be added rapidly.
“ The planning process for energy has to start at least 10 years early if we have to match our demand with supply; and supplemental efforts must come from both public and private sector.”
He said nuclear power is an option that states like Kerala can consider since it requires less land, less fuel by volume when compared to coal, is cheap, reliable, has negligible emissions and has a far longer life relative to other renewables.
Dr A K Balyan, Managing Director and CEO of Petronet LNG Ltd and Shri J Wason, Chairman, Kerala GAIL Gas Ltd made detailed presentations on natural gas as an energy source.
Dr Balyan pointed out that natural gas has been acknowledged as the cleanest and the most efficient fuel. He said across the world new, massive gas reserves are being discovered every year; in the future more availability will translate into lower costs.
He said the way forward for the sector was having robust infrastructure, creation of a sovereign fund to help companies acquire assets outside and better pricing and taxation to improve affordability of gas as an energy source.
Shri. Wason listed the wide applications of natural gas in various sectors ranging from power generation, industrial purposes such as in bakeries, cashew factories, steel foundries, glass manufacturing; for transport; cooling and refrigeration. He said the Kochi- Mangalore pipeline project will create a virtual river of energy that can drive economic growth. Shri. M Sivasankar, Secretary( Power) and Chairman, KSEB, chaired the session.
The afternoon session focused on non-conventional energy sources and waste management. Speakers included Dr. Rajan Khobragade, Secretary( LSG); Dr Kala Seetharam Sridhar, Head, Public Policy Research, Public Affairs Centre, Bangalore; Shri. Narasimhan Santhanam, Co-founder and Director, Energy Alternatives India; Shri M S Unnikrishnan, Managing Director Thermax; Shri. Mohammed Hussain, Director, Centre for Wind Energy Technology; Shri. Ajith Gopi, Joint Technical Director, ANERT; and Dr Prava Debal, Assistant General Manager, Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd.
Shri K M Chandrasekhar, Vice Chairman, Kerala State Planning Board made the concluding remarks at the workshop.
58
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM
July 2013
METRO mart