India Charts Green Energy Strategy at US-India Bilateral Meet

Green energy was at the forefront during at recently concluded bilateral meeting on US-India Civil Nuclear Commerce in New Delhi.

Union Minister of State for Science and Technology, Dr. Jitendra Singh, emphasized the Green Hydrogen Mission as a cornerstone of India’s strategy to decarbonize heavy industries, transportation, and power generation.

He said that attaining the global climate goals and promoting innovation in clean technologies depend on this effort. India has established robust policy frameworks and international partnerships that will position it to spearhead the shift towards a sustainable energy future.

Dr Singh highlighted the importance of global supply chains in sectors like semiconductors, pharmaceuticals, and clean energy technologies. He spoke about the Indian government’s investment in research, development, and regulatory frameworks for Small Modular Reactors.

According to him, India has pledged to implement Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Panchamrit” climate action plan. The aim is to increase non-fossil energy capacity, reduce carbon emissions, and achieve net-zero emissions by 2070.

Dr. Ravi Chandran, Secretary, Earth Sciences, highlighted advancements in ocean energy and Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) technologies.

Dr. Rajesh Gokhale, Secretary, the Department of Biotechnology, emphasized India’s advancements in biomass-to-energy conversion and the successful implementation of biofuels.

Professor Abhay Karandikar, Secretary of the Department of Science and Technology, underscored India’s advancements in emerging technologies like data analytics, AI, and machine learning.

Dr N Kalaiselvi, Director General of CSIR, underlined advancements in lithium-ion battery development and indigenous battery manufacturing, emphasizing the need for sustainable and circular energy storage solutions.

Mr. S N Subrahmanyan, who replaced AM Naik as the CMD of L&T outlined the company’s ESG plans during his inaugural speech at the company’s 79th AGM.

The CMD outlined plans to enhance green energy capacity, encourage the participate of women in the workforce and community development.

He said the company is eyeing opportunities in the green energy sector and is leveraging technologies like AI and IoT to create new opportunities.

“L&T has digitally connected over 15,000 assets across its global projects and manufacturing bases to a central IoT platform. All these initiatives enable the company to make project execution faster, safer, cleaner, economical and more sustainable,” Mr S N Subrahmanyan said.

The renewable energy thrust:

Mr Subrahmanyan outlined various projects the company carried out in FY2023–2024 as part of its For A Better World vision.

These include electrifying over 3,400 track km of mass transit systems, commissioning 2.2 GW of solar capacity, 6.2 GW of nuclear power, 3.5 GW of hydroelectric power, and creating 14.8 million square feet of green buildings.

It must be noted that the company had last year announced its plans to invest $12 billion over the next five years will on green energy.

L&T will also contribute a minimum of $2 billion to its inaugural green hydrogen project as part of the same. With an investment of almost $4 billion, the company hopes to have a capacity of 2-3 million tonnes of green hydrogen and ammonia, Mr Subrahmanyan said.

Women in the workforce and community development:

L&T aims to increase the participation of women employees in the company to 10 percent by FY2025-26. It has launched exclusive career-assisting schemes for females and women-friendly facilities in offices.

The company has benefitted more than 1.6 million people. It has planted 4 million saplings globally and helped build resilience in rural communities through its Integrated community development programme, the CMD said.

SLB and TotalEnergies have announced a 10-year partnership to facilitate better performance and energy efficiency.

The partnership establishes a flexible framework for companies to collaborate on tackling key challenges in the energy value chain, including carbon capture, utilization, and sequestration (CCUS).

The partnership will initially focus on subsurface digital solutions for reservoir engineering and geoscience modeling, utilizing Delfi on-demand reservoir simulation and AI for automation.

The strategy is in line with Open Group’s OSDU Technical Standard. The co-development will benefit TotalEnergies’ global operations and SLB’s worldwide customer base.

“Collaboration and knowledge sharing are key for our industry to continuously develop more effective ways of unlocking energy access,” said Rakesh Jaggi, President, Digital & Integration Business, SLB.

“Through this digital partnership we will develop cutting-edge next-generation software, digital applications and new algorithms applied to geoscience. Thanks to these innovative modeling technologies, we will not only be better able to utilize the analyses of geological reservoirs and basins in the Oil & Gas sector to reduce emissions but also to make further progress in geological carbon storage,” said Namita Shah, President, OneTech, TotalEnergies.

The University of Sheffield’s research predicts that the UK and G20 countries will have a negative ecological footprint by 2050.

