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The <keyword id="19896633" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="CBI" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="CBI" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="CBI">CBI</keyword> has booked the country's leading aluminium producer <keyword id="20129733" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Hindalco" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Hindalco" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Hindalco">Hindalco</keyword> of the <keyword id="19907441" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Aditya-Birla-Group" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Aditya Birla Group" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Aditya Birla Group">Aditya Birla Group</keyword> for alleged <keyword id="19895687" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="corruption" source="keywords">corruption</keyword> in getting environmental clearances for <keyword id="20054958" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="coal-mining" source="keywords">coal mining</keyword> between 2011 and 2013, officials said on Tuesday. The agency has also named T Chandini, the then director in the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests, for favouring the company as member secretary of the Expert Appraisal Committee ((EAC) in allowing mining in the Talabira-I mine in the critically polluted area of Odisha's Jharsuguda in violation of ministry guidelines, they said. The central probe agency registered an FIR against Hindalco and Chandini under Section 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act after a nearly eight-year-long preliminary inquiry. Reacting to the FIR, a Hindalco spokesperson said, "This is an old matter pertaining to 2014-15. These mines were de-allocated as part of the government's de-allocation process. This is a matter of public record where more than 100 mines were de-allocated." The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered the preliminary inquiry in 2016 on allegations that the Aditya Birla Management Corporation Private Limited (ABMCPL) had allegedly paid "massive bribes" between 2011 and 2013 to ministry officials for getting mandatory <keyword id="20082436" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="environmental-clearance" source="keywords">environmental clearance</keyword> to mine coal from Talabira. The findings of the inquiry showed that the ministry had made it mandatory in 2006 for a company to seek environment clearances for all new projects, expansion of existing products and any change in the product mix in an existing manufacturing unit. The projects needing prior environmental clearance were supposed to go through the EAC, consisting of experts from different disciplines. The clearance was given by the regulatory authority based on the EAC's recommendation. Hindalco received its first environmental clearance in 2001 for mining 0.4 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of coal from the Talabira-I mine. Another clearance was given in January 2009 for its expansion, allowing the increase in mining from 0.4 MTPA to 1.5 MTPA. Nearly a month after the second clearance, the company sought to double its capacity to 3 MTPA, which was to be considered by the EAC, it said. It emerged that the company had allegedly violated clearances given in 2001 and 2009 by producing more coal than permitted by the ministry, the FIR said. The company allegedly mined 3.04 MTPA excess coal from 2004-05 to 2007-08 and 2008-09, it said. "This fact became known during the process of consideration by the EAC of which T Chandini, director, was the member secretary," the FIR alleged. The Odisha State Pollution Control Board and the Central Pollution Control Board confirmed during the inquiry that the Talabira mine was in the critically polluted area of Jharsuguda, the CBI alleged. According to ministry rules, in-pipeline projects in critically polluted areas or those applying after January 13, 2010, were to be returned to the project proponent by member secretaries with the approval of the advisor. The inquiry showed that Chandini, despite being fully aware that the company was mining excess coal in violation of previous environmental clearances, did not return the project, as stipulated in the ministry circular. "Rather she acted to the contrary in as much as the proposal of HIL (Hindalco) was continued to be processed which amounted to misuse of her official position to favour HIL," the CBI FIR has alleged. Chandini, by misusing her official position, communicated to Hindalco that their proposal for grant environmental clearance would be considered in the next meeting of the EAC to be held on February 25 and 25, 2010, the agency alleged. She allegedly ensured that the clearance was granted in haste, considering the fact that Hindalco was already in violation of earlier clearances granted by the ministry, as it was already mining excess coal from the Talabira-I coal mine, it said. 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CBI books Hindalco for corruption in green clearance for Talabira coal mining

New Delhi, Dec 2 () Power plants not having power purchase agreements (PPAs) will start getting coal supplies or linkages under auctions from Coal India Ltd and Singareni Collieries Company Ltd in few months, which would help reduce stress in the sector.
 According to methodology issued in this regard by the Union power ministry on Monday, Coal India Ltd (CIL) and Singareni Collieries Company Ltd (SCCL) will earmark coal mines for supply to such power plants and auctions would be done every quarter.
 Earlier, PPA was a pre-requisite for getting coal linkage. But, the government relaxed the norms under SHAKTI, or the Scheme for Harnessing and Allocating Koyala (Coal) Transparently in India, policy this year in March.
 For this purpose, the power ministry on Monday issued the methodology for the same.
 Power Minister R K Singh told , "The Ministry of Power issued the methodology for allocation of coal for sale of power through short-term and day-ahead market (DAM) in power exchange. So far, coal was allocated to long-term and medium-term PPA holders. With this, stressed power stations may be revived. Further, this will also enable deepening of power market being traded through power exchange."
 Making coal available for short-term to stressed power plants was one of the recommendations of the high-level committee headed by then Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha. The panel had submitted its report in November last year.
 The methodology provides that within 45 days (by January 16, 2020), the coal companies, CIL and SCCL, will earmark areas and mines within their subsidiaries that will be allocated for use as per these guidelines and publish the same on their websites indicating the quality of coal (gross calorific value/grade), the quantum of coal available, period for which such coal shall be made available and the schedule for start of supply of coal.
 It also provided that auctions for coal linkage under this methodology shall be carried out every quarter to cater to the dynamic requirements and demand variations in short-term and day-ahead markets.
 An annual calendar shall be published on coal companies' websites showing the months in which the auctions will be held.
 The quantity of coal linkage that a plant may bid will be decided as per the heat rate, which shall not be more than 2,600 kilocalorie/kilowatt hour for the untied capacity of the plant (for which the PPA is not signed).
 The Central Electricity Authority will call for applications and publish a list of eligible plants, their heat rate and capacity. KKS HRS

