The government is aiming to increase the amount of renewable energy sources in its electricity mix. They have targets of 23% by 2025, and 31% by 2050. In addition, the petroleum energy mix is expected to decrease by about 20 percent by 2050. In the last decade, the country has experienced an increase in energy consumption. However, fossil energy production is not able to meet the demand, resulting in an increasing need for imported petroleum. These concerns are addressed by the government, which has implemented a range of policies to encourage the use of renewable energy sources in the country.
India's ambitious targets for resurgence
India's ambitious RE targets are a sign of a positive future in the sector. Numerous long-term investors have been attracted to India, including sovereign entities as well as global private equity firms and major oil and gas companies. In recent years, the sector has seen an explosion in investor interest and a sharp increase in its value. India's opportunities in RE are immense if they are implemented well.
The Government of India set ambitious RE targets in 2030 with the goal of installing 450 gigawatts of power. India's largest RE resource will likely be from wind solar hybrids. The country will need innovative technologies and supportive policies to achieve this ambitious goal. Rooftop solar plus storage, for example, is the fastest growing segment of India's renewable energy market. It also has the lowest price per kWh anywhere in the world.
Costs associated with achieving retargets
The Southern African Development Community is a region with ambitious goals for renewable energy. This region is on track towards full energy access in 2040. It also has 53% of the world's renewable energy potential. These targets can be achieved with investments of close to $53 billion. The region has faced many problems along the way. This included the COVID-19 pandemic that severely impacted the energy sector. The pandemic caused lockdowns which disrupted the entire value chain of electricity. This led to delays in RE project design, as well import restrictions and equipment procurement logistics. These delays also prevented SADC to fully benefit from policy initiatives that encourage private-sector engagement.
Economic Growth: The Impact of Retargets
Many jurisdictions have adopted Renewable Energy Targets (RETs) to increase renewable energy's share in total energy production. These targets will accelerate the expansion and address climate change quickly. These targets will require significant changes to the energy system in order to be achieved. Although RETs can be a useful tool for policy, there are significant drawbacks.
First, targets can create psychological pressures for people to act quickly. This can lead to decision-makers losing sight of the main objectives. For instance, the Renewable Energy Directive threatens to increase net carbon emissions and deforestation. This could lead you to making unwise trade-offs.
Retargets have an impact on carbon emissions
To reduce carbon emissions, Retargets were established. These targets come with some limitations. For one, the carbon efficiency of a region differs from another. For example, in China, the eastern region has a high carbon emissions efficiency, while the western region has a low one. Retargets' effectiveness is therefore not yet demonstrated.
This has made it imperative that we balance economic growth with ecological management. A key criterion to a sustainable and ecologically-friendly economy is increasing carbon efficiency. The development of renewable energy sources is a way to achieve this goal and can provide a solid foundation for decision-making.