Key findings:

Only Argentina, Brazil, Canada, and Russia are predicted to have a positive environmental impact.

Brazil will have the most positive ecological footprint per capita by 2050, due to less resource-intensive use. The UK despite a negative footprint, is on track to reduce carbon emissions due to stringent climate change policies.

The study predicts the ecological footprint of every G20 country over 30 years, emphasizing the need for sustainable industrial and economic growth without causing resource depletion or wildlife extinction.

Advocacy:

Researchers advocate for a comprehensive environmental policy-making strategy incorporating social, technological, and economic strategies. They promote sustainable futures by adopting renewable energy sources like wind and solar.

They used advanced forecasting tools like ARIMA, Auto-ARIMA, and Prophet models to predict ecological impact using AI, enhancing forecast accuracy and future patterns.

Professor Lenny Koh, Chair, Operations Management, the University of Sheffield emphasizes the significance of predicting the environmental impact of the G20’s largest economies over the next 30 years to understand the planet’s future and implement necessary changes.

Call for action:

Investments in green technologies and infrastructure are crucial to mitigate industrialization and urbanization negative effects, they study states.

The findings underscore the need for robust environmental policies and increased international cooperation to address unique challenges and promote sustainable development globally, she says.

The authors emphasize the importance of education and public awareness of sustainability issues, suggesting that governments should implement initiatives that promote sustainable living and encourage environmentally friendly lifestyles.

The way forward:

“This study offers a critical forecast that should guide future research, policy-making, and practical applications in environmental sustainability,” Professor Lenny Koh says.

She notes that the G20 countries must work together to address these issues, with a particular emphasis on reducing resource scarcity and boosting ecological resilience.

The environmental, social, and governance (ESG) space has long grappled with greenwashing. In greenwashing, companies often under or over-quote their environmental commitment for marketing advantage. We are also familiar with phrases like Blue washing and Pinkwashing, categorized under the ‘S’ factor’S’ ESG.

AI washing is emerging as a significant challenge in ESG dynamics.

One may wonder about the connection between AI washing and sustainability. Therefore, we begin with a definition of AI washing.

AI washing is the practice of a business overstating the amount of AI that is used in its goods and services. A recent order regarding AI washing from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) piqued my interest in this topic. Their position is unambiguous: businesses need to disclose their real AI integration. This is vital because exaggerated claims regarding AI’s capabilities have the potential to deceive stakeholders and investors.

I tried to connect the dots between AI and sustainability, and here is my take on the issue.

We have seen tech platforms enabling, fast-tracking, and measuring the impacts of sustainability initiatives. Sustainability and technology go hand-in-hand. Technology and sustainability cannot be delinked from each other. All the same, if not controlled or measured, technology can also play a spoiler to the company’s company’s-2, -3, and now -4 measurements.

Take, for example, a company that touts its “AI-powered “sustainability initiative. This may, in reality, be fundamental data analysis. The misleading narrative is a classic case of AI-driven greenwashing. It can undermine transparency and erode trust in ESG, creating further hurdles in recognizing genuine sustainability efforts. This presents a huge concern.

Deception in the digital age:

The impact of a narrative is deep and wide. When companies embellish their AI prowess, stakeholders become sceptical. This hinders genuine AI advancements that could benefit both businesses and society.

Excited, AI washing can slacken tech adoption and hinder progress.

Let me give you an example. AI tools can optimize resource utilization, identify environmental risks, and enhance supply chain transparency. On the other hand, AI washing undermines the confidence of investors and stakeholders who fall prey to pretence or false reports and invest in companies that don’t deliver on their promises. This can have a significant impact on market dynamics.

AI washing is a sophisticated evolution of greenwashing. Companies can leverage AI-generated reports or fabricated data analysis to bolster their supposed sustainability efforts, making it increasingly difficult to differentiate genuine progress from marketing gimmicks.

How to safeguard against AI washing?

It is a call for extra vigilance. To combat AI washing and ensure the integrity of ESG initiatives, several key steps are essential:

Critical thinking: Do not take claims about AI at face value. Ask questions about the specific applications and their impact.

Prioritize transparency: Clearly articulate how AI is integrated into your ESG strategy. Businesses must provide detailed explanations of their AI-powered sustainability programs. What specific challenges are these programs designed to address? How is AI being utilized to achieve these objectives?