Power ministry unveils norms for allocating coal linkage to plants without PPAs

<h2 style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:18pt;margin-bottom:6pt;"> </h2>Narendra Modi, who led the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to a spectacular victory in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, on Thursday took oath as the Prime Minister. President Ram Nath Kovind administered the oath of office and secrecy in Hindi to Modi at a ceremony attended by thousands of people at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan Sushma Swaraj, Suresh Prabhu, V.K. Singh, Mahesh Sharma, Jayant Sinha and Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore were among the Union Ministers missing from the dais for ministers to be inducted in the new Modi government. Hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his 57-member council of ministers were sworn in by President Ram Nath Kovind on Thursday, Here are the portfolio for Cabinet Minister is: <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); font-size: 16px; line-height: 1.6em; box-shadow: none; width: 1023.33px; font-family: Merriweather; padding-bottom: 10px !important; background-image: inherit !important; background-position: inherit !important; background-size: inherit !important; background-repeat: inherit !important; background-attachment: inherit !important; background-origin: inherit !important; background-clip: inherit !important;"><tbody><tr><td style="border-width: 1px 0.742187pt 0.742187pt; border-style: solid; border-color: rgb(221, 221, 221) rgb(197, 197, 197) rgb(197, 197, 197); padding: 4pt 6pt; font-size: 16px; vertical-align: top;">Modi Cabinet 2.0: List of new Council of Ministers 2019</td></tr></tbody></table> <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;"></colgroup><tbody><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;"></td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;"> </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Portfolio </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Cabinet Ministers </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Home Affairs </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Amit Shah </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Defence </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Rajnath Singh </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Ministry of Road Transport and Highways </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Nitin Gadkari </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Finance and Minister of Corporate Affairs </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Nirmala Sitharaman </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Women and Child Development and Minister of Textile </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Smriti Irani </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of External Affairs </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">S Jaishankar </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Law and Justice, Minister of Communications and Minister of Electronics and Information Technology </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Ravi Shankar Prasad </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Chemical and Fertilizers </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">D.V. Sadananda Gowda </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Food Processing Industries </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Harsimrat Kaur Badal </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Skill development and Entrepreneurship </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Mahendra Nath Pandey </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Arvind Sawant </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Minister of Coal and Minister ofMines </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Prahlad Joshi </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Railways and Minister of Commerce and Industry </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Piyush Goyal </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Minister of Information and Broadcasting </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Prakash Javadekar </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Minority Affairs </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Ram Vilas Paswan </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Thawar Chand Gehlot </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Giriraj Singh </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Gajendra Singh Shekhawat </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare , Minister of Rural Development and Minister of Panchayati Raj </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Narendra Singh Tomar </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Arjun Munda </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Dr Harshavardhan </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Dharmendra Pradhan </td></tr><tr><td style="border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;"> </td><td style="border-left:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-right:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-bottom:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;border-top:solid #c5c5c5 0.7421872500000001pt;vertical-align:top;padding:4pt 6pt 4pt 6pt;">Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank </td></tr></tbody></table>

Narendra Modi announces Union Cabinet portfolio

In a move to replace old <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=thermal+power+plants+">thermal power plants </a>with the newer ones, the <keyword id="6362177" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="union-government">Union government</keyword> is now mulling over the plans to close down the plants which are at least 25 years old and currently are capable of generating only 11,000MW power. 
 As per an Economic Times report, the government is planning to invest Rs 70,000 crore and build much improved <keyword id="34551" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="power-plants">power plants</keyword> with a total capacity of minimum 20,000 MW. 
 According to the officials, who requested anonymity, around 100 old units with capacity ranging from 60 MW to 220 MW has been listed to be closed down in a recent meeting between the <keyword id="80425" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Central-Electricity-Authority">Central Electricity Authority</keyword> (CEA) and state utilities. The CEA officials also informed that some 30 super critical units ranging between 660 MW and 800 MW will come up in their place. 
 
