Rising share of non-fossil fuels to make power generation in India cleaner

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Although overall carbon emissions from the power sector in India have been on the rise, the latest estimates from the government show that the amount of pollutants released per unit of power in the country is on the decline.

This is because of the rising share of non-fossil fuels in the country’s power generation capacity mix.

Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from the power sector in India stood at 1002 million tonnes (MT) in FY22, up from 910 MT in FY21, and are projected to reach 1,114 MT by FY30, according to a recent report by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), a body under the Ministry of Power

This rise in emissions is largely due to a projected overall increase in power generation. The country’s installed power generation capacity is likely to go up by as much as 87 percent from 398,986 megawatt (MW) in FY22 to 777,144 MW in FY30.

However, despite this, the average emission factor from power generation in the country is projected to reduce from 0.658 in FY21 to 0.477 by FY30. The average emission factor denotes the quantity of pollutants released into the atmosphere per unit of power generated.

This decline in the emission factor, indicating cleaner power generation, would be due to the rise in the share of non-fossil fuels, such as solar energy, in the country’s power generation capacity mix.

“In March 2022, the percentage of non-fossil fuel in installed capacity was 41%. Studies for the year 2029-30 show that it is likely to increase to around 64% in March 2030,” said the CEA report.

Among renewable sources, solar energy leads the pack, accounting for more than 33 percent, and 13.53 percent of the total capacity mix in FY22. Data from the CEA shows that the share of solar energy has dramatically increased to 37.35 percent of overall renewable energy sources and now accounts for more than 16 percent of the total capacity mix as of FY23.

Estimates for FY30 show that solar would constitute as much as 58.44 percent of renewable energy capacity and 37.65 percent of the total capacity mix by then. Meanwhile, the share of fossil fuels will go down to just 35.58 percent.

On track to meet clean energy commitments

In October 2015, India submitted its Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), aiming to achieve 40 percent of its cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based energy resources by 2030. Notably, the country has already surpassed this target.

India now aims to meet 50 percent of its energy from non-fossil fuels by 2030, and as shown by the figures above, the country seems to be on track to meet this target as well.