The latest BRICS Energy Technology Report 2021 states that India will account for one-fifth (20%) of the global renewable energy deployment target for 2030.

Solar and wind power generation has been the cheapest source of bulk power generation in India since 2018 due to declining equipment costs and successful auctions. The country aims to deploy 175 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2022 and 450 GW by 2030. However, the report notes that the pace of new capacity deployment has slowed down in the past two years.

Last month, India’s installed renewable energy capacity crossed the 100 GW milestone, excluding large hydropower projects.

Coal continues to dominate India’s total energy supply with a 45% share, while hydro, wind and solar energy, biofuel, and waste-based accounts for 1.41%, 1.08%, and 20.13%, respectively, as of 2018. However, the share of fossil fuel-based power generation declined to 62% from 68% between 2014-2020.

According to the report, India’s energy intensity declined from 0.273 megajoules/Indian Rupee (INR) in 2012-13 to 0.223 megajoules/INR in 2019-20, marking an 18% efficiency increase, aiding the country in reducing emission intensity, set at 33-35% by 2030 under the Paris Agreement.

India is also taking several initiatives to decarbonize its transport sector through cleaner fuels, improving efficiency, modal shifts, and promoting electric mobility.

According to a report published by Climate Trends and Riding Sunbeams, one in four trains of the Indian Railways could be powered by solar power.

China

Hydropower, wind and solar dominate China’s installed renewable capacity with 39.6%, 30.1%, and 27.1%, respectively, as of 2020.  According to the National Energy Administration, China installed 13.01 GW of solar capacity in the first half of 2021 and installed 48.2 GW of solar in 2020.

However, the country’s economy is heavily dependent on coal, accounting for 62% of the total energy supply. Meanwhile, hydropower, wind and solar energy, biofuels, and waste-based energy account for 2.4%, 2.5%, and 3.6%, respectively, as of 2018.

The 13th Five Year Plan for Electricity (2016-2020) aims to enhance China’s non-fossil fuel’s share in power generation from 35% to 39%. China’s nationally determined contribution targets aim to restrict carbon emission by 2030 or earlier and reduce the carbon intensity of GDP by 60-65% by 2030 from the 2005 levels.

In 2020, China generated 7.62 trillion kWh of electricity – coal-based power generation accounted for 65%, hydropower for 17%, wind for 6%, and solar for 3%.

Brazil

Brazil’s total power supply is dominated by oil derivatives and biofuels with 33.1% and 33.7% share, while hydropower, natural gas, coal, and wind, and solar accounted for 12.5%, 11.8%, 4.9%, and 2.0% share, respectively.

In 2020, the share of non-renewable declined by 6.2% due to a strong reduction in air and road transport; instead, the share of renewables increased by 2.5%, coming from wind and solar energy.

Brazil also has the lowest carbon intensity as the share of renewable energy in the total energy supply was 48.4%, three times more than the global average.

In 2020, Brazil generated 621.2 TWh of electricity – 24.7 TWh of electricity was imported, and the remaining was generated domestically. Hydropower covers the lion’s share with 65.2%, followed by wind and solar with 10.5% share and biomass with 9.5% in the total energy supply matrix.

South Africa 

South Africa’s energy mix is dominated by coal, as it accounts for 90% of the total mix, followed by nuclear energy and biofuels accounting for 20% and 5.09%, respectively.

The country has undertaken several initiatives to reduce carbon emissions from the energy sector and is promoting energy-efficient technologies. The Energy Efficiency and Energy Demand Flagship Program was launched to improve industrial energy efficiency, energy efficiency and labeling standards, integrated demand management program, and several other actions.

Last month, the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy of South Africa received 102 bids for 2.6 GW of renewable energy projects, including 63 bids for solar projects. In March 2021, the department had floated the country’s fifth renewable energy bid to procure 2.6 GW of clean energy projects.

Harsh Shukla is a staff reporter at Mercom India. Previously with Indian Express, he has covered general interest stories. He holds a Masters Degree in Journalism from Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication, Pune.

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