New Delhi: India has powerful competitive advantages in the global clean energy race, particularly its tech-savvy workforce, UN climate chief Simon Stiell said on Tuesday.
Stiell equated India’s clean energy growth with the combined performance of the country’s star cricketers Sachin Tendulkar and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
“India’s clean energy growth is like Sachin Tendulkar and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi rolled into one: a stellar record, but the story is just getting started – and if India keeps doubling down on renewables and clean tech, the next chapters promise to be truly extraordinary,” said Stiell, the executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
“India’s EV sales are growing – led by national champions like Tata Motors, Mahindra and Mahindra, and JSW MG Motor India and solar installed capacity has surged more than 50 times since 2014. India is now a solar superpower that’s turbocharged your economy, pushed up living standards and, along with other renewables, saved you USD 18 billion in fossil fuel purchases last year alone, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency,” he said.
Appointed in August 2022 and reappointed in 2025, Steill leads the UN agency responsible for global climate change negotiations and treaties.
He said that India could seize the opportunity by becoming a clean tech manufacturing hub for the world, positioning itself as a leader in areas of comparative advantage such as green steel, and supercharging clean energy investment.
“UN-convened climate cooperation can help India bank these benefits… and together, through international cooperation, we must continue to accelerate the global shift to clean, resilient economies. India has long been a strong partner in climate multilateralism. And it’s entirely in your (India’s) interests to continue engaging,” he said.
Stiell noted that clean energy, infrastructure and services are the next industrial revolution, and can help India cement itself as a global economic giant.
“And it makes total economic sense to move even faster to clean energy – in India and around the world,” he said.
The UN climate chief also highlighted that decarbonisation is central to India’s development strategy, and fossil-fuel-free power now makes up half of the country’s installed capacity.
“India’s solar manufacturing capacity has increased 75-fold since 2014, and solar, along with other renewables, enabled the country to save $18 billion in fossil fuel purchases last year. This is crucial as conflict has exacted a terrible human toll and sent fossil fuel cost chaos reverberating through the global economy.
“The brutal costs of fossil fuel imports have hit all nations hard, including India, which imports 90 pc of its crude oil. For all nations, oil and gas import vulnerability means supplies disrupted and prices rising when crises hit,” he said.
On Monday, Steill met Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav where the two had discussions on adaptation, technology transfer, climate finance, global stocktake and just transition.
