India’s Energy Growth Creates Major Opportunities for U.S. Investors

Washington — India’s rapidly expanding economy could drive a threefold increase in the country’s energy demand over the next 25 years, creating significant opportunities for U.S. investment, technology partnerships and broader energy cooperation, industry leaders said.

Speaking during a panel on energy security and infrastructure at the ninth U.S.-India Strategic Partnership Forum Leadership Summit, ExxonMobil Director of Economics and Energy Dr. Prasanna Joshi said India’s projected growth stands apart from that of other major economies.

“Our outlook is projecting that the global GDP will essentially double in the next 25 years, whereas India… going almost a factor of seven to eight times… to 25 to 30 trillion dollars,” Joshi said.

“Energy demand is expected to grow only about 12 to 15 per cent in the next 25 years. For India, that number is a factor of three.”

Meeting that demand will require substantial investment across the energy sector, including renewable energy, conventional fuels, exploration and infrastructure, he said.

India currently has about 500 gigawatts of installed electricity generation capacity and aims to increase that figure to approximately 2,100 GW by 2047.

Renewable energy is expected to account for much of the expansion.

“The projection for solar and wind is… 100 gigawatts have to go to about 1,800 gigawatts… there’s so much opportunity for investment and opportunity for collaboration in India,” Joshi said.

Conventional energy sources will also remain important as India works to strengthen energy security and support economic growth.

“Only 10 per cent of India’s resources have been explored,” Joshi said, adding that expanded exploration could reduce the country’s reliance on imported energy.

Natural gas currently accounts for about 6 percent of India’s energy mix. The country is seeking to raise that share to between 12 percent and 15 percent by 2047 through infrastructure development, exploration and long-term investment.

Ernie Thrasher, president and CEO of Xcoal Energy & Resources, said India has become the largest overseas destination for U.S. coal exports.

“India as a destination is the largest consumer of US export coal. Currently approximately 23 per cent of US coal exports,” Thrasher said.

U.S. coal exports to India increased from 1 million metric tons in 2005 to 21.5 million metric tons last year, he said.

“So the growth is phenomenal.”

Thrasher said India would need a broad mix of energy sources to meet rising demand.

“India and the world needs all forms of energy today. One form of energy by itself is not going to solve the world’s sensational demand for energy and electricity.”

He also highlighted opportunities for U.S. companies in underground mining, coal gasification, battery storage and other energy technologies.

Joshi said the scale of India’s planned infrastructure expansion would require cooperation among governments, businesses and technology providers.

“This cannot be done by a single entity. You have to collaborate across the entire value chain,” he said.

India’s large domestic consumer market will be one of the primary drivers of its economic expansion, Joshi added.

“India’s growth is going to come from internal… That’s what we can tap into is the consumer base in India.”

Thrasher said investors would need to take a long-term approach while ensuring energy remains affordable.

“We need a long-term horizon to make those energy investments and we need to focus on keeping the cost at a level that the Indian economy can.”

The Washington summit brought together government officials, diplomats and business leaders from India and the United States to discuss cooperation in trade, energy, technology and other strategic sectors.

The two countries have expanded energy cooperation in recent years across areas including liquefied natural gas, civil nuclear power, renewable technologies, critical minerals and clean energy innovation. (Source: IANS)