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Indian Express
16-07-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Renewables boost: NTPC can now invest Rs 20,000 crore, NLC India Rs 7,000 crore after Cabinet approval
In a major move to boost public investment in India's renewable energy sector, the Union Cabinet has approved state-owned NTPC Ltd to invest up to Rs 20,000 crore in its subsidiary NTPC Green Energy Ltd, an amount earlier limited to Rs 7,500 crore. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday also made certain exemptions to allow NLC India Ltd to invest Rs 7,000 crore in its subsidiary NLC India Renewables Limited (NIRL). The enhancement of NTPC's investment limit in its subsidiary NTPC Green Energy comes months after the latter launched its initial public offering (IPO) in November 2024, with an issue size of Rs 10,000 crore. Currently, NTPC Green Energy has a portfolio of roughly 32 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy assets, of which 6 GW is operational, 17 GW has been awarded, and another 9 GW is in the pipeline. 'The enhanced delegation given to NTPC and NGEL (NTPC Green Energy) will facilitate accelerated development of renewable projects in the country,' a Press Information Bureau (PIB) release on the decision said. NTPC, India's largest player in the thermal sector under the Ministry of Power, aims to add 60 GW of renewables by 2032. NLC India, a central public sector undertaking under the Ministry of Coal, is primarily engaged in mining lignite used as feedstock in thermal plants. Lately, it has ventured into renewables too, with an installed capacity of 2 GW. The CCEA's decision will allow it to infuse Rs 7,000 crore as capital in its renewables subsidiary NIRL as part of its bid to expand its installed portfolio to 10.11 GW by 2030 and 32 GW by 2047. 'This investment is further exempted from the 30% net worth ceiling stipulated by the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) for overall investment by CPSEs in JVs and Subsidiaries providing NLCIL and NIRL greater operational and financial flexibility,' another PIB release said. India aims to reach 500 GW of non-fossil energy capacity, including nuclear, large hydro, and renewables, by 2030. As of June 30, the share of non-fossil fuel sources in its total installed capacity of 485 GW has overtaken thermal and stands at 50.1 per cent. Aggam Walia is a Correspondent at The Indian Express, reporting on power, renewables, and mining. His work unpacks intricate ties between corporations, government, and policy, often relying on documents sourced via the RTI Act. Off the beat, he enjoys running through Delhi's parks and forests, walking to places, and cooking pasta. ... Read More
Indian Express
18-06-2025
- General
- Indian Express
After Air India crash, growing number of flyers considering aircraft type before booking: Survey
Following the fatal Air India 171 crash, more Indian air travellers say they will factor in aircraft type while booking flights — 41 per cent now, up from just 10 per cent in 2022, according to a survey by LocalCircles, a social media-based community polling firm. Over half the respondents (56 per cent) also supported grounding the Boeing 787-8 until safety concerns are resolved, the survey said. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Tuesday said no major safety concerns have been found in the recent surveillance conducted on Air India's Boeing 787 fleet following the crash on June 12, which killed all but one of the 242 people on board. At the same time, the apex civil aviation authority raised concerns over recent maintenance-related issues reported by the airline in a meeting with senior Air India group officials. Around 19,600 respondents, all claiming to be air travellers, answered the question, 'If you plan to undertake air travel in the coming months, what all would you be looking at before booking/travel?' While only 10 per cent chose 'aircraft type' in a 2022 LocalCircles poll, the latest survey showed that figure has jumped to 41 per cent, indicating that aircraft type is becoming a growing consideration for Indian flyers. Still, aircraft type ranked lower than other factors such as airfare (73 per cent), flight timings (64 per cent), airline (59 per cent), and flight connections and duration (41 per cent). In response to whether the Indian government should 'consider grounding the 787-8 aircraft till the issues are sorted,' 56 per cent of 20,742 respondents said 'yes,' while 34 per cent opposed grounding without clear evidence of a problem. About 10 per cent remained undecided. Of the over 40,000 total responses received across both questions, 61 per cent were from men and 31 per cent from women. Respondents were largely urban, with 47 per cent from tier-1 cities, 32 per cent from tier-2, and the remaining 21 per cent from other towns and rural areas. Following the crash last week, the DGCA had directed Air India to carry out additional maintenance inspections on all 33 of its 787s. The enhanced checks ordered include a one-time pre-departure check of aircraft systems and parameters including fuel parameters monitoring and associated system, cabin air compressor and associated systems, electronic engine control system, engine fuel-driven actuator and oil system, hydraulic system serviceability, and take-off parameters. On Saturday, Air India announced that the checks were being performed, and informed passengers that some of these could 'lead to higher turnaround time and potential delays on certain long-haul routes especially those to airports with operating curfews'. Aggam Walia is a Correspondent at The Indian Express, reporting on power, renewables, and mining. His work unpacks intricate ties between corporations, government, and policy, often relying on documents sourced via the RTI Act. Off the beat, he enjoys running through Delhi's parks and forests, walking to places, and cooking pasta. ... Read More
