India is calling for greater cooperation with France on clean energy and highlighted New Delhi’s plans for a green transition to EVs and hydrogen power. India’s renewable energy sector ranks 4th on the list of the world’s most attractive renewable energy sectors and solar power is the country’s most abundant source of renewable energy.
Inaugurating the Indo-French Workshop on Clean and Sustainable Energy Technologies (INFINITE) at CSIR – National Physical Laboratory in New Delhi, Dr. S. Chandrasekhar, Secretary, Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India said that the government has set a target of installing 100 GW of solar power by 2022. He added that using the Thar desert as a site for solar power generation, India is estimated to generate up to 2,100 GW of solar power.
Dr. Chandrasekhar pointed to another initiative of the government. India and it’s National Biofuel Policy aims to achieve 20% ethanol blending in petrol and 5% biodiesel blending in diesel by 2030.
Dr Chandrasekhar pointed out that the area to focus on is carbon capture and storage and as estimated by NITI Aayog, theoretically India has a total geological CO2 storage capacity of 400-600 Gt, taking into account depleted oil reservoirs and gas, non-minable coal seams. , saline aquifers, basalts, etc. He said the government has designed policies, programs and a liberal environment to attract foreign investment so that the country can quickly enter the renewable energy market.
The Department of Science and Technology is also interested in promoting international cooperation in clean energy research. “I am hopeful that the process and technologies discussed at this workshop will have enormous potential in mitigating the effects of climate change and reducing greenhouse gas emissions,” the secretary added.
CSIR Director General and DSIR Secretary Dr. In his speech, N. Kalaiselvi said that India needs a huge expansion in the production of renewable energy technologies and infrastructure. She emphasized that a partnership with France and other G20 countries is necessary for the production, storage and conversion of green energy, especially green hydrogen, green ammonia and energy storage infrastructure. India and France have a long-standing bilateral research collaboration, especially to expand clean and renewable energy research, she added.
Pr. Antoine Petit, Director General of the French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), expressed appreciation for the strong partnership between the two countries and emphasized the importance of working together to achieve a sustainable energy transition through new bilateral programs.
Prof. Arvind Kumar Mishra, Director, CSIR-CIMFR, emphasized that this workshop is broadly aimed at bringing together academic and industrial experts from France and India to develop cooperation in the field of clean and sustainable energy. He said both parties need to identify specific research problems and objectives and identify partners to develop new knowledge bases, joint IP and tangible results in biomass energy, coal to methanol/clean fuels, solar energy, hydrogen, energy storage and utilization and storage carbon. We need to share our experiences, explore new ideas and challenge ourselves to think differently.
The aim of the workshop is to bring together experts, researchers, policy makers and industry leaders from both countries to exchange knowledge, ideas and best practices in the development and deployment of clean and sustainable energy technologies. The workshop will feature a series of presentations and discussions on various topics related to solar energy, hydrogen energy, carbon utilization and storage, electrochemical energy storage and clean fuels.
The event is jointly organized by CSIR – Central Institute for Mining and Fuel Research (CIMFR), Dhanbad and French National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS), France and is supported by the Indo-French Center for Advanced Promotion. Research (CEFIPRA).
Guests, invitees and delegates were welcomed by prof. Venugopal Achanta, Director, CSIR – NPL, and the opening remarks were delivered by Prof. Arvind K. Mishra, Director, CSIR – CIMFR.
Prior to the workshop, the bilateral meeting between DG, CSIR and Director General of CNRS also included a discussion on strengthening cooperation in clean energy R&D and formulation of new R&D programs between the two countries. The meeting was also supported by the directors of several CSIR laboratories and other French representatives from CEFIPRA, CNRS, CEA and the Embassy of France in India, New Delhi.
The INFINITE workshop provides a platform for experts and stakeholders from both countries to exchange knowledge, identify areas of cooperation and explore new avenues of cooperation in clean and sustainable energy technologies. The event is expected to be successful and we hope that the discussions and collaborations initiated during the workshop will lead to concrete results in the near future.
The bilateral workshop is coordinated by Dr. R. Ebhin Masto, Principal Scientist, CSIR – CIMFR, India, and Dr. Abdelilah Slaoui, Deputy Director of Research in charge of Energy, CNRS, France.
