FUTURE FUELS: Burying fossil fuels, sowing renewables
In the next 300 years, mankind will have used up the world’s fossil fuel resources that took 600 million years to be created. With one-fifth of the world’s population, India ranks sixth in terms of energy demand, accounting for 3.61% of the global energy needs, and together with China is the fastest-growing user of fossil fuels.Since 1970s India has been trying to tap renewable energy sources such as solar, wind, biomass and small hydro, irrespective of capacity. The Electricity Act 2003 tried to accelerate development of power generation from non-conventional sources. Dr Eric Martinot, senior research fellow, Clean Energy Research and Education Center, Tsinghua University, commends, “India was the first country to establish feed-in tariffs to exploit renewable energy potential.” India will need 400,000 MW by 2030. It has a large potential for renewable energy and only a fraction of the aggregate potential has been harnessed so far. Over 6,400 MW of renewable power generation capacity has been set up in the country spread over wind, small hydro and biomass power. Today India has the largest decentralised solar energy programme, the second largest biogas and improved stove programmes, and the fifth largest wind power programme in the world. Countries in Europe and the US have developed more than 80% of the potential of their economically-viable hydropower. This is in sharp contrast to the 30% figure in India.
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