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Even Under Capitalism, There is Hope for Climate Change Solutions
Vikram Singh Mehta reviews the book book Climate Capitalism: Winning the Global Race to Zero Emissions by Akshat Rathi.This is What’s Slowing Down the Clean Energy Transition
With Big Oil's 2050 forecast that places oil and gas at the centre of energy basket, it will be difficult, if not impossible, to achieve net-zero carbon emissions targetsUkraine War, Gaza Conflict and Middle East Strikes: It’s Time Businesses...
Vikram Singh Mehta advises businesses to integrate scenario planning into risk management processes to tackle political risk in an increasingly uncertain global context with upcoming elections in several countries.How the Psychology of Benjamin Netanyahu, Joe Biden and MBS is Driving Oil...
The dominant drivers of the crude oil market today are not the fundamentals of demand and supply, but the non-fundamentals, the psychology of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Joe Biden and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.The Self-Serving Overreach of Benjamin Netanyahu in Gaza
Democracy has the built-in check of electoral accountability. But that happens only every 4- 5 years. In the interim, leaders have considerable latitude to exercise power ostensibly for the purpose of ‘national security'.Current Green Transition Solutions Disregard Social and Political...
Institutions have to be built that facilitate global cooperation, skill development and technology transfer and also enable the mediation of the domestic and international conflicts that have been inevitably aroused.The Climate Crisis: What is the Global Way Out?
In the ‘era of global boiling’, challenge can only be met if we act in political, economic, financial concert, says Vikram Singh Mehta.Locate the Many Indias
Do not presume the business models that have worked for you elsewhere will be successful in India: Vikram Singh Mehta to potential investors.New Custodians of Corporate Governance
Private firms should fill the vacancies of independent directors with those who are younger, technically savvy, with domain knowledge to tackle future uncertainties, writes Vikram Singh Mehta.Why We Can’t ‘Pause’ AI
Mixed views on AI reflect the international community’s inability to look beyond narrow interests to address problems of global commons, writes Vikram Singh Mehta.India’s Fossil Fuel Lessons for Net Zero
As the transition to clean energy becomes imperative, India’s tryst with hydrocarbons can offer a roadmap of what not to do.What India, As President of G-20 and Architect of Credo of Non-violence,...
Is there not a threshold beyond which the severity of human suffering renders meaningless words like “political sovereignty”, “national security” and “territorial integrity”?Price Cap, Energy Geo-Politics
US petroleum firms have benefited the most from sanctions on Russia. Europe has been pushed into a relationship of energy dependency with the US.The Path to Decarbonisation in the Wake of the Russia-Ukraine Conflict
Against this international backdrop, India must pivot the needle of its energy compass towards short-term energy security and long-term decarbonisation. Irrespective of who is to blame for global warming, India cannot afford to develop first and clean up later.COP27: Joining the dots between Binsar and Sharm El-Sheikh
To resolve the environment-development conflict, begin with local initiatives that can be scaled-up and provided market access through support of government and collaborative linkages with corporates, NGOs and specialists, writes Vikram Singh Mehta.Natural Gas: The Bridge on India’s Path to Energy Atmanirbharta
India has a long way to go before it can fully wean itself off fossil fuels. During this transitional phase, gas producers should be granted unfettered marketing and pricing freedom.Towards A More Equal Society
Anchoring Change: lessons from seventy-five years of successful grassroots intervention.The Road to Energy Atmanirbharta
Leadership to balance short-term pressures of elections with longer-term imperatives of sustainability is needed, writes Vikram Singh Mehta.Naysayers are Wrong, India Does have Success Stories
Too many people believe that India cannot fulfil the promise of its founding fathers. There are stories and examples that show it is possible, writes Vikram Singh Mehta.After Ukraine, the New Energy Disorder
Vikram Singh Mehta writes: Ukraine war has disrupted old energy order. We cannot afford to continue with our existing siloed approachThe Ukraine Conflict has Raked up Old Dilemmas
Vikram S Mehta writes: Issues related to energy security, climate change mitigation have been brought to the forefront.Could S Jaishankar Don the Kissingerian Mantle?
