Page 55 - Policy Economic Report - Jan 2026

POLICY AND ECONOMIC REPORT
OIL & GAS MARKET

Speaking on market development, Dr. R K Malhotra, President, Hydrogen Association of India, emphasised
that India’s competitive renewable energy prices and emerging electrolyser manufacturing base are
creating a strong foundation for green hydrogen and ammonia scale-up.

Offering an international policy perspective, Han Feenstra, Senior Policy Advisor, Ministry of Economic
Affairs and Climate Policy, Kingdom of the Netherlands said that European hydrogen markets are shifting
toward demand mandates and import frameworks. He added that the development is opening long-term
opportunities for reliable partners like India, whose cost competitiveness and policy clarity make it a
natural contributor to Europe’s decarbonisation ambitions.

IEW 2026: Coal to Remain the Mainstay of Energy as India Looks to Triple Per Capita Energy
Consumption

Coal will continue to play a central role in India’s energy mix as the country works towards tripling its per
capita energy consumption on the path to Viksit Bharat 2047, said Shri Vikram Dev Dutt, Secretary,
Ministry of Coal, at a leadership panel on the third day of India Energy Week 2026. The event is being
organised in Goa from

Speaking at the session Coal’s evolving role in a secure energy mix: charting a balanced and pragmatic
approach on the Resilience Stage, the Secretary emphasised the need for realism in energy transition
debates.

“Coal is not going away in a hurry. For India, affordable and dependable baseload power is not a choice,
it is an imperative. The mantra is not ‘phase out’, it is ‘phase down’ in calibrated steps that reflect ground
realities,” he said. He added that coal underpins India’s development needs and will continue to do so
even as renewables scale up alongside climate commitments.

Highlighting the global perspective, Kyle Haustveit, Assistant Secretary for Hydrocarbons and Geothermal
Energy, U.S. Department of Energy, said coal remains critical for energy security worldwide.

“Coal powered the modern world and it is not going away. Reliable, affordable and secure energy matters,
and coal provides that stability, regardless of weather or market volatility,” he said. Haustveit highlighted
the strong potential for India–US collaboration in clean coal technologies, coal gasification, carbon
utilisation and trade in high-quality metallurgical coal.

From an industry standpoint, Shri B. Sairam, Chairman-cum-Managing Director, Coal India Limited, said
coal will act as a bridge and enabler in India’s transition. “India’s per capita energy consumption is barely
a third of developed economies. As this demand triples, coal will provide firm, dispatchable power while
renewables and storage mature,” he said. The Coal India CMD added that the higher domestic production
can reduce imports and save foreign exchange.

Panelists also highlighted emerging opportunities in coal gasification, coal-to-chemicals and clean coal
technologies. Secretary Dutt noted that government support, including viability gap funding and pilot
projects in surface and underground coal gasification, is accelerating adoption. He added that revenues
from coal can help fund green energy infrastructure, creating a balanced transition.

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