risk remains for GAIL, Oil India and Power Grid, says

Fitch Ratings

The three non-telecom companies — GAIL (India) Ltd, Oil India Ltd and Power

Grid Corporation of India Ltd — are planning to appeal against the Supreme

Court’s verdict on the adjusted gross revenue (AGR) issue, according to a

brokerage report. India’s telecom-related regulatory dispute is still event risk

for GAIL, OIL and Power Grid, Fitch Ratings said on Wednesday. The Supreme

Court of India has allowed the companies to withdraw their clarification

applications on February 14 and resolve their dispute with the Department of

Telecommunications outside the court. This is in stark contrast to the court’s

decision to demand immediate payments from the telecom companies that are

also involved in the dispute, it said.

“We expect the three companies to eventually resolve the dispute, although

resolution timing is uncertain. A speedy solution is important to prevent

disrupting the companies’ investment plans and damaging their performance.”

“We understand that they have the option to resolve the matter through

alternate dispute-resolution mechanisms available to State-owned enterprises.

This is in addition to the legal options available to telecom licence holders in

general,” it said.

The DoT has issued demand notices to GAIL, Oil India Ltd and Power Grid

seeking dues of ₹1.83-lakh crore, ₹48,000 crore and ₹22,000 crore,

respectively. The notices include licence fees on non-telecom revenue and

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additional interest and penalties on the licence fees. However, the three

companies’ telecom-related revenue is insignificant, at around ₹50 crore, ₹1

crore and ₹2,300 crore, respectively, for the same time period of the demand

notices, it added. The three companies have created telecom infrastructure for

internal use and have obtained National Long Distance and Internet Service

Provider licences to rent out spare capacity. They maintain that their licences

differ from the Unified Access Licence held by telecom companies, hence, the

court’s decision on the AGR for telecom companies does not apply to them.

*****

End in sight to wind energy sector’s plight

The wind energy sector has just been pulled back from the brink of the

precipice. It had got to a situation where the chronicler was about to write the

last chapter titled, ‘And then there was none’, but now the government, finally,

has taken a step that will keep the undertakers away. For now, The Ministry of

New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has decided to remove the upper limit for

tariffs in capacity auctions, bids above which would not be considered for

award of capacity. This has been one major tripwire. The government had been

adamant on keeping the cap in order that energy prices were kept low; it has

taken no less than four failed auctions under SECI’s 9th round for the

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government to reconsider its stand, for which the cap had been set at ₹2.93 a

kWhr. With 7 paise mark-up for the SECI — the government company that

offers capacity on auctions — discoms would buy power at ₹3 — a price way

below the average price any discom paid for the electricity it purchased. The

Ministry, however, is said to have implicitly cautioned the industry against

cartelisation in future auctions; it has told them if the prices discovered through

auctions were unacceptable, the bids would still be cancelled. But even with

this caveat, the industry is relieved, if not happy. Prices will rise somewhat and

projects could begin to get off the ground. The cap was helping nobody. While

the government took an unhelpful stand saying, “I did not ask you to bid such

low prices”, competitive forces depressed prices, which only helped discoms

cover up their inefficiencies, because they were getting ultra-cheap power

without having to work for it. The energy companies were tottering on the brink

of viability, projects were not getting executed and no consumer — industrial

or individual — was benefiting from the low tariffs. Cap apart, a few good

things are happening. The issue of reopening PPAs (power purchase

agreements) in Andhra Pradesh, which had red-lighted investors, appears to be

easing. The AP government has also begun paying developers ₹2.43 a kWhr —

the tariff the government is okay with, even as the agreed higher tariff is being

examined by the court. And, there is some forward movement on allocation of

land, particularly in Gujarat, where bulk of the projects are coming up. Sources

say that Gujarat has cleared land allocation for projects won through SECI I to

SECI IV. If the State government gives land for the rest of the rounds too, the

wind industry is in for a boom. Anand Kumar, Secretary, MNRE, is said to have

assured the industry that there would be auctions worth 10 GW every year. The

industry has requested the Ministry that the auctions should be evenly spread

out through the year, with visibility about when each auction would be

tendered out, so that the players could organise land, connectivity and

finances. Industry insiders, such as DV Giri, Secretary-General of the wind

industry’s premier body, the Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers’ Association

