The UK and India have joined forces to accelerate the global clean energy transition to combat climate change and drive economic growth
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband recently travelled to New Delhi, highlighting the importance of the UK’s clean energy expertise in supporting India’s transition from fossil fuels to sustainable power sources.
India’s renewable energy efforts
During his visit, Miliband participated in India Energy Week, one of the world’s leading energy events. He met with British businesses that were already playing an important role in India’s clean energy sector. These companies use cutting-edge UK technologies, such as offshore wind, solar, battery storage, and hydrogen, to speed up India’s renewable energy efforts.
The UK companies featured at the event included Sherwood Power, Oomph EV, Flock Energy, and Venterra Group. Each of these businesses is contributing to India’s green energy future:
- Based in North Yorkshire, Sherwood Power has developed innovative energy storage technology that transforms excess renewable energy into compressed air and heat. This stored energy is then used during high-demand periods to generate electricity, helping reduce grid strain and customer costs.
- Oomph EV, based in Cambridge, designs mobile electric vehicle charging solutions. Their rapid charging systems aim to meet the growing demand for electric vehicles in India, with plans to manufacture these technologies locally.
- Flock Energy, a London-based company, is creating the digital infrastructure for the global energy transition. By using AI, Flock helps energy providers improve demand forecasting and energy efficiency, therefore supporting the global push for clean energy.
- Venterra Group, another London-based company, specialises in offshore wind services, offering technical expertise to streamline wind farm projects and reduce costs and risks associated with the renewable energy industry.
UK’s clean energy investment
India is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, and by 2035, it’s expected to become the fourth-largest global energy importer.
This rapid growth shows a good opportunity for the UK to improve its clean energy investments. India is one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, and by 2035, it is expected to become the fourth-largest global energy importer.
The UK and India also made significant progress in their energy partnership during the fourth UK-India Energy Dialogue, where both nations agreed on ambitious goals to accelerate offshore wind development. A new UK-India Offshore Wind Taskforce will focus on improving supply chains and financing models to drive forward the growth of offshore wind energy.
The two countries pledged to reform India’s power sector to support decarbonisation efforts. Through the UK’s Partnership on Clean Energy Transition (UKPACT), both countries aim to deliver grid transformation and expand renewable energy resources in India.
As part of the ongoing collaboration, the UK and India also extended their ASPIRE program, which is focused on delivering reliable, round-the-clock power supply, accelerating industrial decarbonisation, and rolling out renewable energy solutions across India.
These actions are part of wider efforts to address the climate emergency and create new economic opportunities.
The UK and India’s strengthened partnership will also be vital in upcoming Free Trade Agreement negotiations, expected to conclude later this year. This agreement will boost trade in renewable technologies, materials, and sustainable energy, contributing to both countries’ green economy goals.
With COP30 on the horizon in Brazil later this year, the UK and India are aligning their efforts to advocate for ambitious global climate action.
