Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), the largest and oldest apex business organization in India, jointly with Hero Futures Energies, recently organized an interactive session on ‘Renewable Energy Adoption in the Indian Mining and Metals Sector’ to showcase renewable energy solutions and technologies for the Indian mining and metals industry and support their transition towards decarbonization and a net-zero journey.

Pankaj Satija, Co-Chair, FICCI Mining Committee and Managing Director, Tata Steel Mining Ltd, said, “With the series of initiatives taken by the Government, the Renewable Energy (RE) capacity in India stands at 179GW as of July 2023.” He further highlighted that the mining & metals industry, along with the RE developers, are working in a collaborative manner towards the net-zero targets of the industry. He said that innovative sourcing and financing models for RE would support the journey of the metals industry towards decarbonization.

Presenting the Renewable Energy Solutions for Indian Mining & Metals Industries, R Sundar, Business Head – India C&I, Hero Future Energies, highlighted on six energy megatrends which include SDG & net-zero, RTC, green molecules, cross-border trade, protectionism, and energy efficiency. He added that renewable energy solutions are now transiting towards firm renewables (with elements like round-the-clock energy supply, energy storage, etc.) and green molecules (comprising green hydrogen, user-producer partnerships, etc.). Sundar highlighted that the pricing of RE solutions for the industries like mining & metals is expected to further reduce and mature as India sees enhanced demand and collaborations.

Animesh Sharma, Head, Business Development – India C&I, Hero Future Energies, highlighted the huge potential for RE in the western region, with a special focus on Maharashtra, as it has abundant wind resources, sunshine, robust grid mechanism, and conducive policy frameworks. He further mentioned the encouraging policies of Maharashtra State in terms of ED waiver for 10 years, stamp duty waiver on land for RE projects, single window clearance, etc.

Representing the Steel Industry, Jatin Parekh, Managing Director, Fortran Steel, said that while the decarbonization targets by 2030 may look huge, the industry is taking several initiatives to achieve them. He mentioned that green hydrogen and solar have moved from buzzwords to become the steel industry’s future, while the industry is also setting up its RE capacity by collaborating with the RE developers for captive consumption. He mentioned that with increased adoption of RE, the industry is not only reducing its emissions but is also revolutionizing the production processes.

For the Mining & Cement Industry, K N Rao, Corporate Head – EHS, AFR, Energy Sustainability, MyHome Industries, highlighted that cement is a unique industry as its carbon intensity is largely derived from its raw materials. He mentioned that around 10 percent of India’s GHG emissions are from the cement industry, and with the increased usage of cement for planned infrastructure development, these emissions could become huge. Thus, renewable solutions will play a critical role for the cement industry moving forward. Rao stated that with forecasted cement production of 1400 mt pa by 2050, the year by which the industry looks to become net-zero, there would be a demand for around 50GW of green power from the industry. He suggested that accordingly, the policy framework and approach should be strategized both by the RE industry as well as the cement producers to meet the forecasted demand for renewable solutions in the industry.

Rahul Prithiani, Senior Director & Global Head, CRISIL, made the sectoral presentation, and Prof Viswanathan N Nurni, Professor and Head, Department of Metallurgical Engineering & Materials Science, Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, highlighted the R&D aspects of the transitional journey of Indian mining & metals towards net zero.

The interactive session highlighted that the role of renewable energy in the mining & metals sector is multifaceted and can have significant impacts on the industry’s vision for sustainability and environmental goals. As the sector consumes a significant amount of electricity produced in the country, it can play an essential part in enabling the structural shift to clean power in India. The discussions acknowledged that many corporates and industries in India have committed to adopting green energy and are looking for solutions best suited to their operations.

For more information: www.ficci.in