By Nidhi Verma
NEW DELHI, May 8 (Reuters) - India should ban the use of
diesel-powered four-wheeler vehicles by 2027 and switch to
electric and gas-fuelled vehicles in cities with more than a
million people and polluted towns in order to cut emissions, an
oil ministry panel is recommending.
India, one of the biggest emitters of green house gases,
wants to produce 40% of its electricity from renewables to
achieve its 2070 net zero goal.
"By 2030, no city buses should be added which are not
electric...diesel buses for city transport should not be added
from 2024 onwards," the panel said in a report posted on the oil
ministry's website.
It is not clear if the petroleum ministry will seek cabinet
approval to implement the recommendations of its Energy
Transition Advisory Committee, headed by former oil secretary
Tarun Kapoor.
To boost electric vehicle use in the country, the report
said the government should consider "targeted extension" of
incentives given under Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of
Electric and Hybrid Vehicles scheme (FAME) to beyond March 31.
Diesel accounts for about two-fifths of refined fuel
consumption in India with 80% of that being used in the
transport sector.
The panels said new registrations of only electric-powered
city delivery vehicles should be allowed from 2024 and suggested
for higher use railways and gas-powered trucks for the movement
of cargo. The railway network is expected to be fully electric
in two to three years.
Long-distance buses in India will have to be powered by
electricity in the long-term, it said, adding that gas can be
used as a transition fuel for 10-15 years.
India aims to raise the share of gas in its energy mix to
15% by 2030 form 6.2% now.
The panel said India should consider building underground
gas storage, equivalent to two months' demand as demand is
expected to rise at compound average growth rate of 9.78%
between 2020 and 2050. It suggested the use of depleted oil and
gas fields, salt caverns and aquifers for building gas storage
with the participation of foreign gas-producing companies.
(Reporting by Nidhi Verma, editing by Ed Osmond)
Messaging: nidhi.verma.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
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