Taking a slice of the SDG 7 pie and making it tastier

Authored by Group 6: 

  1. Apurva Jain - B19069
  2. Devesh Agrawal - B19075
  3. Kushagra Agarwal - B19085
  4. Mohammad Saad - B19087
  5. Ragini Mahapatra - B19096
  6. Srinkhala Maheshwari - B19113
13864.9 million tonnes of oil equivalent of energy was consumed by the world last year in 2018. This was a 2.9% increase from 2017 levels. India’s share of the total pie was 5.8%, which witnessed a year on year growth of 7.9% from 2017. [1] All the energy that was consumed was generated both from conventional and non-conventional sources, but energy supply in India largely relied on coal. The final breakup by type of fuel is as given in table 1.

Primary Energy Consumption in Mtoe

Oil
Natural Gas
Coal
Nuclear Energy
Hydro-electricity
Renewables
Total
India
239.1
49.9
452.2
8.8
31.6
27.5
809.1
30%
6%
56%
1%
4%
3%
100%
Asia Pacific
1695.4
709.6
2841.3
125.3
388.9
225.4
5985.9
28%
12%
47%
2%
6%
4%
100%
World
4662.1
3309.4
3772.1
611.3
948.8
561.3
13865
34%
24%
27%
4%
7%
4%
100%
Table 1

Though US and China produce the most coal-based energy in absolute numbers, India’s coal-based power plants are the dirtiest. This was corroborated in a study by researchers from ETH simulating emissions from 7861 power plant units.
Burning of coal releases PM 2.5 particles in the air, which is one of the primary pollutants leading to harmful diseases including heart disease, stroke and lung cancers. This is in addition to the 200 pounds of CO2 and other greenhouse gases released in the atmosphere with each British Thermal Unit of energy produced from coal. [3]
While we can argue over the harmful effects of the energy from coal, it is pertinent to note that living standards improve as energy consumption per capita increases [4], especially for countries with low per capita energy consumption. This poses the question of how to produce energy sustainably while simultaneously making it accessible to everyone.

This is precisely the 7th Sustainability Development Goal of the United Nations. India’s promises the following:
1. Ensure 100% of households are electrified and are using clean cooking fuel by 2030.
2. Increase the share of energy generated from renewables to 40% by 2030. [5]