The move will lead to a saving of about Rs 40,000 crore on land acquisition as well infrastructure cost like rail and water linkages along with facilities like ash pond and power evacuation lines. Coal supplied to the old plants would be supplied to the units that would replace them. 
If reports are to be believed, in India, the a total capacity of about 36,000 MW power is supplied with the technology which is more than 25 years old and that the replacement procedure should take place in different phases. 
 
There are a few plants, which are running in good condition and were recently renovated, hence could work for few more years. However, all such plants will have to eventually close down and be replaced by new super critical units, the CEA officials said. 
 
The guidelines by the <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Ministry+of+Coal">Ministry of Coal</a> have already been issued for automatic transfer of coal linkage from old and inefficient units to new super critical units. 
 According to a <keyword id="3058148" type="POSITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="senior-power-department-official">senior power department official</keyword>, "During the13th plan period, generation capacity of about 86,400 mw is likely to be added primarily through super critical units. Land being scarce, utilities need to explore possible options to utilise the existing land and other facilities in most effective manner." 
Image: thinkstock

Power cuts can soon be a thing of the past! The Govt is pouring Rs 70,000cr to ensure just that

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="11894337" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="russia" source="Orion">Russia</keyword> has been a reliable <keyword id="6354703" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="natural-gas" source="Orion">natural gas</keyword> supplier to <keyword id="11892705" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="germany" source="Orion">Germany</keyword> for decades.</li><li>Germany is facing pressure to cut Russian gas supplies off, and there are concerns the Kremlin could halt supplies.</li></ul>Germany is facing mounting pressure to cut Russian natural gas from its economy, putting Berlin in a quandary as the move could devastate the economy.Europe's largest economy is heavily reliant on Russian gas: It accounted for 55% of Germany's gas imports in 2021 and 40% of its gas imports in the first quarter of 2022, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/what-happens-if-russia-turns-off-gas-flows-germany-2022-03-29/">Reuters</a> reported. <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-04/deutsche-bank-ceo-sees-german-recession-if-russian-gas-cut-offhttps://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-04/deutsche-bank-ceo-sees-german-recession-if-russian-gas-cut-off" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"></a>Due to the war in <keyword id="11985141" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="ukraine" source="Orion">Ukraine</keyword>, German banks are already expecting the country's GDP growth to slow to 2% in 2022 from <a href="https://www.destatis.de/EN/Press/2022/01/PE22_020_811.html">2.7% in 2021</a>, said Deutsche Bank CEO Christian Sewing, who was speaking in his role as president of Germany's BDB bank lobby, per <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/germany-faces-steep-recession-if-russian-oil-gas-halted-banks-2022-04-04/">Reuters.</a>"The situation would be even worse if imports or supplies of Russian oil and natural gas were to be halted," Sewing said on Monday, according to the news outlet. "A significant recession in Germany would then be virtually unavoidable."But it's hard for Germany to break the habit. Russia has been Germany's natural-gas supplier for about 50 years — and it has always been reliable, even during the Cold War and throughout the collapse of the Soviet Union, Davide Oneglia, a senior economist at London-based consultancy TS Lombard, told Insider.<h2>Germany started importing Russian gas to promote dialogue, trade, and peace</h2>Germany started its Russian gas policy during the Cold War in the 1960s with the so-called Pipelinepolitik policy that connected both sides with a gas pipeline. The move aimed to incentivize the Soviet Union to move toward dialogue and trade with the West instead of conflict, said Henning Gloystein, the director of <keyword id="11917806" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="energy" source="Orion">energy</keyword>, climate, and resources at Eurasia Group, a geopolitical consultancy.After the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, a unified Germany and the emerging <keyword id="11907394" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="european-union" source="Orion">European Union</keyword> were keen to support Russia economically to stabilize the huge nuclear power, Gloystein told Insider."Again, the policy was to cooperate, and hope that trade and prosperity would lead to peaceful relations. Until recently, this policy worked well, though now of course this policy is in shambles," he said.Germany is now under pressure to ban Russian natural gas due to mounting reports of Russian atrocities in the <keyword id="13186997" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="ukraine-war" source="Orion">Ukraine war</keyword>. Last week, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/putin-threatens-gas-exports-europe-countries-pay-rubles-ukraine-war-2022-3">Russian President Vladimir Putin</a> demanded <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/commodities/putin-russia-natural-gas-rubles-payment-unfriendly-countries-energy-sanctions-2022-3">payment in rubles</a> and threatened to shut off Russian gas to Europe altogether."I think everybody was taken aback, because the whole energy transition plan from the various governments, from Germany has always been implicitly relying on Russian gas always flowing in the same quantity, at the same price," Oneglia said. "Historically, they have never weaponized energy, or commodities.""This was a miscalculation," he added.