TERI proposes Rs 40-lakh crore Green Stimulus to revive growth, jobs

TERI has also pitched for producing renewable energy from agricultural residues which have an investment potential of Rs 22,470 crore per annum. (Photo: The Indian Express)

The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) has proposed to revive the Indian economy by exploiting potential of around Rs 40 lakh crore in clean energy projects over the next 10 year through government policy interventions but with minimum public spending.

TERI has released a discussion paper on ‘A Fiscally Responsible Green Stimulus’ to revive the Indian economy by creating demand and jobs with policy and regulatory interventions using minimal government spending, a TERI statement said.

The Green Stimulus proposed by the TERI is about Rs 40 lakh crore (or USD 540 billion), spread over this decade by 2030. TERI suggested incentivising cleaner transport, which has the investment potential of Rs 1.6 lakh crore per annum. It suggested subsidising fleet modernisation of existing vehicles to BS-VI, use of electric vehicles and provision of buses for public transport. The Institute has also pitched for producing renewable energy from agricultural residues which have an investment potential of Rs 22,470 crore per annum.

The Energy and Resources Institute suggested that the government should announce a commercially viable procurement price for the next five years for briquettes made from crop waste. It has also asked for creating RE from animal husbandry waste, which has an investment potential of Rs 88,000 crore per annum.

The study suggested the introduction of a commercially viable feed-in tariff for the purchase of electricity generated from animal husbandry waste (excreta from cattle, poultry, pigs, etc.) by power distribution companies. It says promoting solar generation in rural India has an investment potential of Rs 27 lakh crore. It made a case for a commercially viable feed-in tariff for the purchase of electricity generated from rural areas in the kilowatt range by power distribution companies.

Supporting MSMEs to become more green and competitive has savings potential of Rs 15,000 crore every year. The stimulus package envisaged by the government can be used to finance investments in the MSME sector for enhancing competitiveness through energy efficiency, it added. This would involve the replacement of energy-inefficient boilers, pumps and motors. Creating domestic manufacturing capacity for solar power and energy storage has an investment potential of Rs 2,94,000 crore by 2030, as per the study. It has suggested that the government should invite bids for solar power with storage along with the condition that manufacturing with full value addition would be done in India.

Renewable Energy Secretary Indu Shekhar Chaturvedi said in the statement, “The paper adopts a holistic approach on issues related to clean energy and environment. It focuses on interventions in areas that are rather neglected such as generating waste to energy or animal waste to energy or agriculture waste to energy.”

He further said some of the recommendations are already being acted upon by MNRE, such as the PM-KUSUM scheme. “We hope to have a framework where domestic solar manufacturing gets impetus. We also have plans for generating energy from surplus biomass.”

On renewable energy, the secretary added, “India’s installed renewable energy capacity has grown by 2.5 times in the past six years. However, our share in RE electricity generation remains at 12 per cent or 1/10th of overall production. Rapid technological changes in the coming years will help us reduce renewable energy costs and costs associated with integrating RE into the grid.”