Union minister R K Singh on Wednesday said the world should come together to promote the International Solar Alliance (ISA), which has the potential to provide energy to 800 million people globally. “Solving the problem of energy access is more important than the energy transition. The energy transition is meaningless for those without energy.
Today, there are 800 million people who lack energy access, worldwide. It is incumbent upon the developed nations to ensure this access. Without their support, development will inevitably be through fossil fuels,” Singh said while addressing the ISA general assembly.
The Power and New & Renewable Energy Minister called upon the world to work together and enable ISA to make energy available to all using solar and renewable energy.
He pointed out that ISA was founded to bring the global community together, “synergize our efforts, leverage our complementarities to overcome such barriers”.
He said ISA can play the primary role in providing energy access to all.
In his opening address at the inaugural ceremony of the ISA general assembly where 106 countries are participating in the discussions, Singh said adoption of renewable energy has gained significant momentum since the turn of the past decade.
Solar energy, in particular, is now the most viable option to achieve universal access to sustainable energy due to its affordability and amenability to off-grid solutions. “It is the most viable option for us to rapidly de-carbonize our energy sectors,” he added.
India has made rapid strides in the solar energy sector over the past few years and rapid capacity addition is a testament to India’s commitment to clean and affordable solar energy.
“India has target to reach 450 GW of RE by 2030. We have 154 GW of installed non fossil generation capacity and another 67 GW under construction. India’s non-fossil fuel based capacity is on-track to surpass the 40 per cent target under India’s NDC (nationally-determined contribution),” he said.
Special Presidential Envoy for Climate Change, United States, John Kerry applauded ISA and the leadership of India, France and member countries of the ISA assembly in their collaboration to advance the global clean energy transition,
He said,”It is really terrific to see India leading the ISA. India is a close partner and the US strongly supports India’s goal of reaching 450 GW of renewable energy by 2030. We believe that it’s absolutely doable and will be done. India has already set an example for emerging economies by reaching 100GW of renewables.”Read More..
Source : PTI