Indian aims to produce 175 GW from renewable sources distributed as 100GW from solar, 60 GW from wind, 10 GW from biomass, and 5 GW from hydropower. [6]
Since coal contributes to more than half of India’s energy generation, it is crucial to look if coal as the US president keeps claiming “can be made cleaner”. Making coal cleaner involves capturing CO2 produced in the energy generation process and pumping the captured carbon dioxide underground, which helps in crude oil extraction.[7] Though it may sound like a viable alternative, this process of capturing and storing comes at a price along with additional complexity in energy generation, and only a single power plant in the US has implemented it till now.[8]
Since traditional sources of energy such as oil and coal have inherent tendencies to give out greenhouse gases which is difficult to contain, we look towards other sources of energy. One of the alternatives is harnessing solar power. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRWA), India produces solar energy at the lowest cost at $793 per KW. [9] The costs of installing solar power plants have also drastically decreased over the past decade by more than 80%. All of this has made solar energy a viable alternative to coal. It is indeed one of the cleanest energies. Because of this, India increased its solar power capacity by around 9 GW in 2018.
One of the biggest drawbacks with solar power is the requirement of large land surfaces to produce electricity on a large scale. Around one sq. km of land is required to generate about 50 MW of solar power. Here comes the tough decision of whether to use the land for agriculture or for generating power. Several innovative solutions are being implemented to tackle these shortcomings of solar energy usage.
Vishakhapatnam has recently released a tender to build a 2 MW floating solar power plant on the Mudasarlova reservoir. Tesla has developed another novel method. They have innovated the traditional roof tiles, and have fitted PV panels into them. Tesla markets these tiles as ‘Solar Glass Roof”. The tiles cost around $21 per foot and led to a total installation cost of approximately $40,000 for an entire 2000 sq. foot roof. [10] Tesla is relying on the US government providing tax credits to customers to bring down the effective cost of installation. Additionally, they are selling the battery systems on which energy can be stored when excess energy is produced and have named it “powerwall”. A powerwall costs $14,000, but consumers can use the stored energy in a powerwall to distribute it back into the grid and thus reduce the effective cost in the long term. [11] However, Tesla is unlikely to find a market in India anytime soon due to these huge costs.
Solar energy is also being used to help with rural electrification. As part of the governments’ initiative to make clean energy accessible to all, several local electrical distributors and utilities are setting mini and microgrids to light up these villages. Solar has the advantage of not requiring any fuel such as kerosene or diesel for operation and is thus apt for rural electrification.
Another renewable source of energy is hydropower. India stands 7th in the hydroelectric power generation and generates 14% of its total power through the same. It is estimated that India’s overall capacity to generate hydropower is around 140 GW. [12] However, all is not hunky-dory with hydroelectricity. Hydropower exploitation at dams affects the aquatic life near that area. The generation of hydropower causes intermittent releasing of water from dams damaging both the ecology of the river, and the quality of water in terms of its turbidity and dissolved oxygen. [13] Many other forms of wildlife are also affected. One such example is of Indonesian hydroelectric powerplant that is threatening the existence of rare Tapanuli orangutans because of the destruction of its habitat. [14]
There are various other sources of clean energy from wind and geothermal to biogas. But one of the big problems with renewable sources is the variable supply which makes the grid unstable. Solar power depends on the sun and wind energy on the wind flow. Many times, it is difficult to predict the amount of energy that might be generated accurately. An electric grid with a large dependency on renewables may suffer from large electric fluctuations corresponding to changes in electric supply.
Implementation of SCADA systems and better prediction of load demanded in electricity generation and distribution, is now allowing us to switch from conventional to non-conventional sources quickly. This is helping integrate renewables with conventional sources of energy.
There are various methods using which companies are contributing as publicising themselves with the cleaner energy tag. The RE100, by the Climate Group and CDP, is a global initiative of bringing together the world’s most influential companies that are committing to powering themselves entirely through renewable energies. The introduction of micro-grids, where companies can set up their renewable power plants for their energy needs, is helping them source 100% renewable energy. It is much easier for companies in the services sector to implement the same, due to their lower power requirements, but poses a unique challenge in case of manufacturing and processing industry where power requirement is high.
Apple has promised to source all its energy from green sources. They are achieving this by powering their headquarters as well as a large number of data centres through solar roof panels. It has also in many cases entered into agreements with local electrical generation authorities promising to buy power for a long-term period allowing them to invest a larger pool of resource into renewable electricity generation. Closer to home, we have TATA Motors, Infosys, club Mahindra, and Dalmia that feature in the RE100 list. [15] Dalmia cement too, has committed to sourcing all its energy from renewable sources. It has currently a generating capacity of 151 MW, 40% of which is renewable helping it power the cement and sugar plants as well as feeding electricity into the state grids. [16]
However, it is not always possible for firms to set up their own power plants to source energy. How should they then ensure and commit to 100% renewables, if they are taking electricity directly from the grid when it is physically impossible to separate or identify where the electricity in a grid is coming from? Renewable Energy Certificates, or RECs, introduced by Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) helps in this regard. These certificates are sold by those that generate renewable electricity and helps them in recovering the extra cost spent on generating it via renewable resources. Firms, on the other hand, can buy these certificates and claim to have sourced their electricity through renewable means. In the Indian electricity exchange market, one REC is worth one megawatt-hour of electricity produced through renewable means. [17]
Another type of certificates is energy savings certificates which are also traded in the energy exchanges. Companies that operate in energy-intensive sectors of Aluminium, Cement, Chlor-alkali, Fertilizer, Iron and Steel, Pulp and Paper, Textiles are identified. Energy-saving targets are defined, and those performing above the targets are able to sell their increased efficiency in the form of certificates to those that are unable to achieve their targets. Thus, companies are rewarded for their increased energy efficiency. [18]
All these certificates provide a way for firms to achieve their renewable energy and green targets and incentivise them to do so. But they have their limitations. These certificates provide a way for organisations to clear their conscience without investing in long term solutions for clean energy. They can continue to source dirty power, and buy green certificates without actually investing in these clean sources themselves. The certificates act as a way to shift responsibility and might lead to greenwashing in various cases.
While we look at energy efficiency from the perspective of generation and distribution, it could also be looked at from the perspective of end consumers. Changes in their behaviour can sometimes lead to reduced energy consumption. The LED bulb program was one such initiative where mass distribution of LED bulbs and knowledge dissemination caused household consumers to switch from traditional inefficient lighting methods to cost and energy-efficient LEDs.
As we move into the next decade, it is more and more important for organisations as well as countries to not only meet the targets but to go beyond them if we want to arrest the climate change to pre-industrial levels. From the perspective of India, it is necessary to create a clean energy infrastructure for the growing needs of the developing nation. At the same time, policymakers must sit down and decide on quantitative terms on which industries can be held accountable. Accurate and transparent reporting of their emissions and energy usage, and capping those emissions or incentivising them to lower the levels is a must if India wants to meet its sustainable development target of clean and accessible energy for 2030.


1.      Home. (n.d.). Retrieved December 4, 2019, from https://www.bp.com/en/global/corporate.html.
2.      Oberschelp, C., Pfister, S., Raptis, C. E., & Hellweg, S. (2019, February 11). Global emission hotspots of coal power generation. Retrieved December 5, 2019, from https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-019-0221-6.
3.      U.S. Energy Information Administration - EIA - Independent Statistics and Analysis. (n.d.). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from https://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.php?id=73&t=11.
4.      Njiru, W., C., & C., S. (2018, November 14). Energy Poverty and Its Implication on Standard of Living in Kirinyaga, Kenya. Retrieved December 5, 2019, from https://www.hindawi.com/journals/jen/2018/3196567/.
5.      Wills of Steel. (n.d.). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from https://niti.gov.in/.
6.      SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy. (n.d.). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from https://in.one.un.org/page/sustainable-development-goals/sdg-7/.
7.      What is CCS? (n.d.). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from http://www.ccsassociation.org/what-is-ccs/.
8.      Plumer, B. (2017, August 23). What 'Clean Coal' Is - and Isn't. Retrieved December 5, 2019, from https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/23/climate/what-clean-coal-is-and-isnt.html.
11.  Tesla Powerwall. (n.d.). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from https://www.tesla.com/powerwall.
12.  Central Electricity Authority. (n.d.). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from http://www.cea.nic.in/.
13.  (n.d.). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from http://large.stanford.edu/courses/2016/ph240/jones-j1/.
15.  Companies. (n.d.). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from http://there100.org/companies.
16. Dalmia Power - dalmiabharat.com. (n.d.). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from https://www.dalmiabharat.com/index2dd8.html.
17.  DAM Prices 06 Dec 2019 (Rs./kWh). (n.d.). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from https://www.iexindia.com/.
18.  (n.d.). Retrieved December 5, 2019, from https://pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=159670.

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