India Energy Week 2025: Highlighting India’s growing energy leadership

Posted on 19 Feb 2025

Synopsis

The 3rd India Energy Week came weeks after President Donald Trump took charge and swiftly reversed green policies including withdrawal from climate change accords and initiating a quantum push for oil drilling. Needless to emphasize, the concomitant effects of these policies had its impact even at the IEW 2025, where hydrocarbons dominated the proceedings even while India attempted to showcase efforts to enable a smoother transition to cleaner fuels. While it was evident that fossil fuels would continue to dominate the energy mix of nations, India used the IEW to sensitize the world not just to the significance of alternate fuels but also imperative of energy justice and equity. The sentiment that emerged out of IEW 2025 was India’s rising profile in the global energy landscape.

As the world grapples with the dual challenges of climate change and energy security, India has emerged as a pivotal player in shaping the global energy landscape. The third edition of India Energy Week (IEW) 2025, held from 11-14 February 2025, at the Yashobhoomi Convention Centre in New Delhi, was not just another industry conference but a significant initiative to carve out a leadership position in the global energy landscape.

By the end of this year’s version, it was evident that the IEW was turning into a dynamic platform where policymakers, industry leaders, and innovators converged in order to not just redefine the Indian energy architecture but also elevate the dialogue in ways that could shape the global energy discourses.

In the words of Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Hardeep Singh Puri, the IEW is now the world’s second-largest energy conclave and has established India’s position as a global energy leader.

The four-day event at the grand convention centre just outside the Indira Gandhi International Airport saw not just Indian companies – including the public and private sector giants sharing space with Medium, Small and Micro Enterprises (MSMEs) that showcased the ‘Make in India’ momentum – but also global players, particularly from the oil and natural gas industry as well as automotive majors and prominent names from the renewable sector.

Yet, there were notable absentees like the entities of the Reliance Group as well as leading renewable companies like Suzlon.

Industry insiders and IEW regulars who interacted with The Polity were of the view that while the IEW 2025 was spectacularly organised, it failed to match the enormity of companies and industrial ware on display in the IEW 2023 at Bangalore and the 2024 version in Goa. A reason cited by many of them was the distance from industrial zones to the national capital limited the possibility of showcasing products and machinery.

While the vibrant pavilions of Indian majors like Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Petronet, Oil India Limited, Adani, Nayara and Cairn, among others, rubbed shoulders with their international counterparts like British Petroleum and Toyota, to name a few, the presence of global energy giants were lower in number. Conspicuous by their absence were also the Chinese companies some of which had prominent presence in the 2023 meet in Bangalore.

A source at a leading Japanese energy and environment research institute told The Polity on condition of anonymity that many Japanese industrial delegates who were supposed to attend the IEW had withdrawn on account of concerns about pollution in Delhi. The Polity could not independently verify this claim.

On the other hand, the IEW 2025 witnessed greater representation from the Indian industry, particularly the component manufacturers and MSMEs prominently operating in the energy domain. The highlight of IEW 2025 was the space given to Artificial Intelligence (AI) which found prominent interest among delegates.

At the same time, delegates who conversed with The Polity felt that the renewable sector was not prominently visible at IEW 2025. Other than some automobile variants running on ethanol and fuel-cell electric that were on display at the Toyota stall, much of the renewables showcasing was left to the public sector enterprises and the government ministries. In fact, The Polity found the oil and natural gas industry dominating the IEW 2025, a view echoed in many quarters.

Notwithstanding these aspects, the IEW 2025 witnessed hectic business interactions, engaging dialogue through strategic and technical conferences, and numerous interactive events. A key highlight, however, was the launch of India’s largest hydrocarbon auction – the OALP Bid Round X – which entails over 200,000 square kilometres of exploration blocks on offer.

Also in focus throughout the meet was the government’s push for green energy transitions through innovations in areas like bio-fuels, a strong push for green hydrogen, and, quite significantly, seeking international partnerships in these areas.

