Energy conservation is the practice of reducing the use of energy in order to reduce the amount of energy consumed and save resources. This can be done in a variety of ways, such as by using energy-efficient appliances, and renewable energy resources, turning off lights and electronics when not in use, and using public transportation instead of driving a car. The goal of energy conservation is to reduce the demand for energy and to help protect the environment.

India has been working towards increasing its use of renewable energy and reducing its reliance on fossil fuels in recent years. In 2015, the Indian government launched the National Action Plan on Climate Change, which included targets for increasing the use of renewable energy and improving energy efficiency.

The Indian parliament recently passed the Energy Conservation (Amendment) Bill 2022 aimed at encouraging use of renewable energy including green hydrogen, green ammonia, biomass and ethanol for energy and feedstock. The bill was passed in Lok Sabah in August. The bill paves the way for setting up carbon markets in the country. The government plans to mandate the use of green Hydrogen in sectors like steel, refineries, fertilisers and cement industry through green Hydrogen consumption obligation. This will all lead to reduction in fossil fuel based energy consumption and resultant carbon emissions to the atmosphere.

What are Carbon Credits?

A carbon credit represents one metric ton of carbon emissions that is avoided by completing an activity in a less carbon intensive way.

The carbon trade certificate encourages businesses and nations to spend on environmental-friendly initiatives and activities that benefit nature, such as reforestation, in order to get the right to emit more carbon dioxide than what is allowed by law.

Provisions and Possible implications of the proposed Energy Conservation bill..

1. Recommend minimum share of consumption of non-fossil sources by designated consumers as energy or feedstock, Target to use non-fossil energy (biomass, green hydrogen, green ammonia, ethanol, etc)
2. Specifies carbon credit trading scheme and carbon credit certificates. The act provides foundation on introduction of carbon market
3. The proposed bill expands to include “appliance, vehicle, vessel, industrial unit, building or establishment” - Possibility of energy consumption norms for vehicles, vessel, building, industrial units and establishment
4. Expands ECBC(energy conservation building code) as energy and sustainable building codes to include the use of renewable energy and other green building requirements for a building - New ECBC codes with incorporation of renewable energy and other green building requirement

This is a huge milestone and will go a long way in accelerating investments and innovation in climate tech.

At Modulus Housing, we are building affordable social infrastructure, which doesn’t only mean making construction affordable, but also making the daily operations of the infrastructure affordable.

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