India voicing energy concerns of poorer nations at G20: Govt

He said India was close to achieving the targets set at the 2015 Paris Meet to reduce our emissions by 33% as compared to 2005 levels by 2030

India is well ahead of major economies in achieving targets for emission cuts and energy transition but will not compromise on its energy security, Union Minister for Power, New and Renewable Energy R K Singh said Sunday, adding that the country will bring to focus concerns of the poorer nations that do not have resources for transition.

Addressing the media on the sidelines of the G20's Energy Transition Working Group (ETWG) meeting in Bengaluru, he reiterated that India will bring to the fore the issues that are crucial for the development of the Group of 20 countries that represent 85 per cent of the global GDP and 75 per cent of the global trade.

He said India was close to achieving the targets set at the 2015 Paris Meet to reduce our emissions by 33 per cent as compared to 2005 levels by 2030. "We are already close to 30 per cent. We are consistently achieving the targets we set for ourselves regarding non-fossil energy. However, we want to expand the discourse on energy transition to include energy access, energy security and accessibility," he added.

He said unlike India, poorer countries do not have the resources to achieve the targets. "There are 600 to 800 million people who lack access to energy. What I am voicing is the concern of these countries. When faced with the issue of energy security and access, a country can't work on energy transition," he said.

To a question, the minister said the country will continue to coal-dependent projects. "We are not going to compromise with the availability of energy for the requirement of the country's growth for a better standard of living of people. Wherever it comes from, we shall provide the required energy," he said.

He said there was a need for technology to improve storage. "Storage tech is expensive because not much has been done by the developed world for building up storage manufacturing capacity. The world has to work on solutions collectively as without storage we will go back to fossil fuels," he said.