5 PSUs under Petroleum Ministry to join International Solar Alliance Coalition

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan announced on September 8, 2020, that five Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) under the Petroleum Ministry will be joining the International Solar Alliance Coalition for Sustainable Climate Action (ISA-CSCA) as the Corporate Partners.

Dharmendra Pradhan shared the news while giving his inaugural speech during the First World Solar Technology Summit and stated that 5 PSU’s will be contributing to ISA’s Corpus Fund. The Summit was also organized by the International Solar Alliance (ISA).

Spoke about need for ending energy poverty in India, and gradual transformation of Indian oil and gas companies into energy companies with a vision to deploy cleaner energy, including solar power. #ISAWSTS #SolarAlliance2020 pic.twitter.com/i8p987bQR3

— Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) September 8, 2020

What will be the role of PSUs in ISA?

While informing about the five Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) joining the International Solar Alliance (ISA), Dharmendra Pradhan mentioned that Indian Oil and Gas Companies have been actively taking part in this clean energy transition.

The Oil and gas companies in India will be working closely with ISA in order to explore the opportunities for the implementation of solar-based projects within India as well as in other countries, particularly other developing nations where ISA has been focusing on the faster development of solar energy infrastructure.

He further added that in order to reduce the carbon footprint, these companies will be focusing more on green energy investments such as biofuels and renewables.

Mr. Pradhan also informed that the government has also been actively encouraging the industry as well as the Oil and Gas companies to become the participants in this solar transition.

Achievements of Petroleum and Natural Gas Sector:

• India’s Oil and Gas Companies have been making efforts to deploy the solar panel across the value chains of their operations and the current installed solar power capacity is 270 Mega Watt.

• The minister also informed that an additional 60 Mega Watt Solar Capacity will be added in the coming year.

• The Central Government has taken up the mission of solarizing about 50% of the fuel stations owned by the Public Sector Oil Companies in the next 5 years.

• More than 5000 fuel stations of Indian Oil were solarized by the government in 2019.

About International Solar Alliance (ISA):

International Solar Alliance (ISA) is an alliance of sunshine rich countries that have been set up by India and France on the sidelines of the Paris meeting on Climate Change in November 2015.

Dharmendra Pradhan during his inaugural speech lauded the role of the ISA for making the rapid strides since its launch at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris in 2015.

He added that as the latest inter-governmental international organization which has its headquarters in India, ISA is not only a testament to India’s unwavering faith in multilateralism but also a commitment to a sustainable, better, and greener future.