Green electrification can unlock clean energy gains for Indian industries

India's heavy industries emit 920 million tonnes of CO2 annually, with steel and cement contributing 18% of total national emissions. The report argues that green electrification is a critical lever for decarbonisation, starting with the transition of current electricity demand to renewable energy sources (RES) by 2030 and moving toward deep electrification and power-to-fuel technologies by 2050. By 2030, meeting the projected 253 TWh industrial electricity demand with RES would require 120 GW of capacity and could avoid 180 Mt of CO2. In the long term, a 'Potential Electrification Case' suggests that electricity's share of industrial energy consumption could triple to 34.5% by 2050, requiring 699 GW of RES capacity and potentially reducing CO2 emissions by 37% (737 Mt) compared to business-as-usual.

• India's heavy industries—comprising steel, cement, aluminium, petrochemicals, and ammonia—emit 920 million tonnes of CO2 annually, with the steel and cement sectors alone accounting for 18% of the country's total emissions.
• In 2022, electricity accounted for 11% of the total energy consumption in India's heavy industries, totaling 175 TWh, with 91% of this usage concentrated in the steel, cement, and aluminium sectors.
• By 2030, electricity demand in these sectors is projected to grow by 45% to 253 TWh. Fully meeting this demand with renewable energy sources would require 120 GW of RES capacity and could avoid approximately 180 million tonnes of CO2 emissions.
• By 2050, the adoption of direct electrification and power-to-fuel technologies could triple the share of electricity in the industrial energy mix from 11% to 34.5%, increasing total electricity demand to 1,468 TWh.
• Achieving the 2050 potential electrification scenario would require 699 GW of renewable energy capacity and could reduce CO2 emissions from heavy industries by 37% (737 Mt) compared to a business-as-usual scenario.
• The report identifies two primary electrification strategies: direct electrification (replacing fossil fuel thermal processes with electricity-based heating) and indirect electrification (power-to-fuel, specifically using electrolysis for green hydrogen).
• Green hydrogen is expected to be a primary driver for the ammonia and steel sectors by 2050, with ammonia being a natural early use case due to existing infrastructure, while steel adoption is expected around 2040.

APA

Hawkins, S., Bruce-Lockhart, C., Sucahyo, R., & Zhang, S. (2024). Green electrification can unlock clean energy gains for Indian industries. Ember. https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/india-green-electrification-for-indian-industries

Chicago

Hawkins, Sam, Chelsea Bruce-Lockhart, Rini Sucahyo, and Shiyao Zhang. Green electrification can unlock clean energy gains for Indian industries. Ember, 2024. https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/india-green-electrification-for-indian-industries.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Hawkins |first1=Sam |last2=Bruce-Lockhart |first2=Chelsea |last3=Sucahyo |first3=Rini |last4=Zhang |first4=Shiyao |title=Green electrification can unlock clean energy gains for Indian industries |publisher=Ember |date=26 June 2024 |url=https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/india-green-electrification-for-indian-industries |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{hawkins2024green, author = {Hawkins, Sam and Bruce-Lockhart, Chelsea and Sucahyo, Rini and Zhang, Shiyao}, title = {{Green electrification can unlock clean energy gains for Indian industries}}, institution = {Ember}, year = {2024}, month = jun, url = {https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/india-green-electrification-for-indian-industries}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }