===================================================
India’s Energy Future :
Why Solar Must Remain the Focus — A Letter to the Minister
Click here to read my earlier analysis:
👉 Nuclear or Solar? Choice is Clear
Dear Hon’ble Minister for Renewable Energy, Government of India,
I write to you with the utmost respect and a deep commitment to India’s clean
energy future. Recent developments — including the introduction and cabinet
approval of the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear
Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill, 2025 — signal a significant
policy shift aimed at opening India’s nuclear power sector to private participation
for the first time in decades. The Hans India+2The Economic Times+2
While this reform is being positioned as a boost to energy security and clean
power capacity, I request that the Ministry reflect carefully on India’s strategic
competitive advantages in solar energy, and the economic, environmental,
and social benefits solar offers over large-scale nuclear deployment —
especially when the overriding global goal remains decarbonisation and rapid
energy access expansion.
1. Solar Delivers Now — Nuclear Delivers Very Late
India’s solar sector has demonstrated repeatable success: rapidly deployable,
scalable, and increasingly cost-competitive. Solar projects can go from
planning to commissioning in months — not years. Nuclear, by contrast,
traditionally requires decades of planning, construction, regulatory
clearance, and capital amortisation.
This timeline mismatch matters because:
-
India’s energy demand is growing rapidly.
-
Solar plus storage technologies are maturing faster than expected.
-
Delayed baseload projects risk becoming stranded as storage costs fall.
2. Jobs, Decentralisation & Inclusive Growth
Solar energy creates distributed employment — from manufacturing to
installation to operations. These jobs are geographically dispersed and accessible
to local communities across states.
Nuclear projects, by nature, are capital-intensive and centrally located,
offering fewer opportunities for wide-ranging employment, especially for youth
and MSMEs.
Solar empowers:
-
Solar rooftop deployment
-
Micro-grids for rural electrification
-
Local renewable ecosystems
Prioritising solar strengthens both energy independence and economic
inclusion.
3. Risk Profile & Public Costs
Nuclear power, even with advanced safety systems, carries inherent risks —
regulatory, environmental, and financial. Liability concerns and long-term waste
management pose governance challenges that India continues to navigate.
These risks translate into higher financing costs, longer gestation, and
potentially higher electricity tariffs — especially if private investors require risk
premium protection.
By contrast, solar and wind have no long-term waste liabilities and clearer
regulatory pathways.
4. Aligning with India’s Climate & Net-Zero Commitments
India’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and the transition to net-zero
by 2070 require rapid decarbonisation, not just capacity expansion.
Solar energy’s accelerating cost curves — now approaching or beating fossil fuels
in many regions — make it a core pillar of the energy transition. Every
additional gigawatt of solar reduces carbon intensities immediately, with benefits
felt locally through cleaner air and energy security.
5. Strategic Recommendations
In view of the above, I respectfully urge that:
A. Solar & Renewables continue as the primary engine of India’s clean power transition.
Investment, incentives, and policy support for solar + storage should remain front-
and-centre, especially for distributed generation.
B. Nuclear policy be calibrated to support energy security, not supplant solar momentum.
If nuclear expands, it should do so after ensuring it does not divert capital, talent,
or regulatory bandwidth from renewables.
C. Transparent comparative analyses be published on economics, jobs, and grid impacts
between solar + storage, nuclear (including small modular reactors), and hybrid
solutions.
Conclusion
India’s clean energy story has been defined by solar leadership — affordability, job
creation, and rapid scalability have been at the heart of this success.
As government reforms — such as SHANTI — aim to open new avenues in nuclear
power, it is vital that policy choices do not inadvertently undermine
renewable leadership or the socio-economic benefits India has achieved.
I trust your Ministry will weigh these factors with the seriousness they deserve,
and ensure India’s energy strategy remains stable, inclusive, and forward-looking.
With high esteem and warm regards,
Hemen Parekh
No comments:
Post a Comment