India to take up both fuel and biofuel at COP28 climate summit in Dubai

Govt expected to push Global Biofuel Alliance; OMC chiefs setting up meetings

In addition to advancing the climate agenda, Indian officials are expected to discuss both crude oil flows and biofuel partnerships on the sidelines of the upcoming 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) United Nations (UN) Climate Summit in Dubai.

While the government will pitch its Global Biofuel Alliance (GBA) to a large group of developing nations, talks on oil flows are also expected with West Asian partners, officials said.

The annual meeting of the Conference of the Parties of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, more commonly referred to as COP, is set to begin on Thursday. The meeting is taking place at a time when nations are increasingly divided over how to achieve a substantial decline in global demand for oil and gas to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius by 2050.

Meanwhile, a large contingent of global oil industry executives is set to arrive in Dubai. After more than a year of securing major shipments of Russian crude, India is increasingly looking to re-establish supplies from its traditional partners in West Asia.

Top executives from state-owned oil-marketing companies will be travelling to the summit, and meetings are being drawn up with other major global oil companies, multiple people in the know said.

“Such international events provide a major platform for business talks. This year is no different. Our companies are expected to be on the lookout for new opportunities to secure flows,” an executive said.

As of September, the share of Russian crude in India’s imports remained at 38 per cent, less than its historic high of 42 per cent, estimates made by the London-based commodity data analytics provider Vortexa, which tracks ship movements to estimate imports, show. This has happened even as the share of Saudi Arabia and Iraq has crept up in recent months.

Investments in traditional hydrocarbons like oil and gas have also become a major point of contention in climate talks. Last week, the International Energy Agency (IEA) highlighted that although investment in oil and gas supply is still necessary, the current rate of $800 billion per year is double what is required in 2030 to meet declining demand in the ideal scenario.

However, India is expected to stick to its position that further investment in developing and extracting oil and gas resources is needed in tandem with the exploration of carbon-free alternatives.

India’s share in global oil demand is 5.5 per cent in 2023, much below the US’ 20 per cent and China’s 16.1 per cent. However, it is rising at a fast clip and is set to hit 6.6 per cent over the next five years.

The IEA has also flagged the oil and gas industry’s meagre contribution to clean energy investment, accounting for only 1 per cent globally. Notably, 60 per cent of this investment is concentrated in just four companies, prompting a call for a broader and more concerted effort across the entire sector, it had said.

On the other hand, New Delhi is expected to pitch the GBA to the global audience. Officials said plans are afoot to draw in more countries to the grouping.

“A diverse group of 19 countries and 12 international organisations have already joined the GBA, but we want all like-minded nations to join. We have received a good response from nations of the global south, and there will be more meetings on the sidelines of COP28,” an official said.

Kenya and Uganda are already signatory nations while nations like Tanzania have expressed intention to join.

Led by India, Brazil, and the US, the GBA aims to reshape the global landscape and expedite the uptake of biofuels worldwide by accelerating technology development, bolstering policy frameworks, and exchanging best practices.

India also hopes to woo Russia and Saudi Arabia to come on board, owing to their fear that the alliance will intensify the already growing clamor against fossil fuels. Both Moscow and Riyadh rely on crude oil to finance large chunks of their budget and have called for continuing investment into traditional hydrocarbons during the global energy transition.