Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, Hon'ble Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas and Union Minister for Housing & Urban Affairs

BPCL PODCAST

In our first episode, listen to our Honourable Union Minister for Housing & Urban Affairs and Petroleum & Natural Gas and Union Minister for Housing & Urban Affairs, Shri Hardeep Singh Puri talk about India Energy Week, a momentous gathering of 30,000+ energy professionals from 100+ countries, which was held in Bengaluru from 6th - 8th February 2023.

Transcript:

BPCL podcast, unlocking possibilities, empowering lives.

Melbin: Hello and welcome to the BPCL podcast ‘Unlocking Possibilities, Empowering Lives’. My name is Melbin and in this series of podcasts, you can listen to conversations with thought leaders from the industry, on the future of the energy landscape. Joining us on this episode is the Honourable Union Minister for Housing & Urban Affairs and Petroleum & Natural Gas, Shri Hardeep Singh Puri, who spoke with us during the India Energy Week, which was held in Bangalore from 6th to 8th February 2023. Welcome to the first episode of the BPCL PODCAST Sir!

Shri Hardeep Singh Puri: Thank you very much.

Melbin: Really looking forward to speaking to you and my first question to you Sir, What are the key takeaways from India Energy Week 2023?

Shri Hardeep Singh Puri:  The key takeaway, I think, is that you have a platform where India's rapidly growing demand for energy, where India's four-pronged strategy, increasing ENP, acquiring assets, accelerating transition through biofuels, green hydrogen, all that is being discussed. And the very fact that you are doing a podcast on this issue thinks that it is going from government policy and permeating into the consciousness of people. So that's a very big take. And it's not a one-time conversation. We are going to do it on a continuous basis, year on year, so it’ll become an institutional event.

Melbin: Right. Also Sir, the government is actually adopting multiple pathways to achieve its, bold commitment to, you know, becoming net zero by 2070. So what do you think is India’s roadmap with regard towards energy transition?

Shri Hardeep Singh Puri: We have a four-pronged strategy and India's roadmap because India will succeed. Other countries in the world, especially in the global south, can follow.

Melbin: This really must be quite an amazing feeling Sir, to see that the world is now looking upto India to play a pivotal role in global energy markets. How do you see this phenomenal event that is the India Energy Week panned out?

Shri Hardeep Singh Puri : There's a lot of interest. There are representatives of 50 countries who are here. There are 35 ministerial-level representatives. The CEOs of all the major global companies or their equivalents or number twos are here. All the Indian CEOs are here. Anybody who is associated as a stakeholder with the energy sector is here. So why is this so? One, I think because there is widespread acknowledgment that India is where demand and growth is very evident, and in the coming two decades you'll find that India will be the place where the exponential growth will take place. Somebody mentioned to me, that between 2020 and 2040, India will account for 25%, at least, of the growth in international demand for energy. Now, if it was only a question of demand and imports, that would be a different story. India has demonstrated it has opened up 1 million square kilometers out of the 3.5 million square kilometers of sedimentary basin for exploration and production. It's not only just opened up, it has set up a national data repository and the data available is available to anyone. We are not telling people you come and invest and then we will take over, you come and invest,you come and explore. We will incentivize your investment. So, ENP is growing, demand ENP, the transition to Green Energy. The Honorable Prime Minister, this is Energy Week three major initiatives he took, solar cooktop, E 20 Fuel, a rally, which is of not just E 20 cars, many of the vehicles which were there were E 85 vehicles, flexi fuels. So India is a place where it's happening. So I’ll share something with you. When we were planning this event, some people turned around and asked me, you know, when you go to some of these events in the Gulf, there's a lot of buzz and excitement. What will happen to India? I said, welcome to India. You know, we have a capacity. If you are expecting a thousand, you'll get 5,000 people. So I think that is what you are witnessing here just now.

Melbin: Indeed sir, I am really proud. I’m sure all Indians are very proud. India really is the place and it's quite happening these days, as our Hon’ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi said that India's Energy Plan aims to ensure energy justice. Can you elaborate on energy Justice?

Shri Hardeep Singh Puri : Energy justice is very important because there was a session on what do you mean by energy security? Now, I took the liberty of telling them that if you were having a discussion on energy security one or two years ago, in the midst of all the global uncertainty, it would mean one thing. But if you were having the discussion five years ago, it would've meant something else. But you know, energy security, if global markets are in turmoil, means you must have availability, you must have security, stability. And that even if you're able to access energy, it has to be at prices in which developing countries, in particular, can supply energy to their, you know, consumers. I've been asked this question many times, so I don't even mind. I don't wanna wait for you to ask it. I owe a moral duty to my consumer. You land in Bangalore and you see, look at the number of cars and energy. That is the energy. So you have no option but to provide for them. And therefore it requires a serious discussion. Instead of people putting the blame on X or a group of producers, something, we must be able to realize that we are all stakeholders in this together. And if the system doesn't survive, all of us in varying degrees are going to suffer.

Melbin: Sir, this brings me to my final question, India Energy Week 2023 comes at a time of India’s G20 presidency, so how do you see India leading from the front, especially with regard to this?

Shri Hardeep Singh Puri : G20 presidency, India assumed a very short while ago, and we'll have it throughout the year. There will be many G20 events I have been to, but this I think is the first large-scale G20 event as part of on energy. I mean there are energy workshops, etc and I think what India can bring on the table, and I've said this many times, look, the G20 as a group was born in a moment of crisis. G20 was born when the world's financial and economic system was in distress. You know, I'm talking about 2007 & 8 and the world, the real estate markets starting with the prime sector lending in the US. They started, and some toxicity came. It spread. This is the first real crisis after that, after 2007 & 8. And India by virtue of the fact that it's a large developing country, it is doing a lot on energy transition. I mean, I'll give you a small example, the solar cooktop, which the Prime Minister introduced. I personally think it has major global replicability, at least in the global south. I personally think even in western industrial democracies, people might want to use something which has solar. If you have enough sunshine, you would want to use a solar cooktop. So there are many things that India can be part of that.

Melbin: Well, it really is all about process isn’t it Sir? Thank you so much for giving us the perspective on India Energy Week, and India’s role of leading from the front, in the energy transition and security efforts while laying out strategies it has planned to manage energy demands during our nation’s G20 presidency. It really has been my absolute honour talking to you. Thank you so much, Sir.

Shri Hardeep Singh Puri : Thank you very much.

Melbin: That was Hon’ble Minister for Housing & Urban Affairs and Petroleum & Natural Gas, Shri Hardeep Singh Puri. Do subscribe to BPCL PODCAST - Unlocking Possibilities, Empowering Lives, wherever you are listening to it from, we have more episodes up! Meanwhile do check us out at https://www.bharatpetroleum.in/

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