<h2>What are Germany's options if Russian natural gas is halted?</h2>If the Russian natural-gas supply is halted, there are few options for Germany, which gets its natural gas via pipelines from Russia.The country has been phasing out nuclear energy since Japan's <a href="https://world-nuclear.org/information-library/safety-and-security/safety-of-plants/fukushima-daiichi-accident.aspx#:~:text=Following%20a%20major%20earthquake%2C%20a,in%20the%20first%20three%20days.">Fukushima nuclear disaster in March 2011.</a> Germany's last three nuclear plants are set to close by the end of 2022. On Wednesday, Chancellor Olaf Scholz rejected an appeal by lawmakers for the closures to be delayed, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-06/scholz-shoots-down-appeal-to-reverse-germany-s-nuclear-exit">Bloomberg</a> reported.Alternatives such as liquefied natural gas (LNG) — the supercooled version of natural gas that can be transported on ships over long distances — are available. But Germany doesn't have the infrastructure to deal with the fuel right now, said TS Lombard's Oneglia.LNG has to be converted back into gas at terminals before it's transported via pipelines, but Germany doesn't have any such terminals. In February, <a href="https://www.dw.com/en/does-germany-really-need-lng-terminals/a-61005220">Chancellor Scholz</a> announced Germany would be building two new terminals to reduce the country's reliance on Russian gas — but they may take years to construct, according to <a href="https://www.fieldfisher.com/en/insights/how-can-germany-build-lng-terminals-quickly">Fieldfisher,</a> a Berlin-based law firm.And even if Germany could immediately buy LNG off the global markets, it would be expensive. Even before the Ukraine war, LNG prices were increasing rapidly due to a resurgence in demand as the pandemic ebbed — average spot prices were 435% higher on-year in 2021 in Asia, the key market for the fuel, according to a report from consulting firm <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/oil-and-gas/our-insights/petroleum-blog/reflecting-on-2021-global-lng-and-european-pipeline-flows">McKinsey.</a>LNG contracts are also typically long-term contracts spanning decades, so major suppliers like Qatar and Australia would already have committed much of their future supplies to the traditional markets like Japan, South Korea, and China.<h2>Germany's dependency on energy imports from Russia grew in the last 20 years</h2>Economy minister Robert Habeck said on February 24 that Germany would be creating a strategic reserve of coal for energy security, <a href="https://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/soziales/kohle-habeck-plant-nationale-reserve-fuer-30-wintertage-a-ff82a7f2-be0c-4780-939e-0690238232b3">Spiegel</a> news outlet reported. The country had earlier planned to phase out the high-carbon fossil fuel by 2030, so stocking up on it would be "one step or two steps back" for Germany's transition to a future powered by clean energy sources, said Oneglia. "We have maneuvered ourselves into an ever-greater dependency on fossil energy imports from Russia in the last 20 years," Habeck said, per <a href="https://apnews.com/article/us-russian-oil-ban-what-does-it-mean-731f748450c38fc34353d96aea6897fe">Associated Press.</a> "That is not a good state of affairs."Germany will wean itself off Russian gas by 2024, <a href="https://www.bmwi.de/Redaktion/EN/Pressemitteilungen/2022/03/20220325-minister-habeck-germany-is-quickly-cutting-its-dependence-on-russian-energy-but-we-still-need-to-act-prudently.html">Habeck</a> said in a March 25 press release.Last week, Germany activated an <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/germany-russia-natural-gas-ruble-payment-emergency-plan-ration-2022-3">emergency plan</a> to deal with disruptions to its natural-gas supply after Putin's threat to cut off energy supply if payment isn't made in rubles.Germany is now in the "early warning phase" of its energy emergency plan, with Berlin calling for all energy consumers — both industry and households — to save energy and reduce consumption. If the situation worsens, the country might ration gas in the last of the three-stage plan, with industry first in line for power cuts, as outlined by <a href="https://www.bmwi.de/Redaktion/EN/Downloads/F/faq-notfallplan-gas-en.pdf?__blob=publicationFile&amp;v=3">Germany's economy ministry</a>. The move could devastate the economy and lead to job losses.Although Germany's predicament comes on the back of a confluence of events ranging from the war in Ukraine to a surge in global energy demand, TS Lombard's Oneglia said he has to wonder if the industrial giant could have been better prepared for its energy security needs."In the end, there was no plan B," he said.

How Germany &mdash; Europe's biggest economy &mdash; became so dependent on Russian natural gas that it faces a 'virtually unavoidable' recession if it cuts off supply

