Based on a report, Karnataka and Gujarat are leading India’s clean energy transition race

According to new research issued on Tuesday, states like Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, and Uttar Pradesh need to speed up their efforts to catch up to Karnataka and Gujarat in the race to transition to sustainable energy. The readiness for the clean power transition at the subnational level is assessed in a joint analysis by the research organization Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) and the clean energy think tank Ember.

Karnataka and Gujarat, according to the report’s authors, are continuing to perform well in all areas, successfully integrating renewable energy sources into their power sectors and making significant progress toward decarbonization.

However, states like Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Jharkhand, and Bihar must do better. Even though these states are only beginning their transformation, they now need to concentrate on bolstering their distribution firms, improving short-term market involvement, and expanding the deployment of renewable energy. The Ministry of Power is getting ready for a predicted peak power demand of 260 gigawatts as a result of the report’s release, coinciding with a severe heat wave that is affecting many regions of India. Severe summers also provide an opportunity to use additional renewable energy sources, such as solar energy. However, this necessitates states being ready to switch to sustainable energy sources.

India’s peak energy consumption is rising annually due to a combination of cyclical weather patterns and increased economic activity. States must be ready to incorporate more renewable energy into the system, even as the federal government moves in that direction. It is now necessary to continuously monitor a number of factors at the state level in order to assess sub-national development. A solely national viewpoint may often obscure minute details at the state level, which might impede the nation’s transition to electricity, according to Vibhuti Garg, Director, South Asia, IEEFA, who contributed to the paper.

State-by-state progress toward the electrical transition is significantly more erratic than it is at the federal level.To guarantee that there is more renewable energy in their electrical networks, several governments have established progressive measures, including encouraging the development of decentralized renewable energy, endorsing solar pumps for agricultural purposes, and improving storage options. However, in many states, the switch to clean power is still relatively new.

The report’s contributing author, Aditya Lolla, Director of Ember’s Asia Program, said that “these states should look to accelerate efforts to access the benefits of a transition to clean electricity and to ensure they are not left too far behind the better-performing states.” A noteworthy discovery from the study conducted for the 2024 report is that a number of states are demonstrating readiness for the adoption of the electrical transition. They do well in the areas of “Market Enablers” and “Readiness and Performance of the Power Ecosystem,” but they still need to work on “Decarbonization.”

“Odisha has strong market enablers to support decarbonization in the power sector, and Delhi’s power system is well-prepared for it.” Co-author Neshwin Rodrigues, an electricity policy analyst at Ember, said that “their actual decarbonization progress to date does not match their strengths in these aspects, highlighting the importance of performing well in both dimensions to effectively achieve decarbonization goals.” The paper highlights that by fortifying the electricity ecosystem and assembling the necessary enablers, state-level decarbonization may be expedited even further.

While some governments that are doing a good job of decarbonizing also lack the necessary market facilitators, others have issues with their electricity ecosystems being ready. Kerala, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, and Maharashtra all showed significant advancements in certain areas but less success in others. According to co-author Tanya Rana, Energy Analyst, IEEFA, states that states like Kerala and Punjab need to enhance their market enablers for decarbonization, while states like Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra should concentrate on the preparedness of their power ecosystems.

“Saloni Sachdeva Michael, Energy Specialist, India Clean Energy Transition, IEEFA, states that states must address deficiencies in readiness and market enablers to sustain their momentum, despite achieving relative success in decarbonizing the sector thus far.” The study acknowledges the significant efforts governments are making to switch to renewable energy and makes several important recommendations to quicken the transition. “We advocate for the regulatory ecosystems at the state level to be strengthened.

This not only guarantees compliance but also fosters development, data tracking and monitoring, and a business-friendly atmosphere, according to Michael. India has developed many policy plans at the federal and state levels to promote different reforms and regulatory actions along the value chain in order to further its objective of energy independence.

But in practice, it hasn’t been sufficient or open,” she said. The paper also emphasizes the need of switching the emphasis of research from national to state levels in order to completely comprehend the subtleties of India’s power transition. “Decarbonizing its electricity system presents distinct issues for every state, requiring specialized policy interventions. State-specific difficulties and possible actions may be better recognized by monitoring the evolution of market enablers, evaluating the electricity system’s preparedness for transition, and following the decarbonization process, according to Rodrigues.