America is slipping behind India's clean power boom
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Once upon a time, the US was the sole clean energy superpower . Until 2011, it led the world in connecting wind and solar generators to the grid. Then China took over, to a point where its lead now looks unassailable: The People's Republic added eight times more renewables than the US last year. This year, India is likely to overtake too.The country connected 22 gigawatts of wind and solar in the first half — a dramatic recovery from a troubling slowdown in 2022 and 2023, and enough at full output to power nearly one-tenth of the grid. Assuming this is maintained through December, that should put India ahead of the 40 GW that the US government expects this year.It's also setting the world's most populous nation on course to hit a target of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's that once seemed implausible: to reach 500 GW of non-fossil generation by 2030. Such a shift will herald the dawn of a new clean energy superpower, and give the world some of its best hopes of averting disastrous climate change.It's a remarkable turnaround for a country whose renewable industry looked like a lost cause barely more than a year ago. What happened?One factor is financing. Easing inflation has allowed the Reserve Bank of India to cut its policy rate by a percentage point since December to the lowest in three years. This reduces the price of renewables, which are particularly exposed to debt costs. Regulatory deadlines have also played a role: A waiver on transmission charges for wind and solar expired at the end of last month, causing developers to rush to complete their builds in time to get the financial benefit.The end of that waiver may cause a wobble for the sector over the next year or so, but the changes will be introduced slowly. Over the balance of the decade there's now good reason to think the recent pace can be sustained. The rash of projects breaking ground this past year means about 414 GW of clean power is already either operating or under construction, including nuclear and hydroelectric plants. That's not far off the 500 GW target, and we've still got more than five years to go.Industrialists are counting on it. Solar panel manufacturing has been ramping up to the point where it now runs far in excess of domestic demand, at 91 GW. With lower tariffs into the US than their rivals in China and Southeast Asia, this excess of supply might make local panel makers rare beneficiaries of President Donald Trump's war on clean energy. That certainly seems to be the assumption of a group of US competitors, who last week sought anti-dumping measures to keep Indian products out of their market.For many years, India had a skeptical take on the energy transition, arguing since the 1970s that poverty was a more pressing problem than protecting the environment. The difference now is that zero-carbon power is decisively cheaper than the competition. Rising incomes, meanwhile, mean the government needs to also think about the needs of roughly half a billion middle-class citizens, who worry more about where to find a good job in a clean, livable city than the basics of subsistence living.India is still building coal-fired power plants to make sure those newly-minted urbanites don't suffer power cuts in the middle of punishing heatwaves, but they're not necessarily being used. Thanks to milder weather than in recent years and the rising volumes of renewables pushing it off the grid, fossil-fired power generation fell 4% in the first half relative to 2024. That's the first time it has dropped since the Covid-19 pandemic hit in 2020, and occurred even as electricity generation rose 0.8%. Retirements of old plants mean that fossil-generation capacity has actually declined slightly so far this year.It's still possible that emissions from India's power sector won't peak until well into the 2030s. Even so, the faster rollout of renewables, combined with declining pollution from China and the rich world, means the global picture is improving faster than you'd realize if you were focused only on the steampunk posturing in Washington.Renewable power isn't just cleaner — it's cheaper, and more suited to the aspirations of the billions in the Global South who want a better, healthier life.Rich nations like the US can afford the indulgence of a campaign against modern energy, at least until their citizens realize how badly they're being shortchanged. It's a fatal myopia, though. For all Trump likes to boast of energy dominance, America is falling behind on the most important energy technologies of the 21st century.