Energy for all is the need of the hour, especially in an emerging <keyword id="34412" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="economy">economy</keyword> like <keyword id="3658" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="India">India</keyword> where a big chunk of the population still can’t access <keyword id="1977921" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Modern-energy-sources">modern energy sources</keyword> and the overall growth of the country suffers due to such non-inclusion. The outlook is not exactly bright at this point as India ranks 69th among 124 <keyword id="6407494" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="countries">countries</keyword> in the recently released <keyword id="1970968" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="global-energy-architecture-performance-index">Global Energy Architecture Performance Index</keyword> (<keyword id="1977925" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="EAPI">EAPI</keyword>) Report 2014, prepared by the <keyword id="69007" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="World-Economic-Forum">World Economic Forum</keyword> in collaboration with <keyword id="6370971" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Accenture">Accenture</keyword>. 
 India, with an overall score of 0.48, has the second lowest <keyword id="1379968" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="energy-performance">energy performance</keyword> in the <keyword id="1977931" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="BRICS-cluster">BRICS cluster</keyword> that also includes <keyword id="6355226" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Brazil">Brazil</keyword>, <keyword id="6358826" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Russia">Russia</keyword>, <keyword id="1334" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="China">China</keyword> and <keyword id="6355117" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="South-Africa">South Africa</keyword>. Interestingly, China lies at the bottom among the <keyword id="175259" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Brics">BRICS</keyword> (85th with a score of 0.45), but other countries in this group are way ahead of India and its neighbour. Ranked 22nd, Brazil tops the BRICS group with a score of 0.64, extracting 50% more <keyword id="35050" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="gdp">GDP</keyword> per unit of energy use than the average of the other <keyword id="486040" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="BRICS-countries">BRICS countries</keyword>. It is followed by the Russian Federation (28th, with a score of 0.62) and South <keyword id="12925" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="80" keywordseo="Africa">Africa</keyword> (54th, with a score of 0.54). 
 The top 10 performers are mostly EU and/or <keyword id="1977933" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="OECD-nations">OECD nations</keyword> – <keyword id="6356961" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Norway">Norway</keyword>, <keyword id="22501" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="New-Zealand">New Zealand</keyword>, <keyword id="6354785" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="France">France</keyword>, <keyword id="23050" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Sweden">Sweden</keyword>, <keyword id="103" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Switzerland">Switzerland</keyword>, <keyword id="49968" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Denmark">Denmark</keyword>, <keyword id="6363645" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Spain">Spain</keyword> and <keyword id="106735" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="latvia">Latvia</keyword> – with the exception of <keyword id="15385" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Colombia">Colombia</keyword> (7th) and <keyword id="57870" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Costa-Rica">Costa Rica</keyword> (9th). The US came in 37th, followed by <keyword id="6355311" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Japan">Japan</keyword>. The regions covered in the report include <keyword id="1977935" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="EU28">EU28</keyword>, <keyword id="195393" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="MENA">MENA</keyword>, BRICS, <keyword id="6378080" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="North-America">North America</keyword>, <keyword id="303353" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Sub-Saharan-Africa">Sub-Saharan Africa</keyword> and the <keyword id="5891" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="ASEAN">ASEAN</keyword>. 
 
Why we need EAPI Before we consider why India is lagging behind the rest, it is important to understand the dimensions of the ‘<keyword id="1977936" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Energy-triangle">energy triangle</keyword>’ and what it takes to achieve top-level energy performance. During the past three years, the World Economic Forum has been working on the <keyword id="1978006" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="New-Energy-Architecture">new energy architecture</keyword>, defined as the integrated physical system of <keyword id="689119" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="energy-sources">energy sources</keyword>, carriers and demand sectors. The ‘energy triangle’ frames the key objectives of the <keyword id="1977939" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Energy-architecture">energy architecture</keyword> – the ability to provide secure, affordable and <keyword id="1977947" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Environmentally-sustainable-energy-supply">environmentally sustainable energy supply</keyword>. Accordingly, the Global Index has used 18 indicators to assess 6 regions and 124 countries under three baskets – <keyword id="1977948" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Economic-growth-and-development">economic growth and development</keyword>, <keyword id="585025" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="environmental-sustainability">environmental sustainability</keyword> and <keyword id="1714410" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Energy-access">energy access</keyword> &amp; security – while analysing the complex trade-offs and dependencies that affect the efforts of each country under review. 
 “Resource, wealth or <keyword id="352701" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Economic-Development">economic development</keyword> alone do not guarantee high performance on the Index,” said Roberto Bocca, senior director and head of energy industries at the World Economic Forum. “For an <keyword id="1977954" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Effective-energy-system">effective energy system</keyword>, countries need to focus on all three sides of the energy triangle – environmental sustainability, security of supply and affordability,” he added. Undoubtedly a difficult task, if you look at the toppers or any other country, for that matter. No single country has got a top score of 1/1 for the overall Index (an average of the scores posted under the three heads) and no one has hit a ‘perfect 1’ either, under any of the three baskets. 
 
 
 
Four factors hindering India’s energy performance 
Low access: Let’s look at the grassroots first. Energy access across BRICS is high, with the exception of India and South Africa which continue to face <keyword id="1977958" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Lower-electrification-rates">lower electrification rates</keyword> for rural and low-income groups. In fact, India is the lowest performer within the BRICS cluster (0.54/1), with only 75% accessing modern energy sources. It means around 293 million people go without those, compared to just 4 million in China. 
 However, there are longer-term solutions on the cards. Alongside a number of national and international initiatives, the government is currently running the Restructured Accelerated Power Development and Reform Programme or <keyword id="398803" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="R-APDRP">R-APDRP</keyword>, directing around $10 billion over the coming years for <keyword id="1977960" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Grid-modernisation">grid modernisation</keyword>. India has also launched a <keyword id="856064" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Remote-Village-Electrification">Remote Village Electrification</keyword> programme while the <keyword id="386624" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Ministry-of-New-and-Renewable-Energy">Ministry of New and Renewable Energy</keyword> is targeting the installed capacity from new <keyword id="430844" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="renewables">renewables</keyword> to reach 21,700 MW by 2017 (more on India’s <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Five-Moves-That-Will-Power-Indias-Green-Shift/articleshow/23463110.cms">green power</a> here). 
 
