Page 7 - Carbon Emissions

Court orders S Korea to specify plans to cut carbon emissions through 2049

South Korea's Constitutional Court on Thursday ordered the government to back its climate goals with more concrete plans for action through 2049, handing a partial victory to climate campaigners who say the country's failure to cut emissions faster amounts to a violation of their rights. The court, which weighs the constitutionality of laws, issued the assessment while ruling on four climate cases raised by 254 plaintiffs, including many young people who were children or teenagers when they began filing the complaints against the government and lawmakers in 2020. They argued that South Korea's current goal of cutting carbon emissions by 35 per cent from 2018 levels by 2030 is inadequate to manage the impact of climate change and that such objectives weren't backed by sufficient implementation plans. They also pointed out that the country has yet to establish plans to reduce carbon emissions after 2031, despite its outstanding goals of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. The ...

Indian Railways pacing towards net zero emissions, says Railway Board

Indian Railways is rapidly progressing towards its goal of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2030, the Railway Board said on Tuesday. According to the Board, it is making efforts to grant net zero status to Railway premises across the country with a focus on meeting Railways' energy needs entirely through renewable energy sources. "The Northeast Frontier Railway zone of Indian Railways has achieved a significant milestone by converting its buildings to net zero carbon emission structures. "The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), under the Ministry of Power, has honoured six different buildings of the zone with the 'Shunya Label' recognition as Net Zero Energy Buildings," the Board said in a statement. It added, "Over the past decade, from 2014 to 2024, there has been a significant increase in renewable energy production capacity." As of June 30, 2024, Indian Railways' solar energy production capacity has exceeded 238 MW, and wind energy production capacity has surpassed 103 MW

BPCL plans to invest Rs 1.7 trn to expand core business, new energy foray

State-owned Bharat Petroleum Corporation plans to invest Rs 1.7 lakh crore over the next five years to grow its core oil refining and fuel marketing business as well as in 'future big bets' of petrochemicals and green energy, its chairman G Krishnakumar has said. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), currently, owns about 14 per cent of India's oil refining capacity and about a quarter of the fuel retailing network. It plans to grow these businesses while foraying into newer areas. The firm is now implementing the first phase of a multi-decade aspirational journey in the form of 'Project Aspire' - its five-year strategic framework that is based on two fundamental pillars - 'Nurturing the Core' and 'Investing in Future Big Bets', he said in the company's latest annual report. "Our mid-term strategy is on a continuum. While we remain committed to growing our core businesses, which include refining and marketing petroleum products and upstream, we are equally focused on our big bets

Unilateral environment measures like carbon tax hamper global trade: Govt

India on Saturday said that unilateral environmental measures such as the European Union's (EU) carbon tax do not reflect the principles of equity and hamper equitable world trade. Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal said that the Global South countries are facing challenges both in terms of developing climate and sustainable development strategies and responding to unilateral measures such as CBAM (carbon border adjustment mechanism). "Unilateral environment measures do not reflect the principles of equity and common but differentiated responsibilities; and hamper equitable world trade," he said in a virtual address at the third Voice of Global South Summit. India has on different platforms raised its concerns over the EU's decision to impose carbon tax on certain sectors as it would hurt the country's exports. The country is in discussions with the EU on the subject. The EU has decided to impose a CBAM, or carbon tax, which will come into effect from January 1, 2026. Initially, it

Aim for carbon neutrality in scope 1, 2 emissions by FY32: ICICI Bank

In its ESG report 2023-24, ICICI Bank says it has allocated Rs 5.19 billion for corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities in financial year 2024, up from Rs 4.63 billion the previous year

WB issues world's 1st carbon removal bond to fund Amazon reforestation

The World Bank sold a nine-year, $225 million note this week which will help raise funds for reforestation in the Amazon

Delhi Airport becomes 1st to achieve net zero carbon emission status

Delhi Airport's achievement of Level 5 certification underscores its leadership in sustainability and carbon management

IGIA becomes 1st Indian airport to get net zero carbon emission status

Delhi airport has become the country's first airport to get the net zero carbon emission status under the Airport Council International's accreditation programme, DIAL said on Wednesday. GMR Group-led DIAL is the operator of the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) in the national capital. Initially, the airport targeted to achieve net zero carbon emission by 2030, and the target has been achieved well ahead of schedule through various initiatives, including the adoption of renewable energy, development of green airport infrastructures and promotion of electric vehicles, it said in a release. DIAL said IGIA has become the first airport in India to successfully achieve Net Zero Carbon Emission Airport status under the Airport Council International's (ACI) Airport Carbon Accreditation (ACA) programme. "With the attainment of Level 5 net zero emission accreditation in 2024, we have once again demonstrated our commitment to continual improvement and sustainability. "As we face t

China's central bank to extend low-carbon lending tool to end of 2027

In sweeping statement of policy goals that was short on specific implementation plans, China promised to develop tax & investment policies that would support what Beijing calls a green transformation

Reliance to commission 1st solar giga-factory to achieve net zero emission

Reliance Industries Ltd, India's most valuable company, plans to commission its first solar giga-factory in the current fiscal as it pivots a green pathway to achieve net zero carbon emissions from operations by 2035. In its largest annual report, the firm said it is targeting to commission the first train of 20GW solar PV (photovoltaic) manufacturing by the end of 2024-25 fiscal (April 2024 to March 2025) and scale up to 20GW in a phased manner over 2026. The solar giga factory will include manufacturing of PV modules, cells, wafers and ingots, polysilicon, and glass at a single location. The modules convert sunlight into electricity. It is also targeting industrialising sodium-ion cell production at the MW level in 2025 and first 50 MWh a year lithium battery cells pilot in 2026. Reliance had in 2021 announced plans to invest USD 10 billion over three years to develop a new fuels business based on 100 GW of renewable power capacity by 2030. The plan involves setting up four giga