Reflecting upon the ‘success’ of IEW 2025, Hardeep Singh Puri noted that the event exceeded expectations “by encompassing a comprehensive range of sectors including petroleum, natural gas, green energy, biofuel, and CBG, showcasing remarkably innovative developments.”

Reiterating that the IEW was now the world’s second-largest such energy forum, Puri pointed to the facilitation at IEW 2025 of actual business transactions rather than merely serving as a networking platform.

The event, which saw participation from over 600 exhibitors and 70,000 attendees, was not just a networking forum but a hub for business transactions and technological innovation.

Puri emphasised the event’s significance, stating, “India Energy Week has become a global platform where deals are struck, policies are shaped, and innovations are showcased. This is not just about India; it’s about the world’s energy future.”

IEW 2025: Marking India’s quantum ‘energy’ leap

The 2025 version opened with a profound video address by Prime Minister Narendra Modi who listed out India’s expansive energy vision for 2030. Unveiling an ambitious roadmap towards this goal, PM Modi urged global stakeholders to explore the emergent opportunities that will come out of this roadmap. “Every investment in energy is creating new jobs for our youth and generating green employment opportunities,” he remarked.

The Prime Minister also outlined key targets for 2030, including achieving 500 GW of renewable energy, net zero carbon emissions for Indian Railways, and the annual production of 5 million metric tons of green hydrogen. “In the last 10 years, we have become the fifth largest economy from the tenth largest. Our solar generation capacity has grown 32 times, non-fossil generation capacity has tripled, and India became the first among the G20 nations to achieve the Paris Agreement goals,” he stated

He further outlined India’s energy ambitions, built on five pillars: harnessing resources, encouraging innovation, economic strength, strategic geography, and commitment to global sustainability. Highlighting India’s achievements, including a thirty-two-fold increase in solar energy generation capacity over the past decade and the establishment of the Global Biofuels Alliance, PM Modi said: “India is not just driving its own growth but also the growth of the world. Our energy sector is at the heart of this transformation.”

The Prime Minister emphasised the importance of local supply chains and Make in India initiatives, noting that India’s solar PV module manufacturing capacity has expanded from 2 gigawatts to 70 gigawatts in the past decade. Also mentioned was India’s goal of achieving a 20% ethanol blending mandate by October 2025 and that India's biofuels industry is ready for rapid growth, with 500 million metric tonnes of sustainable feedstock.

Following the PM’s address, the inaugural session saw a Ministerial Panel comprising Hardeep Singh Puri, the British Minister for Clean Energy and Net Zero Ed Miliband, as well as the energy ministers of Qatar and Tanzania discussing energy security and transition. The topic of discussions largely veered about US President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw from the climate change commitments of the Paris Accord and also start extensive oil drilling even while reversing the green policies of previous administrations.

While Hardeep Singh Puri called for a gradual stable transition to cleaner fuels while ensuring energy security, Miliband insisted that countries will decide on their energy mix based on national interests. Even as the Qatar minister emphasized the continuing reliance on fossil fuels notwithstanding the imperative of energy transition, the Tanzanian minister called attention to ‘energy poverty’ and the lack of funds slowing down the ability of under-developed nations to gain sustainable energy resources, leave alone initiating transition to cleaner fuels.

‘Energy justice,’ for that matter, was a recurring theme at the IEW 2025.

Another Ministerial Panel on the inaugural day, which included Puri, the Secretary General of Oil and Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) as well as ministers of Venezuela and the Russian Federation, discussed “The continued importance of oil security in the energy transition.” Besides emphasizing energy security, the panellists identified hydrocarbons as the dominant energy source for the foreseeable future while Puri talked about the advent of small modular nuclear reactors and the prospect of hydrogen becoming more cost-competitive.

Day II saw India showcasing its clean cooking gas model, including its affordability and direct subsidisation, with discussions of the day largely involving countries from the Global South.