Increasing <keyword id="1977962" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Reliance-on-energy-imports">reliance on energy imports</keyword>: Large-scale economic expansion across the country has triggered bigger <keyword id="6417014" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="energy-consumption">energy consumption</keyword> and a crippling dependence on imports – a major factor behind the ballooning trade and <keyword id="894126" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="current-account-deficits">current account deficits</keyword>. India is one of the biggest importers of crude oil and more than half of its $191 billion <keyword id="113688" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="trade-deficit">trade deficit</keyword> in FY2013 – $109 billion, to be precise – accounted for oil, with the country importing around 82% of its requirements, mostly from the <keyword id="138623" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Gulf-countries">Gulf countries</keyword>. Overall, 28% of the country’s <keyword id="1977965" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Net-energy-consumption">net energy consumption</keyword> is met through imports and among the BRICS, India has the <keyword id="1977966" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Highest-spend-on-fuel-imports">highest spend on fuel imports</keyword> relative to GDP (10%). 
 It’s a kind of vicious cycle, to say the least, which is negatively impacting the <keyword id="6356076" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="indian-economy">Indian economy</keyword>. “The whole mess in the <keyword id="52599" type="TECHNOLOGY" weightage="100" keywordseo="CAD">CAD</keyword> is due to the imports of both coal and oil,” Vivek Pandit, senior director for energy at the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (<keyword id="6355001" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="FICCI">FICCI</keyword>) told FT. Worried by the current account deficit, <keyword id="44528" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="FDI">FDI</keyword> and <keyword id="68968" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="institutional-investors">institutional investors</keyword> gradually started withdrawing their support since March this year. This fuelled a substantial weakening of the <keyword id="6355302" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Rupee">Rupee</keyword> and resulted in a drawdown of <keyword id="6368276" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Foreign-exchange">foreign exchange</keyword> to the tune of $12.8 billion. According to a PwC report, the drawdown could have been avoided, had India produced 17 million tonnes more oil than its current domestic production. 
 Worse still, <keyword id="1977973" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Indias-oil-import-dependency">India’s oil import dependency</keyword> is forecast to grow another 10 percentage points to exceed 90% by 2031. While increasing domestic exploration will help to a certain extent, India must try and curb the <keyword id="1977977" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Oil-bills">oil bills</keyword> further by seeking new suppliers and buying more stake into African and other <keyword id="1977979" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Non-Gulf-oil-and-gas-assets">non-Gulf oil and gas assets</keyword>. 
 This part of the strategy is slowly taking shape as <keyword id="81864" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="ONGC-Videsh">ONGC Videsh</keyword>, the overseas investment arm of <keyword id="55282" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="India-Government">India government</keyword>’s flagship oil and gas explorer <keyword id="118729" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Oil-Natural-Gas-Corp">Oil &amp; Natural Gas Corp</keyword>, has been pushing hard to build up a <keyword id="1977984" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Diversified-portfolio-of-foreign-assets">diversified portfolio of foreign assets</keyword> to minimise the country’s dependency on the Middle East. <keyword id="6354737" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="ONGC">ONGC</keyword> Videsh has recently signed two multi-billion-dollar deals to buy into offshore natural gas assets in <keyword id="6372754" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Mozambique">Mozambique</keyword>. It has a significant presence in <keyword id="48890" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Latin-America">Latin America</keyword> and is also looking for exploration assets in <keyword id="6356970" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Myanmar">Myanmar</keyword>, <keyword id="6354759" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Bangladesh">Bangladesh</keyword>, <keyword id="30174" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Lebanon">Lebanon</keyword> and <keyword id="6355478" type="COUNTRY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Australia">Australia</keyword>. 
 
Prevalence of <keyword id="1896941" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="energy-subsidies">energy subsidies</keyword>: Another factor that is dragging India down by increasing oil demand and widening the budget deficit. Both India and Russia are the lowest performers for the indicator on <keyword id="1977989" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Liquid-fuel-subsidies">liquid fuel subsidies</keyword>. India’s subsidies for diesel put it in the lower quartile globally for this indicator even as the country is trying to improve <keyword id="1977991" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Energy-affordability">energy affordability</keyword> and access for lower-income groups. 
 
