Renewable energy and the energy transition

Renewable energy means energy from sources that replenish naturally: sunlight, wind, water, biomass and geothermal heat. India's transition towards renewables is driven by three goals that do not always align: energy security, affordable electricity, and lower emissions. Solar and wind are now among the cheapest sources of new electricity in many places, but they vary with weather and time of day, so the grid must balance them with storage, flexible generation and stronger transmission.

The National Solar Mission, launched in 2010 as part of the National Action Plan on Climate Change, set out to make solar power competitive and to build domestic capacity. It was followed by large solar parks, auctions that drove prices down, and rooftop programmes for homes and institutions. Wind power, concentrated in states such as Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and Rajasthan, grew earlier and remains a major source. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy coordinates the sector, while state agencies manage land, evacuation and distribution.

Green hydrogen is the next frontier. Made by splitting water with renewable electricity, it can replace fossil fuels in fertiliser, refining, steel and heavy transport, where direct electrification is hard. The National Green Hydrogen Mission, approved in January 2023 with an outlay of 19,744 crore rupees, aims to build production capacity, demand and export capability. Its success depends on the cost of renewable electricity, electrolyser manufacturing and transport infrastructure, all of which are still maturing.

The International Solar Alliance, co-founded by India and France at the Paris climate conference in 2015, promotes solar deployment in sunshine-rich countries through finance, technology and training. It illustrates how India has used climate diplomacy to build institutions, not only to negotiate targets. Domestically, the transition's hardest problems are distribution: state electricity companies in financial difficulty, the need to pay for grid upgrades, and the politics of electricity tariffs for farmers and households.

The transition should be judged on the system, not on a single capacity figure. Adding solar panels helps only if the grid can carry the power, storage can cover evenings, and consumers receive reliable supply at affordable prices. A just transition also asks who gains and who loses: coal workers and mining regions need alternative livelihoods, and the costs of new infrastructure should not fall only on the poorest consumers.