Seizing the decade in India: Shell and TERI outline a path towards sustainable development and net-zero emissions

National : Energy lies at the heart of India's development aspirations, from ensuring a better life for its 1.4 billion people to realising a USD 5 trillion climate economy. At the same time India confronts an energy trilemma: Balancing energy security, energy equity, and environmental sustainability while pursuing decarbonisation. To successfully navigate this trilemma, concerted efforts and partnerships are essential among the government, businesses, and civil society. Decisions made in this decisive decade will determine India’s ability to decarbonise while ensuring continued economic growth and development.

The report launched on August 1 by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) and Shell, INDIA TRANSFORMING TO A NET-ZERO EMISSIONS ENERGY SYSTEM outlines what India needs to do this decade (from now until 2030) to help meet its net-zero emissions target while also delivering energy security and energy equity.

The report presents four potential scenarios, all aiming to achieve net-zero emissions within India's energy system by the latter half of this century. It highlights the need for (i) Increasing electrification in energy end use sectors. (ii) Meeting electricity demand increasingly from non-fossil sources. (iii) Developing low-carbon alternatives such as hydrogen and biofuels for hard-to-electrify segments. (vi) Deploying digital solutions to enable low carbon alternatives. (vi) Supporting circular economy business models to drive resource efficiency. (vii) Creating an enabling environment for planning, establishing and scaling up carbon removals after 2030 to address the most expensive and hardest-to-abate residual emissions. It further emphasises the need for policy interventions, technological advancements, and behavioural changes to facilitate the transition towards more-sustainable energy practices. It also highlights the new economic and business opportunities for India to position itself as a leader and to leapfrog to more energy and emissions-efficient technologies and solutions.

Speaking at the launch, Nitin Prasad, Chairman, Shell Group of Companies in India, said, “Shell has been a thought leader in India’s energy transition journey jointly with TERI for over a decade. Building on this collaboration, the report explores pathways for India until 2030 to achieve its commitments, emphasising the pivotal role of renewable energy, energy efficiency, and electrification in its decarbonisation efforts.”

Highlighting the need for conducive regulatory framework that will help India decarbonise, Dr Vibha Dhawan, Director, TERI, said, "India possesses a remarkable prospect to establish itself as a prominent global front-runner in low-carbon technologies and solutions. To seize this opportunity, India must give paramount importance to establishing a conducive regulatory framework that promotes growth and encourages innovation. In addition, businesses and companies must play an active role in supporting India's ambition of achieving net-zero emissions. Significant contributions can be made by investing in renewable energy, hydrogen, and bioenergy sectors. By capitalising on this potential, India can propel itself towards a future driven by low carbon and energy efficient technology, surpassing the greenhouse gas-intensive paths pursued by advanced economies at present.”

The INDIA TRANSFORMING TO A NET-ZERO EMISSIONS ENERGY SYSTEM report has further identified ten key areas this decade for policy and investment action, in order to fully realise India’s ambition and potential to be a climate change-maker:

1. Harness the co-benefits of energy transition to drive broader sustainable development goals
2. Develop a vibrant low-carbon manufacturing industry
3. Expand electricity transmission and distribution networks
4. Ramp up investments in energy storage and renewables integration
5. Increase the use of hydrogen and bioenergy to decarbonize hard-to-abate sectors
6. Establish a robust policy framework for investing in natural carbon sinks
7. Implement the strategic roadmap for carbon capture and storage (CCS) and incentivise investments in carbon removal
8. Introduce carbon pricing measures to drive low-carbon businesses and consumer choices
9. Foster sectoral collaborations and coalitions to accelerate action
10. Take the opportunity to deliver a just transition by equitably sharing costs and benefits

Full report available here – www.shell.in/india2030

Notes to Editors

About Shell India

Shell is one of India's most diversified international energy companies, with over 10,000 employees and a presence across upstream, integrated gas, downstream, renewable energy, and deep capabilities in Research & Development, digitisation, and business operations. With over 350 retail stations across eight states, Shell India is expanding its fuel station network and launched Shell Recharge, its EV charging service, in September 2022, which is rapidly growing in the EV infrastructure space.

Shell Lubricants serves over 50,000 consumers through a network of more than 200 B2C and B2B distributors and operates an end-to-end value chain that spans conceptualization and development, production at a world-class blending plant, and distribution through a network of four regional distribution centres and eight warehouses. The company also fully owns and operates an LNG re-gasification terminal at Hazira, Surat. In addition, Shell India has also established an LNG truck-loading unit to supply natural gas to customers across the country. With a focus on digitisation and sustainable solutions, Shell is nurturing a vibrant ecosystem in India to accelerate energy innovation. Its initiatives include Shell E4 for startups, Shell Eco-marathon, investments in new energy companies like Husk Power, d.light, Orb Energy and Cleantech Solar, and the acquisition of renewables asset developers Solenergi Power Private Limited and the Sprng Energy group of companies. Shell also remains committed to positively contributing to the communities in which it operates through programmes like NXplorers, Access to Energy, Drive Safe, and Road Safety across India.

