OREANDA-NEWS. GE (NYSE: GE), in partnership with Mint and Hindustan Times, yesterday convened distinguished members from the government of India, policy leaders and industry experts to discuss the country’s evolving electricity landscape and explore pathways towards a modern, affordable, reliable and sustainable energy future. Among the most prominent topics of discussion were energy efficiency and digital solutions for India, which were shown to have the potential to drive enormous value across the entire electricity value chain. 

Mr. Piyush Goyal, Hon’ble Minister for Power, Coal and New and Renewable Energy, Government of India said, “The Future of Electricity in India depends on affordability, sustainability and energy security. To supply 24X7 Power for All at a highly affordable price in the near future, we are keen to use the latest technology to achieve the fine balance between conventional and renewable power. India provides a huge opportunity for all players with a level playing field, and I welcome all global players to invest in India’s energy sector.” 

Meeting India’s vast energy requirements is critical to sustaining the country's growth rate and quality of life. To improve well-being and boost economic development, the government of India is targeting large capacity additions—100 gigawatts (GW) alone between 2017 and 2022. The International Energy Agency estimates that India’s Installed power generation capacity is likely to surge from just under 300 GW today to over 1,000 GW by 2040. These goals were a key focus area for discussion at the Future of Electricity Summit.

Mr. Paul Simons, Deputy Executive Director, International Energy Agency, while talking about India’s energy outlook said, “India will be the single most important contributor to global energy growth up to 2040, for conventional as well as renewable power. This presents a huge opportunity in power generation, transmission and distribution as well as in enhancing energy efficiency. To leverage India’s critical role in the new global energy order, we need a robust policy regime that can ensure the necessary investments and strong long-term partnerships with the private sector.” 

Summit participants discussed the government’s electricity reforms and various power sector challenges, including the need to improve efficiency and reliability of India’s installed base; emissions control; achieving the government’s aggressive renewable energy targets and associated grid integration; the future role of gas- and coal-fired generation; and a path forward to support the government’s plans to increase energy access for all.

“Transformational change is coming to India thanks to progressive policies and reforms, and there is a great opportunity for India to achieve ambitious national energy goals more efficiently than in the past,” said Steve Bolze, president and CEO of GE Power. “India has taken the lead in proving that access to electricity drives economic growth, job creation and opportunity for everyone, and digital solutions can help bring about greater access. We look forward to continuing to collaborate with the government and our customers in providing power technology and solutions to India.”

As one of the founding partners of the summit, GE Power talked about a holistic systems approach towards improving energy access and achieving cleaner, reliable and affordable power in which all new power generation technologies—from centralized baseload power like higher-efficiency coal plants and flexible load-following gas power to mainstream renewables like wind, hydro and solar—have their role to play in a digitally optimized generation mix. GE also demonstrated how digitization, software and analytics also can help India more rapidly achieve its energy ambitions by maximizing performance and efficiency across the entire electricity value chain, which includes generation, transmission and distribution.

The summit was one of several efforts in which GE Power has reaffirmed its commitment to India and supported India’s remarkable progress in delivering ambitious energy solutions to drive the country’s rapid growth and improve quality of life. Participating leaders included: Piyush Goyal, Honorable Minister for Power, Coal and New & Renewable Energy; Anil Swarup, Secretary, Minister of State for Coal; Gurdeep Singh, Chairman  & MD, NTPC; Sumant Sinha, CEO, ReNew Power; Ajay Mathur, Director General, TERI; Paul Simons, Deputy Executive Director, IEA; Steve Bolze, President & CEO, GE Power and Banmali Agrawala, President & CEO, GE South Asia.

GE has 18,500 employees in India, and the company’s growth in the country over the last several decades has resulted in five technology centers, 21 manufacturing sites and partnerships with some of India’s leading enterprises including Wipro, BHEL, SBI, NTPC, Bharat Forge and Triveni.

About GE

GE (NYSE: GE) is the world’s Digital Industrial Company, transforming industry with software-defined machines and solutions that are connected, responsive and predictive. GE is organized around a global exchange of knowledge, the "GE Store," through which each business shares and accesses the same technology, markets, structure and intellect. Each invention further fuels innovation and application across our industrial sectors. With people, services, technology and scale, GE delivers better outcomes for customers by speaking the language of industry. 

About GE Power

GE Power is a world leader in power generation with deep domain expertise to help customers deliver electricity from a wide spectrum of fuel sources. We are transforming the electricity industry with the digital power plant, the world’s largest and most efficient gas turbine, full balance of plant, upgrade and service solutions as well as our data-leveraging software. Our innovative technologies and digital offerings help make power more affordable, reliable, accessible and sustainable.