Policy intervention must for carbon credit trading: Tata Power CEO Praveer Sinha
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. MUMBAI : One of India’s largest renewable power generators, Tata Power, has not participated in the country's nascent International Renewable Energy Certificates (IRECs) market—considered an alternative to carbon credits—citing a lack of buyers. Praveer Sinha, Tata Power's managing director and chief executive officer, said policy intervention—in terms of target-based incentives and disincentives—is a must to breathe life into the IREC and carbon credit market in India.
“There are no buyers today," Sinha said. “In India, there is no regulation that incentivizes or penalizes heavy polluters for their emissions. Without that, carbon credits will not take off." Tata Power has registered with Green Certificate Company (‘GCC’), the Sheffield, UK-based company that issues IRECs.
However, Sinha said Tata Power is not applying for these certificates. IRECs are energy attribution certificates that indicate that the holder has consumed renewable energy. Each IREC represents one megawatt-hour (MWh) of electricity.
These certificates are issued to companies generating renewable power, who can then sell them in a secondary market. Companies utilizing power from non-renewable sources may purchase IRECs to meet their sustainability targets. In India, IRECs are traded on the Indian Energy Exchange (IEX) and the Power Exchange India Ltd (PXIL).
They are mostly purchased by power distribution companies, captive power plants, and large consumers to meet their Renewable Purchase Obligations (RPO), which are targets for minimum renewable power consumption set by the power ministry. Prices of IRECs fell to an all-time low in September due to oversupply, as per a report by S&P Platts. The fall in prices was
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