Indian tycoons Ambani and continue their pursuit towards carbon neutrality
At the Qatar Economic Forum, Mukesh Ambani, the richest man of India, said that he plans to introduce sustainability in Reliance Industries’ business model, as the company looks to achieve net zero carbon goal by 2035. “We have no option as a society, as a business but to really adopt a sustainable businessmodel,” he added.
India is among a handful nations on track to meet its Cop21 commitments. The pivot towards green energy is not an easy feat but companies like the Ambani and Gautam Adani-led companies have been propelling it.
Earlier in February, Reliance purchased its first cargo of carbon-neutral crude oil. The company said that it is looking for more such opportunities to boost the ambitious goal of achieving net zero carbon by 2035.Likewise, in April, it bolstered the establishment of India H2 Alliance, along with several other global energy and industrial majors. India H2 Alliance is a new energy transition coalitionthat is committed to building a hydrogen economy.
Raisings its game in clean energy goals, the green energy arm of the Gautam Adani Group has also been on an acquisition spree.It recently acquired SB Energy India, a joint venture between Japan-based SoftBank Group Corp and Bharti Group.The acquisition has helped Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL) in achieving its renewable energy target four years early.Now, with its total renewable energy capacity portfolio standing at 24.3 GW, it is only 0.7GW away from attaining its goal.
Last year, AGEL won a solar agreement, which is the first and the largest of its kind in the world, from the Solar Energy Corporation of India. As part of the agreement, the company will build 8 GW of solar projects and churn out as many as 400,000 jobs. Commenting on the win, Gautam Adani said, “In today’s world, climate adaptation cannot be considered independent of economic development priorities and both job creation as well as decarbonisation must be simultaneous objectives.”
India is still a long way from achieving carbon neutrality. However, successive acquisitions and projects by companies akin to Ambani’s and Gautam Adani’s raise hopes.
