Data Driven Strategy For Smoother Energy Transition In The Power Sector

Abstract

The announcement of India’s net-zero target for 2070 has served as a strong and credible policy signal, fundamentally reshaping the national climate discourse and aligning domestic development priorities with long-term global decarbonization goals. By committing to net-zero emissions, India has not only underscored its intent to pursue a sustainable growth pathway but has also provided greater policy certainty to investors, industries, and sub-national governments, thereby accelerating momentum across climate-relevant sectors. Beyond its environmental significance, the net-zero commitment is catalysing new entrepreneurial opportunities by enabling SME participation, start-up innovation, and the emergence of green investment ecosystems across renewable energy, energy storage, grid services, and clean technologies. This paper seeks to examine the pathways through which India can realistically achieve its net-zero objective by 2070. It places particular emphasis on the power sector, which currently accounts for nearly 50 per cent of the country’s total greenhouse gas emissions. Given this substantial contribution, the pace and scale of the transition from fossil-fuel-based generation to renewable and low-carbon sources will be decisive in determining the feasibility of the 2070 target. Without a significantly faster and more coordinated transformation of the electricity sector encompassing generation, transmission, distribution, and end-use electrification, the ambitious vision articulated by the Honourable Prime Minister risks becoming increasingly difficult to realise.