India’s energy capacity has grown exponentially in the last five years, and is now the fourth largest in the world of total renewable alternative energy.
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In 2015, the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi announced plans for building 175 GW renewable alternative energy capacity by 2022. Within five years, India’s energy capacity has surged up to be ranked fourth in the world of total installed green energy capacity.
On August 12, the country’s renewable energy capacity reached 100 GW (gigawatts), and accounts for about 26% of India’s power generation capacity of 383 GW. Adding the power generated from large hydroelectric projects, renewables make up 38% of the total installed capacity accounts.
The news comes weeks after India announced their plans to ban the manufacture, distribution of single use plastics by July 2022, a major move to reduce the significant plastic pollution problem in the country.
Dedicated development in renewable energy has positioned India as the world’s fourth largest wind power and fifth largest solar power in terms of energy capacities, with more projects currently either underway or tendered.
As the world’s third highest emitter, India’s investment and development in clean, alternative energy have been promising and Prime Minister Modi has no plans to slow down either. He is committed to the country’s sustainable development goals (SDGs) and “aims to touch 450 GW capacity by 2030,” he said in a government statement.
Despite India’s positive steps in alternative energy, the country has not shown the same efforts in its climate actions. In light of the recent damning IPCC report that the world is on track for a 1.5 degree Celsius temperature increase by pre-industrial levels by 2030, India has resisted adopting any net-zero emissions goals, as well as committing to a timeline to phase out fossil fuels and coal power generation. Instead, they believe the responsibility should fall on more developed countries and climate goals to be based on per-capita emission.
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