Carbon market regulations expected in months as govt studies global models

Government officials are expected to set up regulations for the domestic carbon market in the coming months, having examined models in Europe and green-conscious countries, Dirk Forrister, President and CEO of International Emission Trading Association (IETA), said here on Wednesday. "We are waiting for details as to what the targets would look like, and what flexibility will be affordable," he told PTI in comments on the progress of India's carbon market development. Asked to estimate the Indian carbon market size, he said, "We can't estimate just yet because the details are still being produced by the Indian government. "On the demand side, the strength of the market is to be set by regulations. We don't know how tough they are but they will be coming out in the coming months and not years away." India has enormous power needs and interests in bringing existing infrastructure but it is also working to attract more investments in renewables and energy efficiency programmes, he not

EU's suggestion on carbon tax not to help Indian firms much: GTRI

The EU's suggestion that India could avoid its carbon tax by imposing a similar levy locally will not help the domestic players much, as they would still be liable for the duty for their exports to the European Union, think tank GTRI said on Wednesday. The main issue is that carbon prices are usually based on a country's economic situation, so simply adding a local tax would not reduce the overall tax burden significantly, the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said. While the EU (European Union) can afford high carbon prices, it may not be sustainable for a developing country like India, it said. Further explaining, it said at present, the global average carbon price is around USD 6 per tonne of CO2 and if India were to establish an Emissions Trading System (ETS) or set a carbon price, it is expected to be less than USD 10 per tonne of CO2. Even with such a system, Indian firms would still need to pay the EU the difference amounting to USD 51.3 per tonne of CO2 under the Carb

Developed world's climate plans in a fog, India's a clear blue sky: Survey

"Even as developed nations prepare to impose a carbon tax at the border on imports coming into their countries laden with carbon, they are ramping up energy demand like never before," said the Survey

Sam Altman-backed startup 44.01 scaling technology to store CO2 in rocks

44.01's storage process works by injecting a mixture of CO2 and water down a borehole and into cracks in peridotite, a naturally fractured rock

Mercedes-Benz to assemble more EVs in India to meet carbon neutrality goals

German luxury carmaker Mercedes-Benz is considering assembling more electric vehicles at its plant in India not merely to gain cost advantage but also to meet its zero emission mobility and carbon neutral setup goals, according to a senior company official. Mercedes-Benz India, which currently assembles its flagship electric luxury sedan EQS at its Chakan unit, is considering localisation of other models depending on demand. "Our final goal is zero emission mobility and carbon neutral setup, which not only means about tailpipe emissions, but also from the recyclability of the car, to the carbon footprint that we generate by producing these cars," Mercedes-Benz India Managing Director & CEO Santosh Iyer told PTI. He further said,"We have to look at this holistically and therefore producing EVs was the logical step and we will continue in that direction as the market demand changes." Iyer was replying to a query over Mercedes-Benz India's long-term plans for local assembly of EVs in

European carbon removal specialists to support new projects in India

Indian projects are expected to focus on biochar - charcoal produced from burning organic matter - as well as "enhanced weathering", where materials like basalt are spread across land to absorb CO2

ONGC unveils Rs 2 trillion decarbonisation road map for net-zero 2038

Rs 2 trn allocated for 7 Gw of renewables, carbon capture, and green H2 plans

ONGC to invest Rs 2 trillion to meet net zero carbon emission target

State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will invest about Rs 2 lakh crore in setting up renewable energy sites and green hydrogen plants and cutting gas flaring to zero to achieve its 2038 net-zero carbon emission goal. The company, which produces about two-thirds of India's crude oil and about 58 per cent of natural gas, on Tuesday released a 200-page document, detailing its path to achieving net zero emissions. It listed clean energy projects even as it looks to boost its hydrocarbon output to meet the country's energy needs. ONGC will invest Rs 97,000 crore by 2030 in setting up 5 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity, green hydrogen, biogas, pump storage plant and offshore wind project, according to the document. Another Rs 65,500 crore will be invested by 2035, mostly in a green hydrogen or green ammonia plant, and the remaining Rs 38,000 crore by 2038, primarily in setting up 1 GW of offshore wind projects. These projects will help the firm offset 9 million tonnes

Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism aims for global decarbonisation: EU

The Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism aims to treat imported goods the same as EU-produced goods to help global decarbonisation, the Director-General of the European Commission has said following a visit to India to discuss tax and custom issues. Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) is the European Union's planned tax on the carbon emitted while making goods imported from countries like India and China. The move has sparked a debate at multilateral forums, including the United Nations climate conferences, as the poorer countries fear such tariffs will harm livelihoods and economic growth. Director-General of the European Commission, Gerassimos Thomas, led a group of officials to New Delhi to discuss tax and customs issues, with a focus on CBAM, on July 1 and 2. He met the Indian government officials and business leaders to explore the manner in which it might affect the Indian industries and explain CBAM's goals and timeline. Thomas welcomed India's plans to decarbonise its ..

India takes first steps to meet 2070 net-zero goal, Niti Aayog forms panels

Six working groups created to identify issues, develop pathways, and suggest policy action on various aspects of climate change