Decarbonisation Is Nearing. India Should Brace For its Impact. – The Wire

The fourth – and concluding – report in this series looks at the costs of accelerated decarbonisation in a battered economy.

That, however, is set to change.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statements at COP26 have added to the pressure.

A number of researchers across the world are working on ‘just transition’ – to support the economies that run on fossil fuels.

As Tata Motors’ electric vehicle deal with TPG Rise Climate and ADQ  shows, larger firms might survive, but smaller firms will struggle.

As the second story in our series showed, Tata Steel is mulling over hydrogen and carbon capture.

Now, as renewable energy and innovations like carbon border taxes gather pace, the world will see global manufacturing chains redeploy themselves.

It will have to choose between renewables – whose prices are set to rise in India – and paying carbon border taxes.

In coal, thermal power producers found themselves unable to compete with those who bagged discretionary captive coal block allocations – and slipped into losses.

Between the country’s ‘Make in India’ push, the imposition of a basic Customs duty on solar imports, and a hike in GST rates, solar equipment and tariffs are set to cost more as well.

“There is no sanctity of contracts,” said Sandeep Hasurkar, the author of Never Too Big To Fail, a book detailing the collapse of IL&FS.

To retain access to export markets and finance, companies have to decarbonise.

“Since domestic lending to industry has collapsed in the last half-decade with the NPA crisis and its legacies, access to foreign capital has become crucial for companies looking to grow quickly,” said Rohit Chandra, an assistant professor at IIT Delhi’s School of Public Policy.

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