On the same day, the International Energy Agency (IEA) released its comprehensive India Gas Market Report, revealing that India's natural gas sector has reached an inflexion point. The report projects India's natural gas consumption to increase by nearly 60 percent to reach 103 billion cubic meters (bcm) per year by 2030.

The Report highlighted major trends like the rapid expansion of India's gas infrastructure, a rebound in domestic natural gas production, and an expected easing of global gas market conditions.

Day III witnessed key industry leaders discussing the future of globally traded LNG and its role in shaping sustainable energy markets in the panel on “Globally traded LNG - Shaping business models for the next era/.” While there was consensus that India’s gas demand is poised to grow significantly by 2030, it was felt that for LNG to be a viable option, it must be affordable, and contracts must be reliable.

Another industry panel discussed “Future Clean Power Transmission and Distribution Pathways,” during which the critical role of an advanced transmission infrastructure to absorb and transmit clean from a variety of sources including renewable, coal gasification and nuclear, was emphasized. Panellists also pointed out the significance of coal gasification as a crucial step and that India, being the largest importer of energy, could leverage gasification to shift towards energy self-sufficiency, reduce import dependence on natural gas, and bolster economic growth.

While much of these discussions veered on conventional energy sources, Day III provided an impetus to the electric vehicle (EV) segment with an industry panel devoted to engaging discussions on “Establishing Transformative, Integrated E-Mobility Ecosystems in Emerging Economies.” Experts highlighted that scaling up e-mobility demands strong policy support, strategic public-private partnerships, and a skilled workforce.

Also discussed were the key challenges in transitioning from direct fossil fuel-based systems to electricity-based mobility, the need for energy standardization for the vehicle categories, and the need to move past the initial hurdles of e-mobility transition by focusing on integrating technology, data, and AI-driven models to predict energy needs effectively.

Hydrocarbons remain the pivot

By the end of the four days, and a multitude of interactive sessions and vibrant exhibits sprawling across three halls, the IEW 2025 also hosted a series of agreements and MoUs. Among the notable ones included the crude term deal between India’s BPCL and Petrobras of Brazil and another between Petrobras and ONGC; LNG import deals between India’s IOCL and BPCL with ADNOC of UAE; an LNG; an MoU between ONGC and British Petroleum, and so on.

All these announced agreements/MoUs pertained to the oil and natural gas industry, thus underlining the notable dominance of the sector in the IEW 2025. It might have come as a shortcoming that the forum did not propel notable collaborations in the other sectors like renewable energy, electric vehicles or even the nuclear sector, which had a very minimal presence at the IEW 2025.

Evidently, the core focus of the IEW 2025 seemed to have been spent on various elements of the hydrocarbon sectors, exploration and production (including the OALP block auction), aspects like city gas distribution and future transformation of this domain into areas like bio-fuel and hydrogen.

This aspect was easily summed up by Hardeep Singh Puri with his declaration that “Green hydrogen is not just the fuel of the future; it’s the fuel of now. India is committed to becoming a global leader in green hydrogen production.”

Besides showcasing bio-fuel initiatives, the organisers had profoundly highlighted the expanding ethanol blending capacity in the country, which has reached 1,700 crore litres, with the potential to exceed the 20 percent blending target this year, as emphasized by the Prime Minister in his speech.

One of the standout innovations at the event was an affordable conversion kit for biofuel usage in two- and three-wheelers, showcased by HPCL. This innovation, along with displays of flex-fuel vehicles, underscored the dynamic ecosystem for innovation and diversification that is emerging in the country.

Energy startups, for that matter, formed another major highlight of IEW 2025. The Avinya’25 – Energy Startup Challenge saw UrjanovaC Pvt Ltd win the top prize for its synthetic catalyst technology enabling scalable CO? capture and conversion. Other notable startups included Breathe ESG Private Limited, which developed a SaaS platform for ESG reporting, and AgriVijay, which introduced a renewable energy marketplace for rural areas.

Apeiro Energy and UGreen Technology were also acknowledged for their innovations in microgrid integration and carbon capture technology, respectively. Latin Energy Partners Inc. from Paraguay won the Vasudha -- Oil and Gas Startup Challenge for advancements in upstream oil and gas innovation.