Visit our website www.shell.in and follow us on Twitter (@shell_India @makethefuture @shell_ecomar), LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram to know how it is redefining the energy space.

Enquiries

Shell India – Nishi Oswal: nishi.oswal@shell.com

Cautionary Note

The companies in which Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are separate legal entities. In this announcement, “Shell”, “Shell Group” and “Group” are sometimes used for convenience where references are made to Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general. Likewise, the words “we”, “us” and “our” are also used to refer to Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general or to those who work for them. These terms are also used where no useful purpose is served by identifying the particular entity or entities. ‘‘Subsidiaries’’, “Shell subsidiaries” and “Shell companies” as used in this announcement refer to entities over which Shell plc either directly or indirectly has control. Entities and unincorporated arrangements over which Shell has joint control are generally referred to as “joint ventures” and “joint operations”, respectively. “Joint ventures” and “joint operations” are collectively referred to as “joint arrangements”. Entities over which Shell has significant influence but neither control nor joint control are referred to as “associates”. The term “Shell interest” is used for convenience to indicate the direct and/or indirect ownership interest held by Shell in an entity or unincorporated joint arrangement, after exclusion of all third-party interest.

Forward-Looking Statements

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Shell’s net carbon intensity

Also, in this announcement we may refer to Shell’s “Net Carbon Intensity”, which includes Shell’s carbon emissions from the production of our energy products, our suppliers’ carbon emissions in supplying energy for that production and our customers’ carbon emissions associated with their use of the energy products we sell. Shell only controls its own emissions. The use of the term Shell’s “Net Carbon Intensity” is for convenience only and not intended to suggest these emissions are those of Shell plc or its subsidiaries.

Shell’s net-Zero Emissions Target

Shell’s operating plan, outlook and budgets are forecasted for a ten-year period and are updated every year. They reflect the current economic environment and what we can reasonably expect to see over the next ten years. Accordingly, they reflect our Scope 1, Scope 2 and Net Carbon Intensity (NCI) targets over the next ten years. However, Shell’s operating plans cannot reflect our 2050 net-zero emissions target and 2035 NCI target, as these targets are currently outside our planning period. In the future, as society moves towards net-zero emissions, we expect Shell’s operating plans to reflect this movement. However, if society is not net zero in 2050, as of today, there would be significant risk that Shell may not meet this target.

Forward Looking Non-GAAP measures

This announcement may contain certain forward-looking non-GAAP measures such as cash capital expenditure and divestments. We are unable to provide a reconciliation of these forward-looking Non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures because certain information needed to reconcile those Non-GAAP measures to the most comparable GAAP financial measures is dependent on future events some of which are outside the control of Shell, such as oil and gas prices, interest rates and exchange rates. Moreover, estimating such GAAP measures with the required precision necessary to provide a meaningful reconciliation is extremely difficult and could not be accomplished without unreasonable effort. Non-GAAP measures in respect of future periods which cannot be reconciled to the most comparable GAAP financial measure are calculated in a manner which is consistent with the accounting policies applied in Shell plc’s consolidated financial statements.

The contents of websites referred to in this announcement do not form part of this announcement.

We may have used certain terms, such as resources, in this announcement that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) strictly prohibits us from including in our filings with the SEC. Investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 20-F, File No 1-32575, available on the SEC website www.sec.gov.

Scenario Disclaimer

India transforming to a net-zero emissions energy system A call to action to 2030 Copyright of Shell International B.V. (Shell) and The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), August 2023.

In developing this scenario sketch, Shell and TERI have considered four decarbonisation scenarios for India: two based on the recently published Energy Security Scenarios (namely Sky 2050 and _Archipelagos) and two based on previously published Shell-TERI scenarios for India (namely Net-Zero and Towards net zero in the Shell Scenarios Sketch: India: Transforming to a net-zero emissions energy system, 2021). Of course, there are other possible paths for India to take towards a net-zero energy system – these depend on the technologies and policies the country prioritises. Shell believes different places and sectors will move towards net-zero emissions at different pace, and all should move as fast as possible for society to achieve the goal of the Paris Agreement. Shell’s scenarios are not intended to be projections or forecasts of the future. Shell’s scenarios, including the scenarios contained in this publication, are not Shell’s strategy or business plan.

Please read the full Disclaimer for this scenario at www.shell.in/india2030

About The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI):

The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) is an independent, multi-dimensional research organization with capabilities in policy research, technology development, and implementation. Headquartered in New Delhi, TERI has regional centres and campuses in Gurugram, Bengaluru, Guwahati, Mumbai, Panaji, and Nainital, supported by a multi-disciplinary team of scientists, sociologists, economists, engineers, administrative professionals and state-of-the-art infrastructure.

For details, contact:
Rumpa Banerjee – rumpa.banerjee@teri.res.in
Sumit Bansal - sumit.bansal@teri.res.in