(IWTMA), believe that 2020-21 could see a pick-up in installations — a figure of

4 GW may not be too optimistic; in contrast, the Scan & Share current financial

year would be lucky to end with 2.3 GW. This, in turn, would mean revival of

fortunes of several players who are down in the dumps today, such as Suzlon

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Energy. So, has the wind industry taken a decisive turn for the better? It would

seem so, but for the industry to realise its full potential, experts have called for

some measures.

Re-look at the auction method- Data on implementation of projects awarded

through auctions shows how poor the implementation track record has been.

The reasons are known — low tariffs have inevitably made developers flock to

the two windy States, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, the former more than the latter.

Gujarat, seeing its best lands taken away for projects that would supply power

to other States, baulked at giving the lands to such projects. The industry has

been asking for State-wise, or sub-station-wise auctions, to avoid bunching of

projects in one State or region.

Payment security- Developers are not getting their dues paid by discoms, which

is pushing some into the red (for example, Orient Green Power). Efforts of the

federal government to force State-owned discoms to open letters of credit as

payment security mechanism have not quite worked, due to the reluctance of

the State governments and the costs associated with LC, as naturally banks

charge more to stand guarantee for sick discoms.

Open access charges- Wind companies can sell directly to consumers — as do

many solar companies — but they have to contend with high charges associated

with it. It is fair to ask them to pay for the transmission infrastructure they use,

but there are several hurdles. Research and ratings company ICRA observes

that “projects in the open access market face challenges in the form of delays

in securing open access approvals from the state utilities, risk of revision in

open access regulations and imposition of cross-subsidy surcharge and

additional surcharge.”

Further, in the recent past, some of the States put restrictions on availability of

banking facility for wind power projects, which leads to mismatch between

supply and demand, given the seasonal nature of wind power generation, says

ICRA. Discoms fear that OA (open access) developers will walk away with their

well-paying customers, but developers feel that they should not be penalised

so that the discoms could be fine.

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Bundling with thermal power- MNRE has floated draft guidelines proposing

blending of renewable energy and thermal power, so as to supply ‘bundled’

power round-the-clock. This has by and large been welcomed by the industry,

particularly by companies such as Adani Green and Sembcorp, which belong to

groups that have both renewable and thermal power capacity. However, for

pure-play renewable energy companies like Hero Future Energies and ReNew

Power, it is a hassle to find a thermal power partner who would supply power

whenever needed at viable prices. The industry has therefore suggested that

such ‘bundling’ may be done by large thermal power companies, like NTPC,

which can easily buy green power directly from developers and bundle it with

its own thermal power to supply to discoms. Today’s technology allows thermal

power stations to be quickly ramped up or down, to complement green power.

IWTMA observes that modern super critical coalbased projects have a high

ramp-up rate — 50 MW in 15 minutes — which can be used to provide RE-

blended round-the-clock power. RE-blended power works out cheaper to the

discoms, by 20-30 paise a kWhr, says IWTMA. In sum, there are lots of low

hanging fruits to nourish the wind industry. Fundamentally, a tariff of around

₹3.10 a kWhr is viable — a price that lets the developer be in business and is

also cheaper than what the discoms otherwise buy. This price level has become

viable because of technology. A recent ICRA study found that a sample set of

projects commissioned over the past one to two years indicates that there are

projects that have been able to achieve annual PLF in the range of 33-38 per

cent, “thus providing a comfort on PLF assumption which is critical for the

viability of projects bid at tariffs lower than ₹3 per unit. Such projects typically

have higher hub height and rotor diameter of more than 100 meters and are

concentrated at windy locations in the States of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu.”

