2.5 The Complexities of Renewable Energy
67
2.5.2 The Eleventh Five-Year Plan (2007–2012)
2.5.2.1 Highlights
(a) Over half of the country’s population was devoid of electricity or any other form
of commercial energy.
(b) More than two-thirds households in the country were using non-commercial
fuels for cooking.
(c) As such there was no statistical assessment of non-commercial fuel, the
opportunity cost of which would be several billion USD.
(d) Hydrocarbon fuel (oil and natural gas) gradually replaced coal and lignite in
total primary energy supply.
(e) Indigenous oil production could only meet 26% requirement.
(f) Production of coal in 2006–2007 touched 430.54 million tons.
(g) Distributional losses were more than 40%.
(h) Meeting energy requirement became complex in view of climate threats.
(i) Installed capacity of nuclear energy was only 3900 megawatt (3.1% of total
installed power generation).
As expected, coal continued to dominate India’s energy needs (50% share) with
78% of total domestic production of coal going into power generation. Globally,
many nations continued to produce, use, import/export coal with impunity ignoring
the warnings of scientific community that coal was responsible for global warming
in a big way. China was the largest producer of coal (2226 million tons) followed
by USA (951 million tons) and India (398 million tons). Several other countries like
Australia (231 million tons), Indonesia (108 million tons), Russia (76 million tons),
and South Africa (73 million tons) were major exporters, while others like Japan (178
million tons), South Korea (77 million tons), Chinese Taipei (61 million tons), UK
(44 million tons), and Germany (38 million tons) were major importers (Planning
Commission 2008).
From a long-term perspective of the growing threat of climate change and keeping
in mind the need to diversify energy sources, renewables remained important to
India’s energy sector, especially rural India where 86% households continued to use
firewood at the turn of the century. Only 5% of the households in rural areas and 44%
households in urban areas used LPG; kerosene was used by 22% of urban households
and only 2.7% of rural households for cooking. Firewood and dung cake dominated
the household energy consumption in rural areas as can be seen in the following
(Fig. 2.33).
It is surprising that no pan India systematic studies were carried out for more than
six decades to assess the use of non-commercial energy, its environmental impact,
direct and opportunity cost, and future potential. This form of energy continued
its dominance in rural households for meeting their cooking and heating needs
(Fig. 2.34). The consumption of 147.56 Mtoe of traditional fuels in 2006–2007
included consumption of 238 million tons of fuelwood, 98 million tons of dung, and
38 million tons of agricultural waste (Source—Planning Commission 2008). Around
67
2.5.2 The Eleventh Five-Year Plan (2007–2012)
2.5.2.1 Highlights
(a) Over half of the country’s population was devoid of electricity or any other form
of commercial energy.
(b) More than two-thirds households in the country were using non-commercial
fuels for cooking.
(c) As such there was no statistical assessment of non-commercial fuel, the
opportunity cost of which would be several billion USD.
(d) Hydrocarbon fuel (oil and natural gas) gradually replaced coal and lignite in
total primary energy supply.
(e) Indigenous oil production could only meet 26% requirement.
(f) Production of coal in 2006–2007 touched 430.54 million tons.
(g) Distributional losses were more than 40%.
(h) Meeting energy requirement became complex in view of climate threats.
(i) Installed capacity of nuclear energy was only 3900 megawatt (3.1% of total
installed power generation).
As expected, coal continued to dominate India’s energy needs (50% share) with
78% of total domestic production of coal going into power generation. Globally,
many nations continued to produce, use, import/export coal with impunity ignoring
the warnings of scientific community that coal was responsible for global warming
in a big way. China was the largest producer of coal (2226 million tons) followed
by USA (951 million tons) and India (398 million tons). Several other countries like
Australia (231 million tons), Indonesia (108 million tons), Russia (76 million tons),
and South Africa (73 million tons) were major exporters, while others like Japan (178
million tons), South Korea (77 million tons), Chinese Taipei (61 million tons), UK
(44 million tons), and Germany (38 million tons) were major importers (Planning
Commission 2008).
From a long-term perspective of the growing threat of climate change and keeping
in mind the need to diversify energy sources, renewables remained important to
India’s energy sector, especially rural India where 86% households continued to use
firewood at the turn of the century. Only 5% of the households in rural areas and 44%
households in urban areas used LPG; kerosene was used by 22% of urban households
and only 2.7% of rural households for cooking. Firewood and dung cake dominated
the household energy consumption in rural areas as can be seen in the following
(Fig. 2.33).
It is surprising that no pan India systematic studies were carried out for more than
six decades to assess the use of non-commercial energy, its environmental impact,
direct and opportunity cost, and future potential. This form of energy continued
its dominance in rural households for meeting their cooking and heating needs
(Fig. 2.34). The consumption of 147.56 Mtoe of traditional fuels in 2006–2007
included consumption of 238 million tons of fuelwood, 98 million tons of dung, and
38 million tons of agricultural waste (Source—Planning Commission 2008). Around