A hackathon involving premier Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) focused on carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) and renewable energy solutions. IIT (ISM) Dhanbad emerged as the winner, with IIT Guwahati securing second place.

India destined to buy more US-origin oil and gas

PM Modi’s trip to the US, which coincided with the IEW 2025, having resulted in Indian commitment to purchase American oil and gas, in line with President Trump’s ‘drill baby drill’ policy, is destined to propel greater India-American partnership in this segment.

India’s energy policy, meanwhile, is undergoing a significant shift, with a focus on increasing the share of natural gas in its energy mix from 6 to 15 percent. Puri also highlighted the role of India’s partnership with the US in securing liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies, which will be instrumental in meeting this target.

“The primary focus remains on increasing the adoption of biofuels, renewables, and hydrogen. The IEA estimated that global energy investment was going to exceed USD 3 trillion for the first time in 2024, with USD 2 trillion going to clean energy technologies and infrastructure,” he said.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) reinforced this vision in its India Gas Market Report, projecting that India's natural gas consumption will surge by 60% to 103 billion cubic meters (bcm) by 2030. This growth is driven by the rapid expansion of city gas distribution (CGD) networks and the cost advantage of gas over liquid fuels for small industrial users.

Roberto Bocca, Head of the Centre for Energy and Materials at the World Economic Forum, noted, “India’s rapid deployment of projects with minimal bureaucratic delays is exemplary. The country is setting a benchmark for how emerging economies can transition to cleaner energy sources.”

While India’s energy transition is on track, challenges remain. Land acquisition and grid integration were identified as major hurdles in scaling renewable energy. Gurdeep Singh, Chairman of NTPC, called for grid upgrades to accommodate the fluctuating supply of renewable energy.

A universal concern discussed was grid integration, where Singh called for grid upgrades to accommodate the fluctuating supply of renewable energy, which should be compatible with wind and solar energy. He also noted that NTPC is investing in large-scale transmission infrastructure, benefiting states like Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Chhattisgarh.

On the financial front, experts emphasised the need for affordable capital to drive the energy transition. Katan Hirachand, Chief Executive of Societe Generale Bank, highlighted the ‘energy trilemma’ of security, sustainability and affordability. “India has deep access to local and foreign investment, but project standards must be elevated to attract capital,” Hirachand said.

India’s energy future is bright

India Energy Week 2025 was more than just an event; it was a reflection of India’s commitment to a sustainable energy future. From groundbreaking innovations in biofuels and green hydrogen to the recognition of startups and youth-led solutions, the event showcased India’s potential to lead the global energy transition.

As Hardeep Singh Puri aptly put it, “One thing has become absolutely clear to all stakeholders. ‘Energy justice’ must remain at the core of the imminent transformation. A fragmented transition risks deepening inequality, leaving billions without reliable energy while wealthier nations surge ahead. If the transition is not just, it will not succeed because the political economy will not allow it.”

With strong policy support, strategic partnerships, and a focus on innovation, India is well on its way to achieving its energy goals and setting an example for the world to follow. The journey ahead is challenging, but as the discussions at IEW 2025 showed, India is ready to lead the charge.

Puri specifically highlighted practical innovations such as the cost-effective conversion kit demonstrated at the HPCL stall, designed for enabling biofuel usage in two and three-wheelers. Additionally, the Minister also expressed satisfaction at the convergence of investors, manufacturers, and consumers, particularly evident in the display of flex-fuel vehicles.

Notwithstanding many such highlights of IEW 2025, and its palpable hydrocarbon prevalence, the forum, having established itself as the world's second-largest energy platform, invariably underlined India’s growing energy profile, and how the country is increasingly shaping the global energy landscape.

While the IEW platform is slated to expand further with a likely focus on areas like renewables as well as nuclear energy, the organisers announced the fourth edition of IEW to be held in Goa in 2026.

Originally published on The Polity

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