Union Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas and Steel Dharmendra Pradhan has said the future of India's energy sector will be noticeably different from its current avatar, to be driven by new technology and business models.
In his inaugural address at the 10th World PetroCoal Congress here on Saturday, he said: "We are encouraging our oil and gas compes to develop extensive and qualitative engagement with Indian technology and research institutions of excellence."
"Energy transition currently underway can become more manageable only if proactive measures are set in motion. Digital technologies are transforming the energy sector in a profound manner. Industrial Revolution 4.0 is truly at our doorstep. Indian energy compes will have to quickly adapt and adopt these technologies at a faster pace," he said.
Pradhan stressed the need to achieve the twin objectives of more energy availability at an affordable price and less carbon through a healthy mix of all commercially-viable energy sources.
He said that our target to transform India into a USD 5 trillion economy by 2024 requires a gradual and measured energy transition by deploying all sources of energy.
Pradhan said that the contours of India's energy transition are also changing fast in sync with global challenges and opportunities.
"Winds of change are evident in the global energy arena. Energy sources, energy supply, and energy consumption patterns are changing rapidly. In our pursuit to navigate energy transition, it is natural that we will take advantage of unique synergies that exist within the country," he said.
He said: "Global gas production and markets have witnessed significant restructuring during the last few years. The global supply of LNG is increasing at a rapid pace, and globally LNG prices are coming down significantly. It is time for our compes to take a relook at the term-contracts with major LNG suppliers."
Talking about the initiatives in transforming India into a gas-based economy, Pradhan said: "I consider that the biggest game-changer to bring about greater environmental sustainability and flexibility in India's energy system is through rapid deployment of natural gas. It would serve as a transition fuel in our country."
"Our government is working towards increasing the share of gas from 6.2 per cent to 15 per cent in the energy mix by 2030," he said, while speaking about estimated investment of 60 billion US dollars being lined up in the sector, developing a 'one Nation one Gas Grid', cross-country pipelines, rapid expansion of the LNG infrastructure in the country, City Gas Distribution (CGD) network expanding to cover more than 70 per cent of the country's population, covering 407 districts spread across 28 States and Union Territories.
Describing alternative fuels like ethanol and bio-diesel being on high priority in the energy mix, he said: "We are well on our way to meet the target of 20 per cent blending of ethanol in petrol and 5 per cent blending of bio-diesel in a diesel by 2030."
( With inputs from ANI )