India’s Commitment to Climate Action and Potential for U.S.-India Partnership | Opinion

India’s Commitment to Climate Action and Potential for U.S.-India Partnership | Opinion

India is expected to witness the largest increase in energy demand of any country by 2040. To meet growth in electricity demand over the next 20 years, India will need to add a power system the size of the European Union to what it has now.

Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, India is catering to the huge demand through bold green initiatives, while driving deeper reforms in the energy sector and climate action. These range from energy-mix strategies with a greater shift toward renewables and liquefied natural gas (LNG), enhanced manufacturing capabilities and exports of solar photovoltaics, hybrid and electric vehicles, energy use efficiency and policy push for hydrogen (including production-linked incentives) and emerging technologies. To cite an example, more than 367 million LED bulbs were distributed to consumers over the last seven years, saving energy and reducing 3.86 billion tons of CO2 emissions.