Source: The post India secures energy sovereignty through five pillars has been created, based on the article “In an unstable world, energy sovereignty is the new oil” published in “The Hindu” on 30th August 2025. India secures energy sovereignty through five pillars.
UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 3- Growth and development And Infrastructure (energy).
Context: India’s energy security is fragile due to heavy import dependence, a new concentration on Russian crude, and volatile geopolitics. June 2025 Israel–Iran near-war exposed risks to sea lanes and prices. The article urges “energy realism” and a five-pillar sovereignty doctrine to pre-empt shocks and stabilize the economy.
For detailed information on India’s Energy Strategy: Vision, Transformation, and Sustainable Growth read this article here
Why is India’s import dependence a national risk?
1. Risk quantified by macro costs: India imports over 85% of crude and more than 50% of gas. In FY2023-24, oil and gas were ~$170 billion of $677 billion imports, hurting forex and the trade balance.
- Risk magnified by supplier concentration: Russia now supplies ~35%–40% of crude in 2024-25 (vs ~2% pre-war). Reliance on one partner raises vulnerability; diversification preserves sovereignty.
- Risk amplified by geopolitics: In June 2025, a wider Israel–Iran war could have threatened over 20 mb/d and pushed Brent past $103 within days—showing route risk.
What have recent shocks taught the world?
1. Single-source strategies fail: The 1973 embargo quadrupled prices and spurred reserves and diversified sourcing. In 2022, Europe’s >40% gas reliance on Russia collapsed, spiking LNG and reviving coal.
- Perceptions reshape emissions paths: Fukushima (2011) triggered a nuclear pullback; coal and gas filled the gap, raising emissions. Reliability needs are now reviving nuclear.
- Cost-only design breaks under stress: The Texas Freeze (2021) froze pipelines and stalled turbines. The 2025 Iberian blackout showed renewables-heavy grids without firm backup and inertia can fail.
What is energy realism?
- Transition is a pathway, not a switch: Energy realism enables transition by sequencing it. Security planning must guide climate goals, not follow them.
- Fossils still dominate demand: Over 80% of global primary energy is fossil-based. More than 90% of transport runs on hydrocarbons. Solar and wind remain under 10% of the global mix.
- Investment shortfalls tighten supply: Exploration spending has fallen while demand stays high. The market is structurally tight and vulnerable to small shocks.
What are the five pillars of India’s energy sovereignty?
- Coal gasification to unlock indigenous energy: India has ~150 billion tonnes of coal. High ash content made it unattractive. Advances in gasification and carbon capture can convert this coal into syngas, methanol, hydrogen, and fertilisers. The task is to beat the ash barrier with innovation and scale.
- Biofuels for rural empowerment and savings: Ethanol blending cuts imports and has transferred over ₹92,000 crore to farmers. SATAT’s CBG plants supply clean fuel and bio-manure with 20%–25% organic carbon. This can help restore North India’s soils (now ~0.5% vs a healthy 2.5%) and improve water and fertiliser retention, cutting runoff and pollution.
- Nuclear as zero-carbon baseload: India’s 8.8 GW nuclear base must grow. Revive the thorium roadmap, secure uranium, and localise SMRs to provide a dispatchable backbone.
- Green hydrogen must be sovereign: India targets five million metric tonnes a year by 2030. This requires localised electrolyser manufacturing, catalyst development, and storage systems. The aim is not just green hydrogen—it is sovereign hydrogen with control over the full chain.
- Pumped hydro supplies grid inertia: Pumped hydro is durable and proven. It balances the grid and provides the inertia that wind- and solar-heavy systems lack. India should use its topography to build large-scale storage as the stability backbone for high renewable penetration.
What strategic shift is underway—and what next?
- Diversification beyond West Asia: Crude from West Asia fell from over 60% to below 45%, as per S&P Global Commodities at Sea. This reflects a deliberate sourcing shift.
- Use the ceasefire window: The Israel–Iran ceasefire offers time to act without scars. Deepen diversification and resilience now.
- Redefining power: The century will favour nations that can secure, store, and sustain energy. The five pillars form India’s sovereign spine. Build uninterrupted, affordable, indigenous energy—before the next crisis arrives.
Question for practice:
Examine why India’s high energy import dependence is a national risk and how the five-pillar strategy aims to build sovereignty and resilience.