Coal-dependence hurts: At present, coal dominates the country’s <keyword id="1798751" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="energy-mix">energy mix</keyword> with a robust 53% share in <keyword id="1977995" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Primary-energy-consumption">primary energy consumption</keyword>, affecting India’s score in terms of environmental sustainability. The country has scored 0.41/1, underlining the challenge it faces in diversifying the energy mix beyond <keyword id="181402" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="fossil-fuels">fossil fuels</keyword>. Although energy trade can have positive impacts here, it can also pose economic and <keyword id="1977997" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Energy-security-risks">energy security risks</keyword>, especially as we are dependent only on a few trading partners. 
 Interestingly, 41% of the <keyword id="1200645" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="energy-supply">energy supply</keyword> in the top 10 countries comes from low-carbon energy sources, compared to a global average of 28%. India, too, is rolling out low-carbon power generation through plans to increase <keyword id="43870" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="nuclear-capacity">nuclear capacity</keyword> from the current 4.4 GW to 5.3 GW by 2016. 
 
The bottom line “Our analysis concludes that there is no single way forward; each country must work with its own resources and constraints, making difficult choices and trade-offs,” said Arthur Hanna, Managing Director, Energy Industry, Accenture, and a Member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on New Energy Architecture. “The Index helps nations take stock of their energy transition challenges and address key barriers to success, such as market distorting subsidies, continued uncertainty around energy policy and funding for research and development of <keyword id="1978009" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="New-energy-sources">new energy sources</keyword> and technologies.” 
 
Keeping that in mind, can India cope with the transition and morph its energy policies accordingly? 
 
Top Image: Wikipedia 
Data chart: World Economic Forum

Energy
Performance: Is India
Losing Out On Power Play?

NEW DELHI: Some of the essential services related to banking, transportation, railways and electricity are likely to be impacted during a two-day nationwide strike called by a joint forum of central trade unions beginning Monday. Talking to PTI, All Indian Trade Union Congress General Secretary <keyword id="366518" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="amarjeet-kaur" source="Orion">Amarjeet Kaur</keyword> said, "We are expecting participation of over 20 crore formal and informal workers with mass mobilisation of workers across the country during the strike on March 28 and 29 to protest against government policies." She said that the strike is expected to hit the rural parts also, where informal workers of farming and other sectors will join the protest. The strike notices were given by workers' unions of various sectors such as coal, steel, oil, telecom, postal, income tax, copper, banks and insurance. Unions in railways and defence sector will carry out mass mobilization in support of the strike at several places, the joint forum said. The unions' demands include scrapping of the proposed changes in labour laws, privatisation of any form and the national monetisation pipeline. Increased allocation of wages under MNREGA (<keyword id="1194612" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="mahatma-gandhi-rural-employment-guarantee-act" source="Orion">Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act</keyword>) and regularisation of contract workers are also part of their demands. Workers of roadways, transport and electricity departments have also decided to join the strike in spite of the impending threat of ESMA (Essential Services Maintenance Act) which is likely to be imposed in Haryana and Chandigarh, the joint forum said in a statement. Trade unions, including INTUC, AITUC, HMS, CITU, AIUTUC, TUCC, SEWA, AICCTU, LPF and UTUC are part of the joint forum. Meanwhile, the <keyword id="6375040" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="power-ministry" source="Orion">power ministry</keyword> on Sunday advised all the state-run utilities and other agencies to be on high alert and ensure round-the-clock electricity supply and stability of the national grid. "The Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) have called for a nationwide strike with effect from 06:00 hrs of March 28 to 06:00 hrs of March 30, 2022," an advisory issued by the power ministry said. The advisory has been issued to all states, central public sector undertakings, central electricity authority, national load dispatch centre and regional load dispatch centres. In the interest of the consumers of electricity, it is advised that all the power utilities shall take necessary measures to ensure round-the-clock functioning of the electricity grid and availability of all plants, transmission lines and substations, the ministry said, adding that all regional/state control room executives should be vigilant and on high alert. The ministry also suggested measures to be taken to ensure secure and reliable grid operations. Shutdown activities planned during March 28-29 may be rescheduled to suitable future dates to the extent possible, it said and asked all concerned officials to ensure close supervision of their regional network/control area. Also, manpower may be deployed at all critical sub-stations/power station 24X7 to handle any emergency situation, it said. Power supply to those engaged in essential services such as hospitals, defence, and railways must be ensured, it added and suggested setting up of a 24x7 control room for information dissemination and handling any kind of contingency. Bank employees' unions said they will support the strike. All <keyword id="3658" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="India" source="Orion">India</keyword> Bank Employees' Association (AIBEA) General Secretary C H Venkatachalam said the union demands the government to stop privatisation of public sector banks and strengthen them. Bank employees also demand speedy recovey of bad loans, higher deposit rates by banks, lower service charges on customers as well as restoration of old pension scheme for staff. A number of public sector banks, including country's largest lender SBI, have said that their services may get impacted to a limited extent due to the strike. SBI said it has made necessary arrangements to ensure normal functioning in its branches and offices during the strike. "It is likely that work at our bank may be impacted, to a limited extent, by the strike," SBI said. New Delhi-headquartered Punjab National Bank (<keyword id="13478968" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="pnb" source="Orion" meta.marketcap="38923.93999753" meta.tagname="Punjab National Bank" meta.tagpopularcount="0" meta.sectorid="15" meta.entitytype="company" meta.matchtype="exact" meta.aum="0" meta.entityid="11585" meta.tagseoname="punjab-national-bank" meta.sector="Banks" meta.tagnameorg="Punjab National Bank">PNB</keyword>) said, AIBEA, Bank Employees Federation of India (BEFI) and All India Bank Officers' Association (AIBOA) have served notices to go on strike on March 28-29. "While bank has made all arrangements to ensure normal functioning in its branches and offices, it is likely that work in our bank may be impacted to a limited extent by the strike," PNB said. Bengaluru-based <keyword id="13478969" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="canara-bank" source="Orion" meta.marketcap="40836.07197252" meta.tagname="Canara Bank" meta.tagpopularcount="0" meta.sectorid="15" meta.entitytype="company" meta.matchtype="exact" meta.aum="0" meta.entityid="9218" meta.tagseoname="canara-bank" meta.sector="Banks" meta.tagnameorg="Canara Bank">Canara Bank</keyword> said it is taking all necessary steps to ensure smooth functioning of bank branches and offices. However, the functioning of the bank may be impacted, Canara Bank added. Private lender <keyword id="2179992" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="rbl-bank" source="Orion">RBL Bank</keyword> said its bank unions are affiliated to AIBOA and AIBEA, and the employees associated with these unions may participate in the strike. "The bank will take all necessary steps for smooth functioning of the bank's branches/offices on the days of strike. However, it is likely that some of our branches would also be impacted by the strike," <keyword id="13478967" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="rbl" source="Orion" meta.marketcap="491.27195140500004" meta.tagname="Rane Brake Lining Ltd" meta.tagpopularcount="0" meta.sectorid="506" meta.entitytype="company" meta.matchtype="exact" meta.aum="0" meta.entityid="21601" meta.tagseoname="rane-brake-lining-ltd" meta.sector="Auto Ancillaries" meta.tagnameorg="Rane Brake Lining Ltd.">RBL</keyword> said. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/pvr-and-inox-leisure-announce-merger/articleshow/90476756.cms">PVR and INOX Leisure announce merger</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/how-this-former-vedantu-cofounder-is-taking-on-instagram-and-snapchat-to-build-social-media-for-teens/articleshow/90443442.cms">How this former Vedantu cofounder is taking on Instagram and Snapchat to build social media for teens</a>