Thus, the message is clear. Now that the cap irritant is gone, just tweak things

a little — the industry has little option but to flourish.

*****

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Despite headwinds, MNRE targets 14,380 MWof capacity

addition

The Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has fixed a high

capacity addition target of 14,380 MW for the renewable energy sector for this

fiscal amid Covid-19-related uncertainties.

The target for FY20 was 11,802 MW.

In the current fiscal, the fast-growing solar segment is expected to add about

11,000 MW (9,000 MW from ground mounted projects and 2000 MW via

rooftops), while wind power segment is expected to bring in about 3,000 MW.

The remaining will be added by small hydro, biomass /captive power and waste-

to-power categories. The higher capacity addition target for FY21 comes at a

time the renewable energy sector has been struggling to add new capacity.

Solar growth- The past two years saw the segment adding only 8,000plus MW

per year though solar remains the major driver of new capacity addition.

Industry analysts see a challenging environment where things are changing on

a day-to-day basis. The lockdown disrupted the supply chain, while currency

related fluctuations made component costs unpredictable. Rooftop solar

installations also severely affected due to lockdown.

“We are cutting our solar demand forecast by about 40 per cent to 5 GW from

our previous estimates based on the Covid effect on the market,” according to

Raj Prabhu, CEO of Mercom Capital Group.

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Government backing- But, according to MNRE Minister RK Singh, the

government had taken several measures in the past few months to enhance

confidence of investors. The Ministry was continuing auctions amid lockdown

and recent tariff finalisation for Solar Energy Corporation of India’s 400 MW

project and NHPC’s 2,000 MW solar projects reflected investor confidence in

the renewable growth story.

During the first two months of this fiscal, the renewable sector has added 306

MW, including 176 MWof ground-mounted solar units and 111 MW of rooftop

projects.

Industry representatives also admit that there has been a thrust on renewables

by the government particularly on domestic manufacturing of equipment in

wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. It has been identified as a priority area as part

of Indian government’s ‘Atmanirbhar’ or self-reliance vision. But analysts warn

that any protectionist move could make solar power costly and curb demand,

and/ or create uncertainty for projects under construction.

Level field- Meanwhile leading solar manufacturers, including Webel Solar,

Vikram Solar and Renewsys wrote to the Prime Minister seeking a level-playing

field to all manufacturing units. They pointed out that the Ministry of Finance’s

proposed move to impose basic customs duty (BCD) on solar manufacturers

located within the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) may pose a threat to the

viability of the units, and thereby impacting the indigenous production of solar

cells and modules

*****

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Adani Green Floats Solar Power JV with Total

Billionaire Gautam Adaniled Adani Green Energy has entered into a pact with

French energy major Total Gas & Power Business Services SAS (TOTAL) for an

investment of around $510 million (₹3,633 crore) for a 50% stake and other

instruments in a solar power joint venture, the companies said in a joint

statement on Thursday. The JV will house 2,148 MW currently owned by the

Adani Group company. Adani Green shares rose almost 5% to ₹202 on Thursday

on the Bombay Stock Exchange. In the past three months, the shares of the

company gained 124% on bourses, outperforming the BSE benchmark Sensex

that rose 2% in the period. Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani said: “This is

a pivotal step in our journey towards building the world’s largest solar power

company by 2025 and the world’s largest renewable power company by 2030.”

Adani Green Energy has a project portfolio of 6 GW, which includes projects

that are under construction. The company aims to scale up its capacity to 18

GW by 2025. The transaction for the solar power JV is subject to customary

approvals and definitive agreements. This is the second such deal between the

two groups. In October, Adani Gas said it was in pact with Total SA, which would

buy 37.5% stake in the company, including a public offer to shareholders to buy

a further 25.2%; such that both partners eventually hold 37.4% each. They plan

to invest in infrastructure and assets worth over $1 billion, which span LNG

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infrastructure and marketing and fuel retail business. This deal is likely to be

closed by March. Total chief executive Patrick Pouyanné, said: “Total is fully

engaged in the energy transition and (committed) to supporting India, a key

country in the fight against climate change, in diversifying its energy mix

through partnerships in natural gas and now in solar energy. This interest in

over 2 GW of solar projects represents a real change of scale of our presence in

India’s renewable energy sector, which has a very significant growth potential

in the coming years.”

