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Indian Oil targets 5-6 GW renewable energy projects in green push

Indian Oil targets 5-6 GW renewable energy projects in green push


State-run Indian Oil Corporation (IoCL) said on Tuesday that it will acquire 5-6 gigawatts (GW) of solar and wind power projects to expand its green energy portfolio.

This is part of the country’s largest oil marketing company’s (OMC) strategy to become a Net Zero carbon dioxide emitter by 2046.

“IoCL has multiple strategies to achieve the target. We have a target of 31 GW to be added by 2031. We have a mix of organic route to achieve that. We will be doing this with our joint venture (JV) partners also. We will also be achieving this target through mergers and acquisitions (M&As),” IoCL management said in an investor call.

The management included Director (Finance) Anuj Jain, ED (Corporate Finance & Treasury) RVN. Vishweshwar, CGM (Treasury) Pramod Jain and GM (Treasury) Prabhat Himatsingka.

As of March 2024, IoCL’s renewables portfolio stands at 246.94 megawatts (MW), which consists of 167.60 MW of wind capacity and 79.34 MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity.

In FY24, the OMC produced 401.50 million units (MU), which mitigated 3,68,980 tonnes of CO2 equivalent emissions. In 2023, IOCL’s carbon footprint was around 22.76 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent (MTCO2e), while the total water footprint was about 149.6 billion litres.

M&A route

“The broad numbers are that 6-7 GW would be done through the organic route. Major portion will be coming through the JV route. First is through NGEL. We also have MoUs signed with various RE companies and we are in discussions with them. Another 5-6 GW will happen through M&As,” the management added.

IoCL has incorporated a wholly owned subsidiary (WoS)—Terra Clean—in May 2024 for low-carbon, innovative, clean, and sustainable energy operations, demonstrating its dedication to advancing its green initiatives.

Terra Clean plans to establish 1 GW of renewable energy capacity with an investment of more than Rs 5,000 crore, IoCL said in its FY24 annual report.

On the progress, IoCL said “The tender for 1 GW is already out. For another 4 GW, the work is in progress. We have also done a JV agreement with NTPC Green Energy (NGEL) and that is going in a much faster way.”

Net Zero ambitions

In August 2022, the energy behemoth announced a more than ₹2 lakh crore investment plan leveraging clean energy technologies to achieve Net-Zero operational emissions (Scope 1 & Scope 2) by 2046.

To achieve this, the OMC aims to develop a green energy portfolio comprising 31 GW of renewable energy, 4 million tonnes (mt) of biofuels, and 1 mt of biogas by 2030, further scaling up to 200 GW of renewable energy, 7 mt of biofuels, and 9 mt of biogas by 2050.

The CPSU has formed JV companies to accelerate the move towards clean fuels.

For instance, GH4India is IoCL’s JV with L&T and Renew Power to develop green hydrogen production and associated renewable assets.

IoCL also aims to set up 30 CBG Plants across India through JV companies to achieve its Renewable Energy aspirations as well as Net-Zero operational emissions 2046 targets.

It also strategically partners with LanzaJet Inc, USA and Praj Industries to establish India’s Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) facilities.





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