Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to present the the budget on 23 July. From investors to common citizens, all eyes are on the announcements in store for the current financial year.
Before the FM takes centre stage in the new parliament, stakeholders in India’s power sector have come out with their wish list for the sector.
Expectedly, the focus of the commentary is around the push for renewable energy and improvement of grid infrastructure as the sector witnesses record growth in power demand. In financial year 2024, power demand grew by 8 per cent.
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Wishlist of Power Sector
The finance minister will present the budget at a time when there is a sharp focus on country's green energy target. The government had set the target to reaching 500 Giga Watts of renewable power by 2030. At around 190 GW currently, the run rate to reach the target is 50-60 GW every year.
Experts believe the budget should focus on this aspect. Atul Mudaliar, Director of Systems Change- India, Climate Group, said that the strong push for renewable energy in the interim budget through budgetary supports for strengthening solar and wind power grids shows that is a priority for the government to secure long-term energy needs and act on climate change.
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"Besides opening the RE markets via Green Open Access and other new forms of procurement instruments, decisive budgetary support to develop low-cost solar/ wind plus storage solutions will be key for businesses in India to make a complete shift to renewables," he says.
The government had announced a scheme to install rooftop solar modules in 1 crore households and provide 300 units of free electricity. Along with this, it also include a provision to promote adoption of offshore wind energy in the interim budget, providing a boost to prospects of renewable companies.
Industry players are hoping that the government continues to push in the direction of renewables in the Union Budget 2024-25. Shashank Sharma, Founder, Chairman and CEO - Sunsure Energy said that the the firm would like to see more incentives for businesses and corporates to decarbonize India's industrial landscape.
He said, "The upcoming budget should also address the need for skill development programs to create a workforce capable of supporting the renewable energy sector. Training for new green jobs and reskilling of workers from conventional energy sectors will be essential for a smooth transition."
Summing up the demands the sector, Amit Kumar, Partner, Grant Thornton Bharat said that the government might double down on previously announced schemes. He said, "Viability gap funding for harnessing offshore wind energy potential as announced in the Budget before elections might see further development. We expect further support on things such as corporate tax at 15 per cent and concessional duties for importing any equipment related to offshore wind development."
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Other measures which the industry wants to see include government's focus on coal gasification and liquefaction for cleaner use of coal, relief to MSMEs in the energy sector such as those involved in manufacturing renewable energy equipment and financial incentives in the form of tax rebates/concessional funding for the implementation of Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) projects.