If there were an India-led peacemaking initiative, Jaishankar might be the best qualified to crack the Ukrainian diplomatic impasse, writes Vikram Singh Mehta.“It is Pragmatic, Morally Defensible for India to Buy Crude Oil from...
It is the same energy security imperative that drove Europe’s decision to continue buying crude from Russia, says Vikram Mehta.Global Fuel Price Rise and How Should India Navigate The Oil Crisis |...
In an interview with India Today, Vikram Mehta shares his perspective on how India should navigate the oil crisis as prices continue to rise globally.Russia’s Ukraine Invasion; India Impact Of A ‘New Energy World...
In an interview with Strat News Global, Vikram Singh Mehta assesses the impact on India of gas, oil and financial sanctions on Russia after it invaded Ukraine, fuel prices, the repercussions on India and Russia’s energy assets in each other’s countries, and many more.How to handle impact of Ukrainian crisis on India’s energy sector
To deal with energy volatility, India must build reserves, revive conversations on pipeline with Iran, TurkmenistanCan India Push China off its Dominant Perch?
"A compass to navigate the geopolitical churn with China." Vikram Singh Mehta reviews "Rising To The China Challenge" by Gautam Bambawale, Vijay Kelkar, Raghunath Mashelkar, Ganesh Natarajan, Ajit Ranade and Ajay Shah.Preparing for a Green Energy Shift in 2022
The ‘irresistible force’ for clean energy has met the ‘immovable object’ of an embedded fossil fuel energy system. How can policies reconcile this paradox?Wanted: New leaders to tackle climate change challenge
COP 27 should be led by a collective of experts, who can accelerate the implementation of the action plan towards Net Zero, says Vikram Singh Mehta.Why India needs a Ministry of Energy
It would not alter the existing roles and responsibilities of the various ministries that oversee petroleum, coal, renewables and power, but would identify and handle all of the issues that currently fall between the cracks created by the existing structure.A Green Response to Natural Gas Price Shock
The price surge must be leveraged to improve energy efficiency, intensify demand conservation and intervene to prevent the switch to coal, among other measures.National Monetisation Pipeline Betrays Narrow Outlook
Private-public investment structures make sense, but they must be modeled to also generate social value. In today’s world, there are no shortcuts to sustainable development.Book Review | Betting on natural gas as a ‘clean’ fossil fuel
Bibek Bhattacharya reviews The Next Stop for Mint, focusing on natural gas' role in India's decarbonisation and its limitationsThe agenda for Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri
Hardeep Singh Puri should not see his responsibility through the siloed prism of oil and natural gas, Vikram Singh Mehta writes.The great leap to clean energy
Vivek Rae reviews The Next Stop: Natural Gas and India's Journey to a Clean Energy Future.There is still hope for a more compassionate, united world
There is still hope that binding commonalities of humanity – trust, compassion, friendship, conversation – can usher change.In the next big disruption post Covid, the world must act together
No single entity, whether government, corporate or civic society, has the tools to manage the fallout of a systemic disruption‘India needs one institutional mechanism for bringing all the bodies...
We also need reforms related to pricing, taxation, development of infrastructure, relationship between the Centre and state governments, and R&D, says Vikram Singh Mehta.Book Review | The Next Stop: Why gas is not just hot air
The Next Stop is a "rich and insightful" book where 38 industry insiders with experience in natural gas band together, says reviewIndia’s road to clean energy goes via natural gas
Decarbonisation is the endgame, but India must first ‘green’ its fossil fuel energy basket by increasing the share of natural gasThe Next Stop | How is natural gas pricing done in India?
A new book edited by Vikram Singh Mehta looks at different aspects of natural gas use in India, including policy changes and reforms in pricing.Is natural gas India’s best choice for moving away from coal and fossil...
An excerpt from ‘The Next Stop: Natural Gas and India’s Journey to a Clean Energy Future’, edited by Vikram Singh Mehta.GV Ramakrishna: A steward of petroleum
The former petroleum secretary, who passed away two weeks ago, placed oil and gas exploration in India on a sure footing, writes Vikram Singh Mehta.Road to decarbonisation: Govts must remove obstacles of poorly designed...
