The Indian government is looking to replace coal power plants that are slated to retire with renewable energy in an attempt to reduce the country’s carbon emissions in the near future. Currently, India is the second-largest consumer of coal in the world, with coal plants accounting for more than half of its power generation capacity. But Coal India Ltd, the nation’s largest coal miner, is planning to diversify and set up a solar power generation capacity. Indeed, a company official was quoted as saying that solar power is set to overtake coal to become the primary energy source in the coming years. All these signs point towards solar power plants eventually replacing coal power plants.
The Increasing Importance of Clean Energy
Although coal remains the predominant source of commercial energy in India for the next 20 to 30 years, renewable energy sources are estimated to catch up quickly, with solar energy leading the race. The share of coal will ultimately diminish.
Presently, the cost of coal-based thermal power per unit is less than that of solar. However, this may change shortly. What’s more, India is aiming to meet a significant 40% of its energy needs through non-fossil fuel sources by 2030. We’re also targeting 175 GW of renewable energy-based capacity by this year. Up until last year in February, solar power formed 42% of renewable energy at 39,084 MW.
Coal India Ltd has already started working on its goal and commissioned solar power generation by a substantial amount. If all goes according to plan, we will achieve a reduction of a whopping 3,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per year, to just more than 700 tonnes.
India also wants to boost a slow economic growth and has set its sight on building coastal renewable energy equipment manufacturing ports with contribution from the private sector. It will also increase import duties on these to reduce our dependence on foreign products in the industry.
Today, India is a developing country which emits the third largest amount of carbon emissions in the world. It will continue to witness industrial growth, but with cleaner and greener methods. For businesses, this is a telling sign of the times to come. Being prepared to switch to solar or at least renewable energy for operations will benefit both brands and consumers, given the present scenario. Solar power plants replacing coal will soon be a reality.
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