Energy Strategy for Future

1.14 Energy Strategy for the Future

The energy strategy for the future could be classified into immediate, medium-term and long-term strategy. The various components of these strategies are listed below:

Immediate-term strategy:

• Rationalizing the tariff structure of various energy products.
• Optimum utilization of existing assets
• Efficiency in production systems and reduction in distribution losses, including those in traditional energy sources.
• Promoting R&D, transfer and use of technologies and practices for environmentally sound energy systems, including new and renewable energy sources.

Medium-term strategy:

• Demand management through greater conservation of energy, optimum fuel mix, structural changes in the economy, an appropriate model mix in the transport sector, i.e. greater dependence on rail than on road for the movement of goods and passengers and a shift away from private modes to public modes for passenger transport; changes in design of different products to reduce the material intensity of those products, recycling, etc.
• There is need to shift to less energy-intensive modes of transport. This would include measures to improve the transport infrastructure viz. roads, better design of vehicles, use of compressed natural gas (CNG) and synthetic fuel, etc. Similarly, better urban planning would also reduce the demand for energy use in the transport sector.
• There is need to move away from non-renewable to renewable energy sources viz. solar, wind, biomass energy, etc.

Long-term strategy:

• Efficient generation of energy resources
• Efficient production of coal, oil and natural gas
• Reduction of natural gas flaring
• Improving energy infrastructure
• Building new refineries
• Creation of urban gas transmission and distribution network
• Maximizing efficiency of rail transport of coal production.
• Building new coal and gas fired power stations.
• Enhancing energy efficiency
• Improving energy efficiency in accordance with national, socio-economic, and environmental priorities
• Promoting of energy efficiency and emission standards
• Labeling programmes for products and adoption of energy efficient technologies in large industries
• Deregulation and privatization of energy sector
• Reducing cross subsidies on oil products and electricity tariffs
• Decontrolling coal prices and making natural gas prices competitive
• Privatization of oil, coal and power sectors for improved efficiency.
• Investment legislation to attract foreign investments.
• Streamlining approval process for attracting private sector participation in power generation, transmission and distribution .