Decarbonisation has become a buzzword. To ensure it does not remain just that but translates into effective action on the ground, policymakers will have to build structures that reflect the woven, multidimensional, interdependent and interconnected nature of the energy ecosystem.Meenakshi Ahamed’s book shows why Indo-US ties have progressed despite...
The pace of the further development of relations will depend crucially on the quality, knowledge and influence of the people that President Biden appoints to his India desk.A new map for the end of Oil Age: Technology is answer to energy...
How should India, an economy dependent on fossil fuels, navigate future energy transitions? A new book has some pointers.Post-COVID, lack of social security has made many migrants consider...
A stark manifestation of the two-track development of our socio-economic polity is the ubiquitous spread of digital technology.Why Jagat Mehta would have seen Xi in the Mao mould, not Deng
I know my father would have advocated India find a diplomatic solution to the current imbroglio. But given his experience of Maoist China, he would have also urged that our velvet glove of diplomacy must now cover an iron fist of resolve.India 2024: A green India
India faces a variety of challenges related to energy and the environment. Here are several initiatives that the next government could contemplate early on in its term. Integrate Energy and Environmental Policy The various ministries currently engaged with energy and the environment should be collapsed into one omnibus Ministry of Energy and ...Budget 2018: Does the absence of energy from the finance minister’s...
I did not participate in the post-budget reflections on TV. I declined all invitations, in part, because it was not a novelty and in part because I knew that I would spend most of the time staring at the camera, mute and captive. I also declined because I acknowledged that I would ...India does not have the luxury to develop now and “clean up”...
New Year’s Day is an opportune occasion for reflection and re-emphasis. I summarise below 10 energy-related suggestions that I made last year, in part to remind and in part to influence the government’s agenda. One, the energy conundrum is how to square the circle between the government’s commitment to provide universal access ...Transitioning Towards a Sustainable Energy Future: Challenges and...
India sits at the nub of the crisis of the current high carbon model of development. It is not responsible for this crisis and it can legitimately argue that it must not bear the costs of adapting and mitigating its consequences. However, it cannot escape the reality that it is amongst the ...An uncertain energy future
The government faces a renewable energy trilemma. It has set itself a target of quadrupling the generation capacity of solar energy by 2022 and shifting the production of new automotive vehicles from the internal combustion model to electric vehicles (EV) by 2030. In parallel, it wants the clean energy industry to develop ...A patchy green – energy policy in India
Arvind Panagariya did not list the “draft national energy policy”, prepared by the Niti Aayog and circulated for comment on June 27, as one of the important achievements of his tenure as Deputy Chairman in the various interviews that I read, on the day he announced his resignation. Perhaps, because the document ...An energy warning and lessons
There is clarity and purpose in the management of our energy policy. Oil policy has been well defined and while it is difficult to attract private capital into exploration in today’s low oil price environment, there is no uncertainty regarding the government’s intent. The fiscal and contract terms are competitive and the ...Over The Barrel: A note to the class of 2017
I was in the US last week for Commencement Week when students receive their degrees. The tradition is to surround this occasion with speeches by luminaries, faculty and staff, and to have much revelry. As I have two daughters studying in the Boston region and one of them was graduating, I had ...Why is today’s oil market, a ‘no mans’ land?
The oil market has never been easy to call but these days it appears to be in “no man’s” land. Why is that the case? A few weeks back American Tomahawk missiles took out a Syrian airfield. The price of the North Sea Brent crude jumped up by 2% to $56.08/barrel, but ...Over The Barrel: Democrat’s dilemma
Thomas Jefferson wrote, “a government big enough to give you everything you want is also strong enough to take away everything you have “. Seen through a contemporary India-centric lens , this statement could read, “people want a strong government for development and stability but not so strong as to compromise their ...A sentinel’s censure
The latest collection of P. Chidambaram’s articles is an indictment of India’s evolution as a liberal democracy I was a panelist at a function in Mumbai recently to discuss P. Chidambaram’s latest book Fearless in Opposition: Power and Accountability. The book is a compilation of his weekly articles written in 2016 ...2016, the year of inflexion for the oil industry?
