Rajeev Ralhan (RR) is a Partner at PwC India and has over 23 years of experience in clean energy, energy efficiency and sustainable development across India and abroad. As an engagement partner, he has led multidisciplinary projects in the domains of green cooling (including cold chain, space cooling, district energy systems, refrigeration etc.), energy efficiency in buildings and industries and transport sector.
In an interview with IE, he shares about the need to create awareness of carbon neutrality and invest in low-cost green technologies that are affordable and accessible by all.
IE: In India, two-thirds of construction is yet to happen and this will be a highly carbon emitting activity. Your views on India balancing growth and sustainability? Will the country be able to meet the aspirations of its people in a green way?
RR: The Indian construction sector is growing at an exponential rate with significant rise in demand for residential and commercial buildings, data centres, hospitals, warehouses, etc. By 2047, 50 per cent of the Indian population is expected to reside in the urban areas, pushing the boundaries of cities. Currently, there is a substantial gap in the growth rate of the construction sector and adoption of sustainability concepts holistically. This is majorly due to limited availability of technologies & service providers and cost of implementation. But it will not last long. Over the past few years, policy reforms and financial support have led to steady growth of indigenous players which has brought down the cost and also widened the availability of green technologies. This has created an impetus in walking the green path and will expand further in the coming years.
With the introduction of Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC) for commercial buildings and Eco Niwas Samhita (ENS) for residential buildings, majority of the new constructions are transiting the path of energy efficiency and sustainability in the major states of India. Further, the certification agencies such as LEED, GRIHA, IGBC, EDGE, etc., are driving the developers to implement sustainability concepts at all stages i.e., during construction and operation. Awareness for green development and the benefits associated with it must trickle down till Tier I, II, III cities, semi-urban and rural areas. This will surely result in achieving a greener economy for the construction sector and also contribute towards the nation’s mission to reach net zero by 2070.
IE: Construction materials also contribute hugely to emissions, both in form of operational carbon and embodied carbon. Will we see the introduction of new materials or would we find a combination of traditional materials and newer ones?
RR: As per the World Green Building Council’s report, the building sector contributes to about 39 per cent of the global carbon emissions. This is a matter of high concern. Over a life cycle of the building, the operational carbon emissions are significantly higher as compared to the embodied carbon which is associated with building materials. However, there is a huge opportunity to lower the operational carbon emissions of the building by opting for low-impact or environment-friendly materials.
Currently, the world is not just impacted by the depleting natural resources but also with the tonnes of waste being dumped into the landfills. As we move forward to achieve net zero carbon buildings, the need for materials and products that have low-environmental impact over their entire lifecycle, will be high. Today, most of the manufacturing industries are researching on reducing the dependency on natural resources and maximising reuse. This shift is positive. A wide range of products such as cement, steel, blocks, glass, tiles, insulation, boards, furniture and many more, now come with increased percentages of recycled content.
Newer construction technologies have also enabled in reducing emissions. Prefabricated buildings, precast blocks, 3D printing, etc., are all beneficial and economical. As we march ahead, the construction industry will have to be fully equipped with a wide range of materials and products that contain relatively lower or zero percentages of natural resources and higher percentages of recycled content, which will surely bring down the embodied carbon and also contribute significantly for the reduction of operational carbon.
IE: Your views on how well-equipped India is, for a green transition?
RR: India has set up an ambitious target to achieve net zero emissions by 2070. For this, various sectors must reach carbon neutrality much in advance. Majority of players, from all types of industries have committed to achieve the target between 2030 – 2050. Not only the industries, few of the cities in India such as Mumbai have committed to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
These commitments are surely a positive sign, however, there are few challenges that need to be addressed. These include policy barriers in terms of maximising the usage of renewable energy on site, limited access to clean technologies, lack of low-cost or economical technologies, products and equipment that demonstrates business sense. Though it appears very concerning, it offers huge potential to develop indigenous technologies that are accessible and economical.
Governments and global banks are providing financial aid to fund environment friendly technologies in India. Though the current percentage of funds from the financial institutions is comparatively less, there has been a growing trend over past years and is expected to further grow in the coming years. Through technology transfer and partnership programmes, the global countries are collaborating with the Indian stakeholders to build carbon neutral materials, products, equipment and technologies.
IE: What would be the cost for this transition?Â
RR: India has set major milestone before achieving carbon neutrality by 2070. By 2030 in areas as – achieving non-fossil energy capacity to 500 GW by 2030, meet 50 per cent of the energy requirements through renewable sources, reduce projected carbon emission by 1 billion tonne and reduce the carbon intensity of the economy by 45 per cent.
To achieve these, India must increase its percentage share towards climate financing as part of the union budget. One of the reports from McKinsey & Company mentions that India must invest USD 12 trillion by 2050 to achieve carbon neutrality. While the Indian government has not published an assessment of the funding required to achieve these aims, one of the estimates from CEEW states that investments can range from USD 170 billion per year to USD 10.1 trillion, to reach net zero. The Reserve Bank of India estimates that the green financing requirement in India could be at least 2.5 per cent of GDP annually to address the infrastructure gap. These investments have to be diversified into various sectors to ensure collateral growth and achievement.
When we look at the cost of achieving net zero, the idea is to identify pathways that lower the emission intensity and boost the economy of the country as well. From a small house to a large state of the country, carbon neutral solutions shall demonstrate business and economic sense, that is when the transition towards net zero would be achievable.
IE: What would be a major challenge to address to attain net zero?
RR: The biggest of all challenges to achieve net zero is lack of awareness amongst the public. The benefits that can be derived through implementation of low carbon solution must be publicised. This would rise demand for more solutions that are innovative and also cost effective.
With increase in awareness, focus shall be to build a positive ecosystem in the country that includes manufacturing of low carbon technologies and solutions that are innovative, cost effective and accessible along with robust supply chain systems across the country reaching every nook and corner.
