India signs agreement with IEA for energy initiatives

IEA and NITI Aayog today signed a Statement of Intent on energy cooperation

The Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA) will enhance its co-operation with India in numerous fields including forecasting and data as part of an agreement signed on Friday between IEA executive director Fatih Birol and Arvind Panagariya, the vice-chairman of the National Institution for the Transformation of India (NITI) Aayog.

The statement of Intent provides an umbrella accord for the many IEA research and policy initiatives that apply to broader energy issues.

"As India moves to the centre of the global energy stage, it is vital that the IEA and our members step up our level of engagement," said Birol. "This agreement will allow us to do that by improving  mutual understanding of the functioning of energy markets in the world."

The IEA already shares with India best energy practices it has gleaned from its own analysis as well as the experiences of its member countries. "The Statement of Intent will push forward ongoing IEA-India work in a number of cross-cutting issues that apply to the country's energy system. These issues include work for the Agency's flagship publication, World Energy Outlook (WEO), as well as modelling, forecasting and identification of data needs," said a IEA press release.

The agreement also expands on ongoing joint research on relevant technologies and analysis of global trends in pricing and supply of energy supplies, plus development of human resources development strategies for the energy sector. The two parties agree to look into regular exchange of statistics and other energy sector information as well as increased seminars, training, and visits involving researchers and other experts.

During his visit to the IEA, Panagariya delivered a speech as part of the big IdEAs distinguished lecture series on the Indian economy's development and outlook.

Birol was recently invited by Prime Minister Modi to brief him on the global energy outlook. The meeting followed publication of the WEO Special Report India Energy Outlook 2015 and India's participation in the 2015 IEA Ministerial meeting.

India participates in seven IEA Technology Collaboration Programmes (TCPs), furthering research in demand-side management, fusion and fossil fuels. TCPs bring together government, academic and other experts from around the world to share latest developments and discoveries in a host of energy technology and policy subjects.