With no dearth of crude, India can survive the transition to green energy, says Hardeep Singh Puri

Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri on Saturday, said the transition from fossil fuel to green energy was possible only when one survives the present scenario.

Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri on Saturday, said the transition from fossil fuel to green energy was possible only when one survives the present scenario.

While India is making steady steps towards green energy, fossil fuel, particularly crude oil, was available in the international market for survival now, he said. Mr. Puri was speaking at the ‘Energy for Survival-Security and Climate’ debate at the Mangaluru Lit Fest here.

Stating that India’s dependence on fossil fuel was growing with about 85% dependence on imports, the Minister noted the situation would continue till the country explores crude on its own. Dependence on gas was about 50%, he said.

At the same time, there was no shortage of crude oil, he argued, and said crude also comes from non-OPEC (the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries). The Western hemisphere has abundant crude with Brazil putting out abut 300 million barrels per day and even the U.S. producing about 13 million barrels. There were other countries, including Russia, Guyana, Suriname, etc., producing crude.

Speaking on sustainability, Mr. Puri said India would blend biofuel with petrol by 20% from 2025-26 itself instead of the earlier target of 2030. While the country has demonstrated its ability to produce solar energy, it was also confident of achieving the 5 million tonnes of green hydrogen target. Compressed Biogas Plants and Compressed Natural Gas plants would be increased to achieve sustainability, he said.

Mr. Puri said with about 67 million people, of 1.4 billion population in the country fill fuel at retail outlets everyday. India’s consumption of crude was set to increase to 7 million barrels per day from the present 5 million. Yet, a quarter of the global growth would come from India in about 20 years. “We have to plan for tomorrow and remain insulated against possible upheavals and disruption,” he said.

To ensure energy security, India was procuring crude from 39 sources at present as against 27 sources earlier, he maintained, and added a democratically-elected government could not survive even for a single day without energy. It owes a duty to its citizens to provide uninterrupted energy.