[Answered] Highlight the present challenges to India’s energy security. What policies must India frame to safeguard its national energy interests?

India is the fourth-largest energy consumer in the world and is expected to nearly double its energy consumption by 2040. India’s growing energy needs will make it more reliant on fossil fuel imports. Amid government policies for domestic oil and gas production, there are certain rising challenges to India’s energy security which are as follows:

Challenges to India’s energy security:

Political Challenges: The trajectory of energy market lies in the supply, demand and geopolitical trends.

• Sanctions on countries like Iran, Russia greatly impact the energy sector of India. For e.g., sanctions on Iran bring down the oil imports in India.
• The power of OPEC plus countries in effecting crude oil prices poses a great challenge to India’s energy sector.

Economic Challenges:

• Inadequate domestic supplies of coal, oil and natural gas and continuing volatility in oil put pressure on the fiscal space of country.
• India’s investments in Russia to secure energy are under threat due to western sanctions. For example, the ONGC stake in Vankor oil field has eroded substantially in value.

Accessibility Challenges:

One of the biggest concerns in the field of clean energy systems is dependence on natural resources like rare earths, minerals and components that are required to affect the transition to a clean energy system.

Policies that India must frame to safeguard its national energy interests

• Strenuous efforts are required to build up the strategic reserves to safeguard against the unexpected circumstances.
• The need is to decouple the supply chain dependence on China for minerals and components that are required for clean energy.
• Reviving conversation about transnational gas pipeline with Iran and countries is a must to safeguard national energy interests
• India must create a balance of ties between countries like USA, Russia and other Arabian countries where USA is emerging as the largest producer of oil and the exporter of LNG.

Conclusion:

Despite constraints, the long-term sustainability of our energy security heavily relies on the pace of energy transitions and building capacity in research and skills. The drive towards renewable energy continues to advance with upheavals in oil production and globalization of natural gas markets