A monthly newsletter featuring CSTEP commentary, publications, events, and other developments.

Thermal comfort is a fundamental need and should not be the privilege of the well-off. The recent string of heatwaves around the world, including in India, have unquestionably been intensified by climate change. Staying ‘thermally comfortable’, especially during these events, is vital for avoiding the health impacts of extreme heat.

According to Union Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation, India produced 15,311 petajoules of energy in 2020 of which 81% was derived from fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas. In fact, fossil fuels have been the fuel of choice for decades despite causing permanent damage to our environment.

The massive policy push to electric vehicles (EVs) has prompted India to gear up for large-scale adoption of EVs, with state-wise targets to electrify private as well as public vehicles. Though a report by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) estimates the penetration of EVs in the private car segment to reach almost 10% by 2030, today it stands at a dismal 1%. 

With 22 Indian cities in the top 30 most polluted cities in the world (IQAir, 2020), our new dependence on pollution management at receptors — such as smog towers, water sprinkling on roads, etc. — will fail miserably unless we prioritise source correction. We lack the capacity to remove all particulate or gaseous pollutants as no existing filtering technology can handle India’s current emission rates.

It is true that investors look to create wealth from their investments, and in the recent past, companies that created value for shareholders at any cost, in terms of share prices and dividends, were in prominence.

However, the trend is slowly changing and investors have started to look at companies that do well on the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria. Companies that are environmentally benign, create social value, and are backed by robust governance mechanisms are in demand. Investors are now envisaging a future where ESG criteria play a major role.

The report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) confirms what we have known all along—the dynamics of climate are being rewritten irrevocably. With the internationally agreed threshold of 1.5°C perilously close to becoming a reality, pressure will mount on India to agree to a net-zero target. The third largest emitter in the world, which has been holding out due to developmental needs, is bound to feel the heat to conform to carbon neutrality by mid-century or thereabouts.

The performance of an electric vehicle (EV) is largely dependent on a battery and its materials composition. Battery selection is based on performance characteristics, such as energy and power density, life cycle, safety, charging/discharging rate, cost, etc. Currently, the market is dominated by Lithium-ion batteries (LiBs). The most prominent material compositions in LiBs are Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt (LNMC), Lithium Nickel Manganese Oxide (LNMO), and Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) as cathode materials and graphite as anode material.

In his Independence Day address to the nation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned India spends over Rs 12 lakh crore on importing energy, and that domestic energy production will be a policy priority for the country.