IndianOil, India's largest fuel refiner and retailer, has resolved to achieve net-zero operational emissions by the year 2046. IndianOil’s decarbonization plans encompass both Scope 1 & 2 emissions. Shrikant Madhav Vaidya, Chairman, IndianOil, made the announcement during the Company’s 63rd Annual General Meeting, held today. The year 2046 coincides with India completing 99 years of independence and the celebration of its 100th Independence Day.

According to Reuters, the company plans to invest more than $25 B to achieve net-zero emissions from its operations by 2046, its chairman S. M. Vaidya said at an annual shareholder meeting on Thursday. India, one of the world's biggest greenhouse gas emitters, is aiming to reach net-zero emissions for the country by 2070.

This historic declaration by the country’s energy major, aligns with India's net zero commitment by 2070 announced as part of the Panchamrit goals by the Hon'ble Prime Minister at the COP-26 Summit last year.

S M Vaidya, Chairman, IndianOil, said, "As we embark on the net-zero journey in the right earnest, we already have a well-crafted blueprint in place. It adopts a multi-pronged approach to take us gradually towards the net zero destination. We have envisaged that an investment of over Rs. 2 lakh crore will be required to achieve the target by the year 2046. IndianOil has been pursuing a robust green agenda for some time now, to steer the country’s green energy transition. So, we are already working on several emission mitigation pathways like green hydrogen, biofuels, renewables, carbon offsetting through ecosystem restoration and carbon capture utilization and storage (CCUS), among others."

Sharing details on IndianOil's net zero strategy, Mr Vaidya added, "IndianOil plans to achieve two-thirds of emission reduction through energy efficiency, electrification and fuel replacement efforts, while about a third of the total emission would be mitigated through options such as CCUS, nature-based solutions and purchase of carbon credits."

Currently, IndianOil's greenhouse gas emissions, emanating majorly from the company’s refining operations, stands around 21.5 MMtpy of CO₂e. Out of the total emissions, 96% are on account of processes like direct fuel burning for deriving energy from heat, steam, electricity and cooling, that are part of operations. These constitute the Scope-1 emissions. The balance 4% are on account of sourcing electricity from the grid which constitutes Scope-2 emissions.

To cut emissions, IOC plans to use renewable energy to fuel its capacity expansion and is setting up green H₂ plants at its Panipat and Mathura refineries, according to Reuters.

IOC plans for green H₂ to account for about 5% of its overall H₂ output by 2027-28 and 10% by 2029-30.

Vaidya also said IOC will have electric vehicle charging facilities at 10,000 fuel stations in two years.

To learn more about India's decarbonization plans, click here: https://h2-tech.com/podcasts/2022/08/regional-report-india-india-s-efforts-towards-global-carbon-neutrality/