India hasn’t yet joined the global move towards clean energy. But for how long can it hold out? A large part of my working life was spent with the Shell Group and I accumulated shares in the company. Last year, I decided to reduce my holdings of these shares. This was because ...“Finance Minister is looking to present a budget against the...
Brookings India Chairman Vikram Singh Mehta speaks to journalist Karan Thapar on whether the Finance Minister should be cautious or bold in this year’s Fiscal Budget. How has demonetisation been viewed by foreign investors? Has it made India a more inviting destination or has it raised concerns and made them perhaps pause and ...Finding the sync: connecting the fragmented liberal and democratic...
Last year raised questions over relevance of liberal democratic processes, called for a review. 2016 has been a dramatic year. I am not sure about the others but the developments over the past year have made me reflect on four issues. The relevance of the current system and process of democratic politics ...To keep good company
There are many other questions, but the larger point is that the time may have come for a broad-based introspective review. Reams have been written on l’affaire Tata. I cannot add much more of substance. And I certainly do not wish to add grist to the mill of speculators. The reason I ...Over the barrel: A swadeshi index
World Bank rankings on ease of doing business ignore the complexity of the Indian landscape. An indigenous framework is needed. WAS IT A mistake for the prime minister to set his government the target of improving India’s rank order in the World Bank’s “ease of doing business” index from 131 to 50 ...How India reformed its petroleum sector
Political compulsions ensured that the process was done slowly, steadily and stealthily Indian newspapers have carried a series of interesting recollections by bureaucrats and technocrats of their involvement in the economic reform programme of 1991. None talked about the energy sector and, in particular, petroleum. This was understandable as their focus was ...Divided, volatile world ahead
Brexit could not have come at a worse time. The world is a risky place, and many problems can only be addressed through global institutions and international cooperation. On the face of it, Brexit will not materially impact the energy market and, in particular, the efforts to weaken the linkage between fossil ...India has done little to bridge energy supply-demand gap
India has done very little in the last few decades by way of harmonizing its governance structures to secure its energy needs despite a surging demand to fuel its growing economy, and the crisis may worsen in the coming years, Brookings India chairman Vikram Singh Mehta said at a policy discussion forum ...Indian economy set to soar irrespective of PM Narendra Modi’s...
The caveats are many. But there are compelling reasons to believe that the economy will slowly but surely pick up momentum writes Vikram Mehta There have been a spate of meetings to discuss two years of the Modi government and I have attended several of them. One question that has been asked ...India-US relations: Energy and environment
The energy market has undergone a major structural change since 2015. The most dramatic manifestations of this change are Saudi Arabia’s decision to forego the role of “swing producer,” the consequential drop in the price of oil, and the recent pronouncement in Saudi Arabia’s “Vision 2030″to reduce its dependence on petroleum. Underlying ...Sustainable development goals must be linked to energy and environment
Niti Aayog needs a sharp focus on weakening the link between energy demand and environmental degradation writes Vikram Mehta Niti Aayog has placed on the internet a 25-slide presentation entitled “Creating a movement for change”. It has set out a thematic roadmap for quintupling the GDP from the current $2 trillion to ...How Make in India can be bad news for trade deal with Australia
Brookings India Chairman Vikram S Mehta explains the reason for tensions over India’s trade and manufacturing policy. In a story in the Australian Financial Review on why Australia’s prospects of negotiating a trade agreement with India are being threatened by differences within the Indian government over how to implement Make in India, ...Budget fails to lay out a clear roadmap for petroleum industry
Petroleum industry is in terrible shape. Brookings India chairman and former CEO of Shell Vikram S Mehta details what the Finance Minister can do to put it back on track. I am one of the quick-fire commentators who complimented the finance minister on budget day for both affirming fiscal rectitude and addressing the ...“Withdrawal of sanctions on Iran a huge opportunity for India to...
