Carbon reduction targets today

NEW DELHI: The central government is likely to announce a carbon intensity reduction target in Parliament on Thursday. Sources said that the leadership at the highest level is inclined to make it the centrepiece of its stance at Copenhagen.

But this move is certain to become controversial as even India’s negotiators and climate change experts here have been maintaining that New Delhi should only offer energy intensity targets to safeguard the interests of the domestic industry.

The preference of energy intensity over carbon intensity target has been on account of the need to protect India’s manufacturing sector. A commitment to reduce carbon output per unit of GDP would hamper the manufacturing sector as it would be forced to make additional investments to move to a low carbon trajectory.

Another reason why negotiators prefer an energy intensity target is India’s track record. India has progressively reduced its energy intensity since the mid nineties.

Reports suggest that the government is of the view that it is possible to reduce carbon intensity by 24% by 2020 compared to the 2005 levels. As extension, it is estimated that by 2030 India could achieve a reduction in its carbon emissions by 37% from the 2005 levels.

The figure of 24% could have been based on the country’s energy intensity reduction projections. In the XIth plan document, the government has set a target of 20% reduction in energy intensity by the end of the plan period in 2012 from the 2007 baseline.
Energy intensity is a measure of energy efficiency, and is calculated as units of energy per unit of GDP. While carbon intensity is the carbon equivalents emitted per unit of GDP. Energy intensity and carbon intensity are not synonymous. However, given that energy contributes to 70 to 80% of the emissions basket, it is likely that the government is relying on its energy intensity projections to work out its carbon intensity targets.