Indian Express
13-06-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Air India diverts 11 flights, returns 5 to origin after closure of Iranian airspace
Air India on Friday diverted 11 flights and returned five to their origin after Iran closed its airspace in response to an Israeli strike on its nuclear facilities. According to flight-tracking platform Flightradar24, the Iranian airspace is now completely empty. Among the flights affected was an Air India flight from Mumbai to London, which had to make a mid-air return. AI129 departed from the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) on Friday morning but turned back halfway through and returned to Mumbai, according to real-time data from Flightradar24. CSMIA authorities confirmed the diversion. 'This was undertaken as a precaution because of the Iranian airspace closure,' a CSMIA spokesperson said. Air India said it is diverting flights and returning some to origin 'due to the emerging situation in Iran, the subsequent closure of its airspace and in view of the safety of our passengers'. Three flights are being diverted to Jeddah and Vienna each, two each to Sharjah and Frankfurt, and one to Mumbai. Another two flights are returning to Mumbai and three to Delhi. 'We regret the inconvenience caused to our passengers due to this unforeseen disruption and are making every effort to minimize it, including providing accommodation for passengers. Refunds on cancellation or complimentary rescheduling is also being offered to guests who opt for it. Alternative arrangements are being made to fly passengers to their destinations,' Air India said. Explosions rocked Tehran after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the launch of 'Operation Rising Lion', claiming to have hit the core of Iran's nuclear programme—including its main enrichment facility in Natanz. The International Atomic Energy Agency has confirmed damage to Iranian nuclear infrastructure. As tensions escalated, Indian embassies in both Iran and Israel issued advisories urging Indian nationals to avoid 'unnecessary travel' and remain vigilant. Air India flights affected: Aggam Walia is a Correspondent at The Indian Express, reporting on power, renewables, and mining. His work unpacks intricate ties between corporations, government, and policy, often relying on documents sourced via the RTI Act. Off the beat, he enjoys running through Delhi's parks and forests, walking to places, and cooking pasta. ... Read More
Indian Express
11-05-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
‘India-UK FTA historic, serves as template for discussions with US, EU': CII President
India's recently signed free trade agreement (FTA) with the United Kingdom is 'historic' and could serve as a 'gold standard' for similar discussions with other regions like the United States and Europe, said Sanjiv Puri, President of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). In an interview with Aggam Walia and Soumyarendra Barik, Puri also spoke about how the private sector in India needs to substantially increase its R&D spends for national development, why private capex is only a part of the overall economic development agenda, and whether India needs to revisit its trade relationship with China. Edited excerpts: The UK FTA came almost as a surprise to many. What is your overall reading of it? It's a historic agreement, and real credit to the Commerce Minister and his team, they really put in a lot of hard work. We have been, as part of the delegation, witness to how much hard work was put in for it. This is a historical deal. We have never signed such a comprehensive deal that covers 99 per cent of the tariff lines. It touches manufacturing, services, agriculture. 95 per cent of agriculture tariff lines are getting benefit out of the FTA. It's a gold standard for all other FTAs. It has also dealt with labour and sustainability issues. We do not know the fine print but it has addressed all of them. It is also a very strong signal to the world that India is serious and ready to take bold steps. And it's also hopefully setting the tone and pace for two other important FTAs which are in the pipeline which are the EU and the US. Some sectors like the liquor industry have concerns that the FTA will open it up to a lot of competition. Do you think many of our industries are ready for such competition that will happen due to the FTA? Let's look at the benefits of the FTA first. One is that it will open a lot of opportunities for bilateral trade in some very important sectors like labour intensive ones such as textiles. These are sectors that are very important for India