On Sunday, Dec. 3, articles from various Indian outlets, including The Hindu, New Indian Express, and BQ Prime, reported that India refused to sign two separate pledges at COP28, which call for the phasedown of coal power by nations.
The first pledge—which has been signed by 118 nations—is titled, “Global Renewables and Energy Efficiency.” It requires that nations agree to triple worldwide installed renewable energy capacity to at least 11,000 GW by 2030. The pledge document cites reports by the International Energy Agency and Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change which calls for, “the phase down of unabated coal power, in particular ending the continued investment in unabated new coal-fired power plants, which is incompatible with efforts to limit warming to 1.5°C.”
According to Leena Nandan, the Secretary at the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the language on coal was a “red line” for India. She told The Hindu that no “restrictions” would be placed on India for the kind of energy sources it could or could not use in the future.
