G20 countries grapple with renewable energy infra supply chain

The Power Ministry secretary said the countries decided to promote local manufacturing of the appliances and import of minerals from diversified sources

The Energy Transition Working Group (ETWG) of the G20 on Monday grappled with the need for renewable energy appliances for a smooth transition as the group member countries discussed just transition and the difficulty of "wishing away" coal.

Briefing the media about the proceedings on the second day of the ETWG meeting, Power Ministry Secretary Alok Kumar said the group deliberated on the price and supply of fossil fuels and RE appliances. "As a global community, the G20 requires huge expansion of manufacturing of RE appliances, they need to augment manufacturing by 10 to 15 times. That will also require prudent management and supply of critical minerals," he said.

This came a day after Union Energy Minister R K Singh expressed concern over "one country" holding a monopoly over critical minerals like lithium, which is required for energy storage devices.

The secretary said the countries decided to promote local manufacturing of appliances and import of minerals from diversified sources.

He said the agenda of 'one sun, one world, one grid' set by the International Solar Alliance received wide support as the countries saw an interconnected grid as a major solution to reduce storage requirements and bring down costs.

Kumar said some of the countries have made suggestions which will be incorporated into the draft of the deliverables. "The deliverables will be finalised in the next two meetings to be held in April and May," he said.

The draft will be handed over to the Finance Group, which will look into the financing of the projects. In the case of India, the ministry has estimated that Rs 2.4 lakh crore is required in the solar energy sector to achieve 500 GW capacity by 2030.