The country has bold proposals, but complicates the negotiations and intends to continue investing in thermoelectric
The Indian prime minister Narendra Modi speaks at the Paris Climate Conference (Photo: Ap Photo / Michael Euler)
India is the fourth largest global emitter of greenhouse gases that heat the planet and cause climate change and are stealing the show in these early days of the Paris climate conference, COP-21. With China and the US leading to serious negotiations and approaching the historical positions of the European Union, the three largest polluters are relatively aligned and thus all eyes turn to the letters that India is putting on the table.
The Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi opened up in high voltage, since announcing the first day a great alliance solar than 120 countries, doubling the resources allocated by India to renewable energy and joining the billionaire fund proposed by Bill Gates for the development of solar energy.
>> Climate targets can be reviewed every five years
So isolated views, these cards placed on the table by Modi at the beginning of trading season are very auspicious, especially if we consider that all these initiatives add up to huge goal that India had for renewable energy: get to 2022 with 175 gigawatts solar and wind energy.
But the Prime Minister of initial hyperactivity serves also of smokescreen to unfriendly positions that the country has taken in the negotiations for a new climate agreement, as Lisa Friedman wrote to the special report of E & E.
>> More vulnerable countries call for more urgent and effective action at COP-21
For starters, the real economy, India provides huge investments in thermoelectric coal plants that will coexist with investments in clean energy.
In the negotiations, the country has been against the inclusion in the agreement on construction of a periodic review system-tourniquet and deeper emission reduction targets every five years.
India has also opposed the definition of a long-term goal for the agreement, be the decarbonisation of the global economy in the twenty-first century, as proposed by the G7 and Brazil, is the decarbonisation by 2050, as proposed by the most vulnerable countries to impacts of climate change, as the island countries of the Pacific and the Caribbean, Indonesia, Bangladesh and others.
And India has used and abused the concept of climate justice and, thus, hampered progress on critical details of the new agreement. I can understand that India today is the country that claims climate justice and space in the carbon budget that humanity still has to "spend" before hiring a global warming of more than 2 ° C. Over 300 million people live there without access to electricity and is common blackouts leave more than 700 million in the dark. This brings the issue of energy, and investment needed in the sector to be a key issue for the country that needs to develop to take 700 million people out of poverty.
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But how could they tell the inhabitants of the most vulnerable countries, the right of India and other countries have to take your misery populations can not withdraw the right of existence of populations of the most vulnerable countries to climate change.
As a politician experienced that is in addition to the solar power enthusiast, Modi should even be stretching the rope and playing for obtaining advantages in agreement that seeks to establish itself in Paris.
And a senior member of the Indian negotiating team gave an important tip about whatever the country, in testimony to the Financial Times: "India is one of the largest coal consumer in the world and will cut its investment in fuel if the new agreement climate offer more money to help them switch to cleaner sources of energy, such as solar energy. "
I hope that the rope does not Smash before the end of next week.
* Délcio Rodrigues is physical, energy expert and environmentalist
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