Two-day Bharat Bandh: Essential services likely to be affected

New Delhi, Nov 26 () India is in talks with Russia to source coking coal as part of large efforts to reduce dependence few exporting countries like Australia, the US and Canada, according to sources.
In this regard a meeting was also held here on Tuesday in which Union Minister of Steel Dharmendra Pradhan along with members of the domestic steel and mining industry met a delegation of Russian officials and industry players, official sources said.
The meeting comes a month after Pradhan's visit to Moscow in August where he along with representatives of top Indian steel companies had met with a large number of Russian coking coal suppliers and steel companies.
 Coking coal is a key raw material in steel production.
During the meeting, which was attended by representatives of companies like Adani Group, Hindalco, JSW Steel, JSPL, Tata Power, RINL, SAIL, Coal India among others, the minister apprised the Russian delegation about the opportunities in the growing Indian steel sector.
 India imports more than 50 million tonne of coking coal.
The minister informed the Russian delegation that if India gets quality coking coal at competitive rates, including logistic cost, it would like to diversify its sources of raw material.
 The minister also asked the delegation to invest in developing inland and port logistics for the Far East Russia, which will significantly reduce the current cost of transport and logistics.
 He also offered India's support in developing these facilities for the mutual benefit of both our nations.
Steel majors SAIL and JSW Steel informed the delegation that at present they bring in coking coal from Australia, the US, Canada and Mozambique and expressed their intention to place an offtake order of 2.5 MT to 2.7 MT in the next fiscal if the coal is offered at competitive prices. 
 Meanwhile, the steel ministry in a release said that Pradhan met Russian representatives from Far East Russia, including Far East Russia Investment and Export Agency CEO Leonid Petukov here on Tuesday. 
 Discussions centred around further developing economic linkages with Far East Russia, particularly through sourcing of metallurgical or coking coal, development of infrastructure of Far East Russia ports and connectivity of these ports with Russian mining locations, and improvements in evacuation infrastructure, it said. 
 In view of huge opportunity offered by the Far East Russia to attract Indian investments, the Government of India earlier extended a USD 1 billion line of credit to Russia. 
 This line of credit can be used for furthering economic linkages with Far East Russia, including development of evacuation infrastructure and logistics in the Far East Russia, the ministry stated. ABI MR
MR

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