Renewable energy in India seems to have become the snake that devours its own tail, in a manner of speaking. Our first editorial points out that earlier tenders have failed to find buyers at auctions, despite solar power being the cheapest source of power currently. State electricity boards are loath to sign future contracts at higher prices now, given prices’ downward direction. Renewable energy accounts for over 45 per cent of installed capacity in India, but the success of scaling up has come at a high cost: actual power continues to be primarily coal-based.
Columnist Anirudh Shingal wonder if it is really possible to decouple from China, which has grown its share of global imports to 16.3 per cent by 2019? Despite tariffs, it continues to dominate indirect imports, in that raw materials to other countries still flow from it. And given its dominance in rare earth metals, and the world’s growing reliance on those for batteries and chips, it makes more sense to engage constructively with China without compromising on domestic interests.
Source: www.business-standard.com
