Context:
The Indian Finance Minister, recently announced the budget and placed a strong emphasis on the government’s commitment to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2070.
- India’s growing energy needs and its plans to transition away from fossil fuels to green alternatives makes it an important player in the global effort to combat climate change.
Exemption on Customs Duty for Lithium-Ion Batteries:
- To support the growth of electric vehicles (EVs), the budget proposes to exempt customs duty on the import of machinery and capital goods used in the production of lithium-ion batteries.
- This will encourage local companies to set up EV battery production plants and help lower the cost of EVs.
Viability Gap Funding for Battery Energy Storage Systems:
- The budget also proposes the creation of a viability gap funding mechanism to support the development of battery energy storage systems with a capacity of 4,000 MWh.
- Energy storage systems are crucial for stabilizing power grids and ensuring a consistent electricity supply, especially as India increases its reliance on alternative power sources like solar and wind.
Inter-State Transmission System for Renewable Energy:
- To support the integration of renewable energy sources into the main power grid, the budget sets aside ₹8,300 crore towards a ₹20,700 crore project for building an inter-State transmission system.
- This will help evacuate and integrate 13 GW of renewable energy from Ladakh, a region known for its high levels of sunlight and barren land suitable for solar power production.
Conclusion:
- Overall, the Indian budget highlights the government’s commitment to transitioning to a greener economy and leveraging this move to drive new industries, job growth, and economic output.
- The proposals for supporting lithium-ion battery production, battery energy storage systems, and renewable energy transmission systems are all important steps in achieving the goal of net-zero carbon emissions.
| Additional Information:
About Net Zero:
- Net-zero, which also refers to carbon-neutrality, means a balance between the amount of earth-warming greenhouse gas (GHGs) emissions (carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, methane, etc) produced and the amount eliminated from the atmosphere to tackle climate change.
- To achieve net-zero emissions, all human-caused GHG emissions are counterbalanced by removing GHGs from the atmosphere in a process called ‘carbon removal’.
- Net-zero will ensure that global warming is limited to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial age levels. For limit global warming to below 2 degrees Celsius, CO2 emissions need to decrease by about 25 per cent from the 2010 level by 2030 and reach net zero around 2070.
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News Source: The Hindu
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February 4, 2023