Independent verification: Support independent audits and certifications to substantiate the AI adoption and impacts in sustainability efforts. Also, encourage research and reporting that investigates and exposes AI washing practices.

Regulatory support: Supporting regulatory bodies in establishing clear guidelines and enforcing them effectively is crucial in combating AI washing.

Investor and consumer education: Empowering both investors and consumers through educational initiatives is crucial. Foster open dialogues and raise awareness about AI washing.

AI washing poses a significant threat to the integrity of ESG initiatives. However, through collaborative action and a collective commitment to transparency, we can ensure that AI is used as a force for good, driving genuine progress in sustainability.

After all, in today’s current landscape, trust is the bedrock of a solid corporate reputation and a key differentiator in attracting stakeholders who value genuine ESG commitment.

IBM has launched a new tool to help enterprises track greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across cloud services

The tool:
Now generally available, the AI-informed tool is designed to give clients access to standards-based greenhouse gas emissions data and help manage cloud carbon footprint across IBM cloud workloads.

A result of collaboration between IBM Research and Intel—the tool uses machine learning and advanced algorithms to help organizations identify emissions hot spots in their IT workload and provide insights for emissions mitigation strategy.

Key features:
Emission tracking: Customers can use filters to see and track GHG emissions associated with individual cloud services and locations, in accordance with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol.

Identifying GHG emissions hot-spots: Through monthly/quarterly or annual access to emission trends and patterns, customers can optimize workloads across locations to reduce emissions.

Leverage data for GHG emission reports: Clients can access the output and audit trails to help meet their reporting needs. The data can be integrated with IBM Envizi ESG suite3 for further analysis and reporting.

CEO perspective:
A recent market study by IBM highlights some key points:
1. 42% of CEOs said environmental sustainability is their top challenge over the next three years.
2. Organizations must balance high-performance workloads with sustainability, as 43% of CEOs use generative AI for strategic decision-making.

GM states:
“As part of any AI transformation roadmap, businesses must consider how to manage the growth of data across cloud and on-premise environments. This is especially critical today as we see organizations face increasing pressure from investors, regulators, and clients to reduce their carbon emissions,” said Alan Peacock, General Manager, IBM Cloud.

These days, the buzzword is sustainability. ESG, deforestation, biodiversity, DEF, and sustainable finance discussions are gaining traction across platforms. Thanks to global watchdogs, enterprises worldwide are mapping their sustainability journeys with purpose-driven impact and green outcomes.

Two major strategies are allowing businesses to accelerate their sustainability journey: 1. A top-down approach; and 2. Information technology optimization. And both strategies streamline and enable an enterprise’s tactical and operational aspirations on its path to green goals.

Experts emphasize the significance of sustainable business practices and the importance of sustainability in our daily lives. I want to emphasize the importance of technology.

Technology—in its advanced form, Web 4.0, and a select few who are piloting Web 5.0—is an enterprise’s best friend on its journey to sustainability. I am convinced that green technology will propel sustainability to unprecedented heights. I emphasize technology as the primary enabler for two reasons: 1. technology as an enabler and 2. people enablement.

The green technology market is rapidly expanding. According to a Fortune Business report, the global green technology and sustainability market will grow from $ 13.76 billion in 2022 to $51.09 billion by 2029. It will grow at a CAGR of 20.6% during the forecast period.

Both software companies and hardware OEMs are working hard to market the new opportunity. The new-age start-ups that are developing customized apps to help enterprises ranging from MSMEs to SMBs to large conglomerates meet their sustainability targets are the icing on the cake.

According to studies, survey reports, and market research commissioned by market advisory firms, technology is enabling average people to ‘just do their jobs and key in the data to their daily roaster. The apps track the data, analyze and categorize it, and assign it to the appropriate block based on the company’s sustainability goal/target.

At the end of the year, the BI software compiles and formats the data based on each disclosure the company must make, aligning the corporate goals with the UN SDGs. Taking it a step further, the predictive analysis software assists the company in predicting corporate goals for the coming fiscal year / CAGR for a forecast period.

From the perspective of the CIO, who is the co-owner of data and thus a key stakeholder in all sustainability initiatives, the automation process enables the enterprise to identify stakeholders, establish the merit of implementing the technology to the stakeholders by developing a solid narrative, and measure the goals achieved. The ROI calculator is a valuable tool for gap analysis and plug points.

But that is a story for another day…

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India Charts Green Energy Strategy at US-India Bilateral Meet
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