He said this investment is a part of the company’s strategy to deploy 25 GW of

renewable energy by 2025. On Wednesday, Adani Green reported higher losses

in third quarter of 2019-20 to ₹129 crore as compared to ₹118 crores a year

ago, dented by an exceptional cost.

*****

Total buys 50% in Adani’s solar biz for $510 million

French energy giant Total SA has agreed to acquire 50% in Adani Group’s solar

assets for $510 million, in one of the biggest transactions in India’s clean energy

industry. Total will own half of a joint venture company that will house the solar

assets of Adani Green Energy Ltd, which has a 2,148MW solar project portfolio

across 11 states, the companies said in a joint statement on Thursday. Adani

Green Energy will own the balance 50% in the joint venture. The transaction,

the second major proposed investment by the French energy major in a

company controlled by billionaire Gautam Adani, comes amid a tough phase for

India’s clean energy sector. The renewable energy industry is facing a tight

lending environment, mounting dues from utilities and record low tariffs. The

low solar and wind power tariffs have made banks wary of lending to renewable

energy developers as they suspect the viability of the projects. Overall, Adani

Green Energy has a renewable energy project portfolio of 6GW, including

under-construction capacity. It is also a successful bidder in state-run Solar

Energy Corporation of India Ltd’s tender of 8GW manufacturing-linked

development project for setting up solar power capacity.

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“We are delighted to extend our long-term partnership with Total to our

renewable energy business,” Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani said in the

statement. He was referring to Total’s plan, announced in October, to buy a

37.4% stake in Adani Gas for around ₹5,700 crores. India is running what will

become the world’s largest clean energy programme with an aim of having

175GW of clean energy capacity by 2022 as part of its global climate change

commitments. The country plans to add 100GW of solar capacity by 2022,

including 40GW from rooftop projects.

“Total is fully engaged in the energy transition and to supporting India, a key

country in the fight against climate change, in diversifying its energy mix

through partnerships in natural gas and now in solar energy,” Total’s chief

executive officer (CEO) Patrick Pouyanne said in the statement.

“This interest in over 2GW of solar projects represents a real change of scale of

our presence in India’s renewable energy sector, which has very significant

growth potential in the coming years. It will contribute to our ambition to

deploy 25GW of renewable energy by 2025.”

Total sells lubricants and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in India. In 1998, it

commissioned a fully integrated LPG import terminal at Mangaluru.

*****

Turning the wheels of mobility clean and green

India, as a signatory to the Paris Agreement (UN Framework Convention on

Climate Change) and the UN Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),

faces many challenges. To achieve some of its objectives under these, and

specially to fulfil its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs under the Paris

Agreement), an ‘India Roadmap on Low Carbon and Sustainable Mobility

(Decarbonisation of Indian Transport Sector)’, was unveiled last week. The

collective effort of 45 professionals from 36 organisations, the report took some

24 months to complete, with the help of some of the best in the sector, from

government, industry, voluntary organisations and logistics specialists. What

they came up with is a blueprint which, if taken seriously, could help India reduce

significantly the current 18 per cent of CO2 emissions from road transport. The

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report envisaged an integrated approach for best results and drew up

“actionable recommendations” for the future, breaking them into the short

term (up to 2022), medium term (2022 to 2030) and the long term (2030 to

2050).

So, what are the recommendations, the challenges to be overcome? What will

it take to achieve such ambitious goals?

In the short term, the report suggests that a national Transport Authority be

established with Unified Metropolitan Transport Authorities for metros and a

task force that would be a Citizens’ Charter for Urban Mobility.