Watch Vikram S Mehta on Macros with Mythili on ET Now. There’s been a dramatic collapse in the price of crude oil in recent weeks. Price of the Indian basket has more than halved since the Modi government took over in May 2014 – from 108 USD a barrel to just below ...Looking forward to a big bang budget
The global economy is in trouble, but India is attracting positive comment. The finance minister must make the most of the moment. The finance minster was sensibly measured in his response to the chatter in Davos that India is in a sweet spot. He accepted credit for the fact that India ranked ...End of the oil age
Oil will diminish in significance in a reconfigured energy system. Decades hence, 2015 might well be seen as the year the oil era entered the phase of terminal decline. For during this period, there was a convergence of action and sentiment against oil products and oil companies. The Paris summit on climate change ...Initiatives needed from India to reduce the import of oil
Recently, Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan spoke at the release of the IEA’s India Energy Outlook about cutting down of the country’s import dependence for domestic energy needs by 10 per cent by 2020-21. How can this be done? There are three initiatives that the government needs to take when it comes to ...Any progress on climate change will depend on innovation and global...
The climate-change relevant question is, how will the continuing compounded advance of technology impact the energy sector? How do we square this circle? On the one hand, the world has come together to tackle the threat of global warming. More than 150 countries have set out their intended nationally determined contributions (INDCs) ...Will oil remain the bulwark of global energy system in the long-term?
“The Future of Oil” is headed towards an interesting crossroad. The pathway will not be signposted; there will be many twists and turns. Oil is headed towards a future in which it will lose its pre-eminence in the energy landscape. Key Highlights: Over the next five years: Oil, along with coal and ...India Inc worried about rise of religious, social intolerance
Is India liberal, tolerant and democratic, or is it conservative, atavistic and authoritarian? Investors want to know Key highlights: It takes a long time to build a brand, but just one dissonant message to kill its appeal. The conversation today in academic circles, corporate boards and urban drawing rooms is not about ...Simplifying bureaucracy should be PM’s new mantra
The needle of change must be shifted more sharply, democracy is not an acceptable cover for non-performance. There is a telling vignette in Arun Maira’s interesting new book, An Upstart in Government. Maira was a member of the Planning Commission in the rank of minister of state between 2009 and 2014. A ...CSR: Corporates Should Reach out
India Inc can no longer limit its CSR involvement to the new Companies Act. It has to forge partnerships with the beneficiary community. Corporates have scrambled to meet their corporate social responsibility (CSR) obligations under the new Companies Act, 2013. This is not a surprise, as most companies have not regarded CSR ...The art of distraction
I recently returned to Delhi after several days at my home in Binsar. Binsar is a remote forest and wildlife sanctuary in the Kumaon hills. It is almost totally cut off. There is no electricity, and although some of us who can afford the upfront capital costs of solar have brought lighting ...A new energy
A year ago, I was requested to make recommendations on a 100-day action plan on energy for the new government. In response, I offered the following suggestions, which I hoped might define the roadmap for the following year. Steps should be taken to institutionalise the formulation of an integrated energy policy. The ...Big problem, small solution
Achhe din sparked hope. The black market bill, whilst laudable in intent, has, however, raised fears of reinvigorated “inspector raj”. The labyrinthine maze of bureaucratic approvals, the tax charge on Cairn petroleum, the abrogation of the winning bid by Jindals for two coal blocks on the charge of cartelisation, and the reluctance to allow the market freer rein have ...The Green Budget
This column first appeared in the Indian Express, on February 2, 2015. Like other products of the Brookings Institution India Center, this is intended to contribute to discussion and stimulate debate on important issues. The views are those of the author. In the aftermath of the Republic Day India-US summit and against the backdrop of ...Over the Barrel: Oilpolitik
This column first appeared in the Indian Express, on January 5, 2015. Like other products of the Brookings Institution India Center, this is intended to contribute to discussion and stimulate debate on important issues. The views are those of the author. A frequently asked but futile question is: Where are oil prices headed? The question ...Over the barrel: On oil, let’s play the ‘what-if’ game
