BENGALURU, India (AP) — One of the most carbon-polluting countries, India is also making huge efforts to harness the power of the sun, wind and other clean energy sources.
Most of the electricity in India, the world’s most populous nation, still comes from coal, one of the dirtiest forms of energy. But coal’s dominance is dropping, going from 60% of installed power capacity 11 years ago to less than 50% today, according to India’s power ministry.
At the same time, India had its largest ever addition of clean power in the fiscal year between April 2024 and April of this year, adding 30 gigawatts — enough to power nearly 18 million Indian homes.
With a growing middle class and skyrocketing energy needs, how fast India can move away from coal and other fossil fuels, such as gasoline and oil, could have a large impact on global efforts to confront climate change.
How is coal consumption changing in absolute term? What matter most is the absolute amount of fossiel fuel being burned, and the amount of greenhouse gases released.
Developing renewable is great. But the article focus on share and relative figures. So it's not clear if renewable are increasing faster than coal, and emissions continue to rise. Or if coal use is actually decreasing.
Update: Sadly India keep increasing coal use according to this source. So it's too early to celebrate.