India to rely on fossil fuels till 2040: Centre

India, the world’s No 3 oil importer and consumer, is expected to rely on fossil fuels until at least 2040 and is positioning itself as a refining hub, Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri told international media on Tuesday.

While global refining centers are downsizing as energy transition progresses at an unpredictable pace, India’s rising daily crude utilisation means it will rely on fossil fuels until at least 2040, Puri said at the sidelines of a refining conference in Bengaluru.

“Our existing refineries will increase in terms of capacity and they will also become regional hubs in terms of providing to other countries,” Puri said. India, the world’s third-largest emitter of greenhouse gases, has pledged to achieve a net zero carbon emission target by 2070. It has a target of 500 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy by 2030.

Puri reiterated India was looking to scale its refining capacity by 81% to as much as 450 metric tonne per annum (mtpa), from about 249 mtpa, or about 5 million barrels per day (bpd), currently. He did not provide a timeline.

Smaller refineries would no longer be economically viable, Puri said.