because that's where jobs get created. These sectors may not be material when you count private capex, but on the ground they are more material because the number of jobs, economic multipliers are much much higher. Also, to participate in global value chains, FTAs are very important enablers. It is opening up some part of that. Other FTAs will make it more effective. The world is looking for supply chain resilience, alternatives. This sets the base for alternate new value chains to be developed. On the services side, the Double Contribution Convention makes us competitive, and it covers several sectors, even EPC. It's a big boost to services. The Indian liquor industry has its own strengths. There are certain areas that the UK (does better). Both will coexist, thrive, find their own spaces, and play to their strengths. In the US trade deal, there is expectation that they will push for market access to US farm goods like soybeans. How would that interplay with our own farm policies here? The sensitive sectors have been kept out of the UK FTA. I expect a similar situation to happen with the US. But negotiations with the UK, and the US might be of a very different nature given the leadership. I assume so, but I think that sensitivity will still be taken care of from an agriculture perspective. There are some areas to be cognisant of and watchful about. Dairy is one example, soya you mentioned. I think solutions can be worked out because it does not impact too many lines. Dumping from China has become a real concern. What do you think the government's strategy should be in countering that? The laws for safeguard measures are all there, the government is cognisant of it and is doing its best to bring in the safeguard measures. What the industry will always want is how fast the process can be. But having said that, let me say the government is also very cognisant of it and keen to address it because they have to also take care of certain regulations that have to be followed with the WTO. The only point to see is how we can make it more agile and it will have to be done case by case, not general. What is important is that the rules of origin, and digital systems for traceability should be very clear. These are important tenets of any effective bilateral trade agreement. Since 2020, we have adopted a largely protectionist trade stance towards China. Do you think it is time to revisit that relationship? We have to look at it from the perspective of what is important for national development. We have to deal with it on a case by case basis, and selectively. We have to also be cognisant of national security concerns, and whatever is helpful and works to our advantage, those are the areas we should focus on. Private capex being sluggish has been a cause of concern for a long time now. When will it pick up? For India's growth, we need jobs, including in labour intensive areas. Agriculture is also an important sector which is going to remain a dominant source of growth. Capex is another pillar apart from these two. Private capex announcements are three times more than what they were pre-Covid. Corporate balance sheets are fine, there is enough liquidity. So the environment is all right for investments. The only uncertainty is on account of the global environment, which may be creating some hesitation so there could be a shifting of investments. Things are getting better on the consumption front and there is now the benefit of personal income tax as well. There is also going to be the benefit of the cumulative impact of public capex picking up in the second half of last year. Private capex was soft during the election period but has since picked up. And of course, the more progress is made on the reform agenda, ease of doing business, how fast can you set up manufacturing, buy the land, get all the approvals, all of these make us more competitive. The Commerce Minister recently urged businesses to focus more on R&D. Most Indian companies spend a small fraction on research work. How can we ever be competitive globally if that remains the case? I agree that the R&D spend in the economy needs to go up. The private sector needs to certainly do more and if you want to benefit from all the FTAs and the opportunities, we will have to invest in R&D, there is no doubt about it. The industry needs to create the culture, create the mindset. Aggam Walia is a Correspondent at The Indian Express, reporting on power, renewables, and mining. His work unpacks intricate ties between corporations, government, and policy, often relying on documents sourced via the RTI Act. Off the beat, he enjoys running through Delhi's parks and forests, walking to places, and cooking pasta. ... Read More Soumyarendra Barik is Special Correspondent with The Indian Express and reports on the intersection of technology, policy and society. With over five years of newsroom experience, he has reported on issues of gig workers' rights, privacy, India's prevalent digital divide and a range of other policy interventions that impact big tech companies. He once also tailed a food delivery worker for over 12 hours to quantify the amount of money they make, and the pain they go through while doing so. In his free time, he likes to nerd about watches, Formula 1 and football. ... Read More
