Global forum hails India's leadership in driving Asia's energy transition

A global forum focussed on climate protection has lauded India's progress in the renewable energy sector and said the country has a leadership role in Asia's energy transition.

"India has a leadership role in the energy transition in Asia. It's making steady progress on its climate goals, with a focus on solar roll-out. This is encouraging," said Helen Clarkson, CEO of Climate Group-- a not-for-profit international entity.

Clarkson, who led the Climate Group Asia Action Summit in Singapore last week, said, "India's progress in renewables is interesting with progress seen in the last few years".

India's total installed renewable energy (RE) capacity has reached 220 GW as of FY25, she said, citing the latest data from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE). 

Solar energy leads the sector, accounting for approximately 48 per cent of the total RE capacity, followed by wind energy (23 per cent), large hydro (22 per cent), bio power (5 per cent) and small hydro (2 per cent), according to MNRE's April 2025 report.

"Asia can tackle two deeply linked crises in one go -- economic and climate -- if its businesses and governments push ahead with clean tech, innovation, energy security based on renewables, and decarbonised supply chains. Asia is where the transition will be won or lost," said Clarkson.

The Climate Group Asia Action Summit held on May 8 brought together business leaders and policymakers from across Asia to discuss how to stay competitive in a fast-changing world, how to reduce costs and swiftly unlock barriers, and where to spot opportunities.

Clarkson said the economic and the climate crisis are deeply linked. As other parts of the world are stepping back, Asia is where the transition will be won or lost. 

"We need bold leadership, innovative solutions, strategic clean investment, and the buy-in and long-term thinking of governments. Asia truly has an incredible opportunity to build out its lead," she said.

"And, we need to scale up such renewables programmes globally," she underlined.

Clarkson further said, "Trade is the engine of the global economy if that goes, it sends tremors through the foundations of supply chains, competitiveness, energy security, and procurement strategies."  She said the conversations at the Climate Group Asia Action Summit have shown that forward-thinking executives and policymakers from across the region understand the opportunity in the transition. To them, it makes clear business sense.