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Time of India
a minute ago
- Time of India
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The Hindu
a minute ago
- The Hindu
The Hindu Morning Digest, July 30, 2025
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Mint
a minute ago
- Mint
Best stocks to buy today, 30 July, recommended by NeoTrader's Raja Venkatraman
Market recap - Indian stock market benchmarks, the Sensex and the Nifty 50, ended higher on Tuesday, 29 July, snapping their three-day losing streak, on gains led by select heavyweights, such as Reliance Industries and HDFC Bank. The Sensex ended with a gain of 447 points, or 0.55%, at 81,337.95, while the Nifty 50 settled at 24,821.10, up 140 points, or 0.57%. The broader markets outperformed. The BSE Midcap index rose 0.84%, while the Smallcap index jumped 1.10%. Here are three stocks to buy or sell as recommended by Raja Venkatraman of NeoTrader for Wednesday , 30 July: Buy at current market price and dips to ₹2,420; stop loss at ₹2,390; target ₹2,700-2,800 Buy at current market price and dips to ₹2,710; stop loss at ₹2,685; target of ₹3,050-3,150 Buy at current market price and dips to ₹1930; stop loss ₹1910; target ₹2150-2190 Stock Market Today | 29 July Benchmark indices snapped a three-day losing streak on Tuesday, staging a strong rebound as value buying in key sectors lifted market sentiment. Investor interest returned to IT, metal, and realty stocks, with the Nifty Realty index rising nearly 2% after five consecutive sessions of decline. Nifty Auto also gained close to 1%. Market volatility eased, with the India VIX falling 2.9% to 11.71, indicating reduced investor anxiety and a pickup in risk appetite. Positive global cues added momentum. The Shanghai Composite and South Korea's Kospi traded in the green, while Wall Street futures pointed to a firm US market open. The Sensex jumped 446.93 points, or 0.55%, to close at 81,337.95, while the Nifty ended above the crucial 24,800 mark at 24,821.10. Top gainers included Jio Financial Services, Larsen & Toubro, Asian Paints, Bharti Airtel, and Apollo Hospitals, which rose as much as 4%, reflecting a broad-based recovery. Outlook for Trading Technically, the Nifty's rebound from the lower end of its recent trading range signals a decisive shift in momentum. After hovering near the 25,000 mark, a sharp selloff dragged the index towards the 24,500 zone—precisely the support area highlighted in Monday's report. The formation of a bullish engulfing candle at this support level suggests a potential revival. A strong-bodied close reinforces trader confidence and points to the possibility of a fresh up-leg. Chart watchers will note the bullish candlestick pattern on the daily chart, accompanied by rising volumes—an encouraging sign that the rally may have further legs. The options market also echoed this optimism. Ahead of monthly expiry, traders were seen aggressively selling puts and unwinding calls, skewing delta positioning toward the upside. This combination of put writing and call reduction reflects classic 'bullish aggression," as hedgers secure downside protection while easing off on bearish bets—typically a setup that fuels further gains when spot prices rise. The Nifty Spot has firmly closed above the consolidation zone that we have been mentioning however the median line resistance around 25100 will be a key level to watch out for as we move ahead into the August series. Further evidences in the form of key sectoral drivers firing on all cylinders, our constructive stance remains intact. I prefer looking at Nifty Spot charts for short-term support which shifts to the 24,500 area, while resistance looms near 25,100. As we near the July expiry we should keep booking profits as sentiment is still fragile. If the markets sustain this momentum, a run towards 25,000 becomes a realistic expectation in coming weeks. For now, bears are firmly in command as indicated by the momentum indicator, and positions aligned with this trend stand to benefit despite some brief optimism. The onus now is on the other indices to play catch up else what we saw on Tuesday. Are we going to get more tailwinds ? A buy on dip market has now been initiated and we have to take note of this fact as we head into the coming sessions. Raja Venkatraman is co-founder, NeoTrader. His Sebi-registered research analyst registration no. is INH000016223. Investments in securities are subject to market risks. Read all the related documents carefully before investing. Registration granted by Sebi and certification from NISM in no way guarantees performance of the intermediary or provide any assurance of returns to investors. Disclaimer: The views and recommendations given in this article are those of individual analysts. These do not represent the views of Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
