Data | Less than 3% of India’s energy needs met by hydro, solar, wind and nuclear sources

More than half of the consumption met by coal

October 13, 2020 04:59 pm | Updated 05:01 pm IST

Solar panels being erected atop the platform shelters at Visakhapatnam Railway Station.

Solar panels being erected atop the platform shelters at Visakhapatnam Railway Station.

More than 54%* of India’s energy needs were met by coal production in FY19. The country’s energy needs were met overwhelmingly by coal and other fossil fuels; only less than 3% were met by renewable technologies. Energy consumption includes electricity and transport.

At least 6.5 lakh employees work in the fossil fuel supply chain, a fact to be considered while devising fossil fuel phase-out policies.

The calculations are done after converting all the energy sources into a solitary unit: a Tonne of Oil Equivalent. One tonne of oil equivalent is equal to the energy released by burning one tonne of crude oil (=11.63 megawatt-hours).

Also read: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres slams India for coal subsidies

Production

The chart shows the % of the total energy produced from various sources, and where this energy was spent in FY19.

On the left are energy sources in descending order of their contribution. On the right are the reasons for which such energy was consumed, in descending order of consumption. The higher the consumption, the thicker the arm. Over 97%* of energy needs were served by fossil fuels: coal, crude oil, oil products and natural gas.

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Also read: PM Modi vows to more than double India’s non-fossil fuel target to 450 GW by 2022

Consumption

The chart shows the share of total energy consumed for various reasons in FY19. On the left are energy sources.

In the middle are broad sectors where energy was consumed. On the right are specific endpoints in descending order of consumption. The higher the consumption, the thicker the arm. The % consumption at the endpoint will not add up to 100 as “others/unspecified” were not included.

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Job count

At least 6.5 lakh workers are employed in Central Public Sector Enterprises in the fossil fuel industry. The number does not include State and private firms, auxiliary industries and other firms in the supply chain.

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Note: *Calculations exclude biomass fuels used for cooking in low-income homes as no official data are available.

Source: Energy Statistics 2020, Public Enterprises Survey 2018-19

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