This column first appeared in Indian Express, on November 3, 2014. Like other products of the Brookings Institution India Center, this is intended to contribute to discussion and stimulate debate on important issues. The views are those of the author. Now is the time for the government to ask the question, “What should we do ...Rhetoric signifying something
This column first appeared in the Indian Express, on October 6, 2014. Like other products of the Brookings Institution India Center, this is intended to contribute to discussion and stimulate debate on important issues. The views are those of the authors. Only the most churlish would argue that the prime minister’s visit to the US was ...Energy: A Solid Pillar upon which to Build India-U.S. Relations
In this India-U.S. Policy Memo, Vikram Singh Mehta emphasizes the importance of energy as a solid pillar for building and consolidating India-U.S. relations and identifies three ways in which the two countries can cooperate further.Good governance 101
The prime minister has hoisted his administration’s flag on the masthead of good governance. This is a welcome and timely objective. The question is, what does the prime minister mean by “good”? He campaigned on the slogan of “minimum government, maximum governance”. This would suggest that he equates “good” with “small”. There ...A story of the clean energy fund
The finance minister announced in his budget speech that he would enhance the resources of the “clean energy fund” by doubling the cess on coal production from Rs 50 per tonne to Rs 100 per tonne. This fund was set up in 2000 to incubate, encourage and develop innovation in clean energy. ...Why the FM must digress
By now, the budget proposals will have been finalised. The finance minister may make some last-minute changes, but these will not be substantive. The FM knows that his speech on July 10 will be closely heard and rigorously interpreted. He knows that as the first major economic statement by the government, investors ...Getting down to the energy business
This may be the right political moment to resolve the dilemmas surrounding the energy policy. Energy sits at the nub of every politician’s deepest dilemma. How to meet the demands of the electorate for affordable and reliable fuel without pushing government finances into a deep hole? In the specific context of India, ...Create department of energy in PMO
The new PM should pave the way for the introduction of a bill that lays out the road map for energy independence,security and sustainability The new prime minister should immediately give a speech on energy. It should emphasise the criticality of the energy crisis and articulate the government’s intent to develop a ...Looking beyond Modi win: Experts analyze NDA’s uphill task
CNBC-TV18’s Shereen Bhan and Latha Venkatesh caught up with some of the most influential voices in the country to get a sense of what is likely to happen as far as the economy is concerned, as far as the mood in the market is concerned and with key crucial reforms. Below is ...Believing in India again
It is a matter of confidence, credibility and trust. Whatever be the political hue of the next government and whoever its leader, the challenge will be to reinvigorate investor confidence in the political stewardship of the economy, restore the credibility of the executive and rebuild trust in the sanctity of policy and ...Why energy needs a big-picture view
The word “energy” is missing from the executive and legislative vocabulary. It is, of course, liberally used, and issues like “energy independence” and “energy security” are part of any official statement on economic policy. But it has not been officially defined. There is no national policy on energy endorsed or supported by ...Step on the gas
The government must make it easier for oil and gas companies to acquire assets abroad An important plank of India’s energy security policy is to build up a portfolio of international oil and gas assets. The government recognises that hydrocarbons are tradables and can be purchased in the open market. But given ...Dimming of brand India
We have messed up the present. Can we still recover the future? We are in the midst of a severe economic crisis. Our macroeconomic indices are weakening. The first quarter growth figure has come in at 4.4 per cent and some analysts are projecting a figure for FY 2013-14 of below 4 ...A fact check on gas
How the recent gas price hike got it right. ONGC, Reliance and Cairn, the three major oil and gas producers in the country, should make an earnest effort to bring politicians, bureaucrats and other opinion-makers to their producing fields in the offshore basins of Krishna Godavari, the desert of the Barmer district ...Reflections from Binsar
Talent, money and policy must be harnessed to search for the optimal development-environment balance The tragedy in Uttarakhand cannot be overstated. It is a tragedy of monumental proportions. For me, there is a personal dimension. I have a home in the forest sanctuary of Binsar which is 40 miles north of Almora. ...