India, US review progress in strategic clean energy cooperation

India’s energy minister Hardeep Singh Puri and US energy secretary Jennifer Granholm reviewed the initiatives under the bilateral Strategic Clean Energy Partnership in Washington on Tuesday.

The leaders welcomed progress made under the partnership to drive clean energy innovation, strengthen energy security, and accelerate clean energy transitions, including through more focused efforts on clean energy manufacturing and building resilient, responsible, stable, secure and diversified supply chains.

While recognizing the need to work towards a just, orderly and sustainable energy transition, which prioritizes access to reliable, affordable, and clean energy supplies, both sides welcomed the important role energy trade plays in supporting national priorities, statements from the US department of energy and India’s oil ministry said.

Both leaders recognized the progress the countries have made to accelerate development and deployment of emerging clean energy technologies, advancing renewable energy deployment and reliable grid integration, promote energy efficiency, and advance decarbonization of high-emitting sectors like industry, buildings, and transport.

The ministers welcomed the formal launch of the Renewable Energy Technology Action Platform (RETAP) in August 2023, aimed at developing actionable roadmaps for hydrogen, long duration energy storage, offshore wind, and geothermal, through research and development, pilots and demonstration, and incubation-investment-industry networks.

They also expressed satisfaction at the progress being made by both sides under the RETAP mechanism.

They welcomed the collaboration on the new National Centre for Hydrogen Safety in India and partnership on the second International Conference on Green Hydrogen held this month. The ministers highlighted expanded bilateral expert exchanges on clean hydrogen R&D, cost reduction efforts, and implementation of hydrogen hubs in both countries through RETAP, the public-private hydrogen task force.

The ministers also welcomed work on use of green hydrogen in buses, tractors and heavy equipment.

The ministers also commended the Indian Railways (IR) efforts to achieve net zero emissions by 2030 and welcomed collaboration to support India’s first round-the-clock renewable energy procurement of over 1.5 GW and development an energy efficiency policy and action plan for all railway facilities.