Delivering a talk on “Balancing Private and Public Sector Interest in Energy Sector Reforms” at Observer Research Foundation, Lord Howell said United Kingdom (UK), by following this pathway of moving away from coal, could achieve an 18 percent reduction in greenhouse emissions while registering a two percent growth rate in the last few years.
He said India and other countries too could experiment this pathway as this is an effective and affordable way to achieve low carbon growth to fight climate change.
“Moving away from coal to gas is a realistic and affordable pathway in achieving the major reduction in green house emissions,” Lord Howell said, while admitting that India’s challenge in meeting the low carbon growth is much more difficult because of its large scale of energy demands.
“India does not have the luxury of choosing between coal and gas because of its scale of demand,” he admitted.
Appreciating India’s commitment to reduce greenhouse emissions despite its need for large growth, Lord Howell said partnerships and cooperation between countries like India and UK would help in creating a positive energy future.
He noted that both in India and the UK, State organizations like Bureau of Energy Efficiency are working efficiently with private sector organizations, reducing energy usages by at least 25 percent. He also explained how the world’s first Green Investment Bank with a capital of three billion pounds sterling will help achieve low carbon growth.
He noted that natural gas is a clean energy which is 50% fuel efficient.
Increasing production with less energy use is “a great challenge to all of us,” Lord Howell said, adding pricing renewable energy is a “political question which is complex and multi-faced”. He stressed upon on the need to take right policy decisions in the short, medium and long terms for a low carbon future.
NK Singh, Member of Parliament and Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission of Bihar, chaired the event attended by senior energy experts and scholars.
