India: Cdm Opportunities and Benefits
IV. India: CDM Opportunities and Benefits
Milind Pathak, Leena Srivastava, and Sudhir Sharma* Tata Energy Research Institute, New Delhi
Summary
More than twenty potential Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects in five different sectors are reviewed in this chapter. They include new technologies and fuel-switching options for conventional power generation, applications of renewable technologies for power generation and agricultural activities, and efficiency improvements in the production of cement and iron and steel. All projects advance sustainable development in some form. Non-climate environmental benefits include improved air and water quality, reduced solid waste, and soil protection. Development benefits include rural electrification, employment opportunities in particular groups, and improvements in industrial efficiency. An analytical tool—the Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP)—is used to evaluate the benefits of different options— in particular, their consistency with national priorities articulated in the planning process and their environmental and economic development benefits. Among the abatement opportunities reviewed, there appears to be a very high overlap between projects that are low-cost and projects that are consistent with India’s development priorities. In three of the four sectors for which comparisons can be made, the first and second options ranked by price are also the first and second options when ranked by their non-carbon benefits. This suggests that projects advanced under the CDM would make a significant contribution to India’s own development goals.
Planning Priorities and Development Paths
In India, the planning process takes the form of FiveYear Plans formulated by the Planning Commission.1 The development objectives laid out for the upcoming period provide a touchstone for assessing the CDM’s potential to address domestic priorities. The objectives stated in the ninth and current Five-Year Plan (1997–2002) reveal a
Milind Pathak, Leena Srivastava, and Sudhir Sharma* Tata Energy Research Institute, New Delhi
Summary
More than twenty potential Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) projects in five different sectors are reviewed in this chapter. They include new technologies and fuel-switching options for conventional power generation, applications of renewable technologies for power generation and agricultural activities, and efficiency improvements in the production of cement and iron and steel. All projects advance sustainable development in some form. Non-climate environmental benefits include improved air and water quality, reduced solid waste, and soil protection. Development benefits include rural electrification, employment opportunities in particular groups, and improvements in industrial efficiency. An analytical tool—the Analytical Hierarchical Process (AHP)—is used to evaluate the benefits of different options— in particular, their consistency with national priorities articulated in the planning process and their environmental and economic development benefits. Among the abatement opportunities reviewed, there appears to be a very high overlap between projects that are low-cost and projects that are consistent with India’s development priorities. In three of the four sectors for which comparisons can be made, the first and second options ranked by price are also the first and second options when ranked by their non-carbon benefits. This suggests that projects advanced under the CDM would make a significant contribution to India’s own development goals.
Planning Priorities and Development Paths
In India, the planning process takes the form of FiveYear Plans formulated by the Planning Commission.1 The development objectives laid out for the upcoming period provide a touchstone for assessing the CDM’s potential to address domestic priorities. The objectives stated in the ninth and current Five-Year Plan (1997–2002) reveal a