This will act at a strategic, tactical and operational level, adopting an integrated

approach to building modern railway stations, bus ports, air and seaports

through a systems approach and encourage transit-oriented development. It

also emphasises a change in the permit system and the introduction of ‘one

country one permit’ to incentivise inter-State shared public transport. The role

of the RTO would also be redefined with automation of licensing and fitness

certificates, among others. In the medium term, the report supports setting up

an integrated National Logistics Systems, with an increased use of coastline and

inland waterways for passenger and freight movement. It suggests a Public-

Private-Partnership (PPP) mode for multimodal logistics solutions. For effective

governance, there is emphasis on enforcing congestion charging in large metros,

implementing the vehicle scrap policy and setting up scheduled services and

app-based services for public transport. In the long term, the report favours

investment in advanced technologies for electric mobility and intelligent

transport systems. It envisages that, by then, 100 per cent EV stations will be

powered by renewable energy through decentralised mode or through PPAs

with developers. The focus will also be to ensure implementation of all advanced

bio fuels as envisaged under the National Policy on Biofuels and work on

alternatives for lithium-ion batteries — such as sodium-ion batteries, hydrogen

fuel cells and thermal batteries. The roadmap, which was unveiled recently by

Nitin Gadkari, the Union Minister for Transport and Highways, has been brought

out by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry and

supported by WWF-India, Paris Process on Mobility and Climate (PPMC) and

Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation. At the presentation, the minister assured

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stakeholders that the government will play the role of a facilitator and support

the private sector in its initiatives to develop sustainable transportation systems.

The government believes the industry should consider sustainable

transportation that comprises low-carbon fuels, electric vehicles, water

transportation, conversion of diesel vehicles to LNG and CNG, use of ethanol,

methanol and hydrogen fuels for vehicles. It wants the industry to reach out to

concerned State governments and ministries and suggest changes in policies to

develop implementable and economically viable projects. According to Patrick

Oliva, Co-Founder, PPMC, the economic viability of projects is an important

aspect to develop a low-carbon and sustainable transportation system. The

private sector needs to invest in such ventures, with FICCI and the government

playing a facilitative role.

8 distinct components- To achieve the goals, the report highlights eight distinct

components. These include an urban transformation for healthier, inclusive

cities; a low-carbon energy supply strategy; optimising supply chains to manage

freight transport emissions; discouraging using personal transport for

commuting, shopping and accessing services; providing low-carbon solutions for

rural populations. And last of all, accelerating action on adaptation in transport

sector, with large-scale deployment of economic instruments and leveraging of

finance. When focusing on public transportation, the India Roadmap proposes

to shift the paradigm to the movement of people, rather than the movement of

vehicles, as the effective means to reduce congestion, air pollution, and vehicle

kilometres. This would mean transporting optimal number of people with

minimum transport. For this, it suggests an integrated approach of governance

and institutions, infrastructure and technology for different modes towards

sustainability.

Dilip Chenoy, Secretary General, FICCI, believes “The Roadmap is an opportunity

for stakeholders in government, business, urban and transport planning to

integrate low-carbon and sustainable options into their strategic decisions.”

As for infrastructure development, the report suggests creation of a national grid

of common battery-charging infrastructure, development of bus and multi-

modal terminals across the country on the lines of airports, build multi-modal

logistics parks around major manufacturing and production centres with

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seamless rail and road connectivity to nearby ports, inland waterway terminals,

and distribution centres. It urges the government to earmark budgets for

sustainable mobility for integrated transport systems and not just for specific

projects such as metro, BRT or city bus projects. It suggests that a substantial

part of the road project budget be allocated towards developing public transport

infrastructure, such as multi-modal terminals, surface ports, bus stations,

highway amenity centres and multi-modal logistics parks. To encourage the

private sector, the report argues for extended incentives for manufacture and

use of EVs and biofuels. A key suggestion is the establishment of ‘Green

Taxonomy’ to facilitate asset-backed securitised deals through diversification of

green bonds into the sustainable mobility sector. And dedicated funds to provide

viability gap funding and partial risk sharing facility to build a new green

economy.

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