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Foreign Capital Validation: $11.8 Billion Investment Surge Reflects Global Confidence

19Apr

By Newscript News NetworkNo Comments

News Update, Renewables

Foreign Capital Validation: $11.8 Billion Investment Surge Reflects Global Confidence

India’s renewable sector attracted $11.8 billion in H1 2025, the second-highest on record, showing strong global faith in India’s policy-driven growth model. This is anchored by government reforms—reverse auctions, renewable purchase obligations, and green bond frameworks—that have created predictable investment conditions. Utility-scale solar drew 77% of inflows, with equity typically covering 20–25% of project cost and debt syndicated through domestic and global banks. Investors secure 9–12% IRRs in rupee terms, with risks managed by currency hedging and multilateral guarantees. European utilities and Japanese trading houses led the surge. “India offers unmatched scale and policy stability,” said a Tokyo-based fund manager. These flows follow India’s record 59 GW renewable auction aw...

Market Leadership & Financial Performanc. Record Capacity Additions

19Apr

By Newscript News NetworkNo Comments

Energy Transition, Technology

Market Leadership & Financial Performanc. Record Capacity Additions

By Pallab Bhattacharya Newscript, August 16, 2025 India added a record 22 GW of renewable energy capacity in H1 2025, marking a 57% increase year-on-year. Solar dominated with 18.4 GW, followed by 3.5 GW of wind, underscoring India’s accelerating transition away from fossil fuels. Corporate participation was pivotal. Players like NTPC, Adani, ReNew, L&T, and InSolare delivered projects at scale, supported by policy tailwinds and robust investor appetite. Analysts say the record additions highlight a shift: renewables are no longer an aspirational segment but the backbone of India’s power sector growth. The pace also reflects global factors, including declining technology costs and heightened ESG capital flows. However, integration challenges—storage, transmission, and c...

India-US Tariffs Stand-off: Why Swadeshi 2.0 Can’t Wait

19Apr

By Newscript News NetworkNo Comments

Geopolitics, Opinion

India-US Tariffs Stand-off: Why Swadeshi 2.0 Can’t Wait

Newscript, August 11, 2025 By Pallab Bhattacharya Donald Trump’s latest tariff strike on Indian goods is less a trade adjustment than an economic ambush. An extra 25 percentage points, piled on top of existing duties, takes the levy to a bruising 50 per cent on most affected products. Officially, the justification is India’s continued purchase of Russian crude. Unofficially, it is about leverage — a show of power wrapped in the flag of America First. As Dr Ajit Ranade, economist and vice-chancellor of the Gokhale Institute, observes: “These are not pure trade measures. They are geopolitical tools aimed at forcing policy alignment.” The Alaska Distraction The Trump–Putin encounter in Alaska on 15 August will dominate the news cycle. If Trump can return from the meeting claiming “...

Blowout in Assam: How a Small Local Fumbled a High-Stakes Well, Exposing Systemic Governance Gaps

19Apr

By Newscript News NetworkNo Comments

Power

Blowout in Assam: How a Small Local Fumbled a High-Stakes Well, Exposing Systemic Governance Gaps

Since 12 June, villagers around ONGC’s Well RDS‑147A in Sivasagar have faced an escalating man-made crisis. A routine workover operation—the maintenance and re-entry into an ageing well—has devolved into an eight-day gas blowout, displacing over 350 families, and provoking growing allegations of corporate negligence and unanswered questions about ONGC’s contracting protocols. From Routine Maintenance to Environmental Hazard What began as a perforation “zone-transfer” workover by SK Petro Services Pvt Ltd spiraled when extreme pressure breached standard safety limits. Local residents reported hearing a deafening blast, followed by a low hiss that pervades the area to this day. State disaster teams and ONGC crisis units maintain that BOPs were functional and that they are deploying ...

Hydrogen revolution catapults India toward global clean energy superpower status

19Apr

By Newscript News NetworkNo Comments

Energy Transition, News Update, Renewables

Hydrogen revolution catapults India toward global clean energy superpower status

Government officials have outlined India’s national hydrogen mission as a transformative initiative that will establish the country as a global centre for hydrogen technology development, targeting both domestic energy transition requirements and emerging export opportunities in clean fuel markets. The comprehensive strategy encompasses production, storage, distribution, and application technologies across industrial and transportation sectors. The mission framework includes substantial public investment in research and development facilities, pilot project deployment, and manufacturing capacity creation for electrolysis equipment and fuel cell technologies. Industry partnerships with international technology providers are expected to accelerate domestic capability development whilst en...

Deep Holes, Deeper Silence: ONGC’s Lost Decade of Exploration

19Apr

By Newscript News NetworkNo Comments

News Update

Deep Holes, Deeper Silence: ONGC’s Lost Decade of Exploration

In the dim fluorescence of ONGC’s war rooms, maps of basins curl over boardroom tables like parchment from a forgotten empire. Wells are planned. Rigs are deployed. Drills bite through time and sediment. What emerges, often, is silence—expensive, unyielding silence. Over the past decade, ONGC has chased oil with the fervor of a state-sanctioned oracle. It has drilled across the western offshore, the depths of Krishna-Godavari, the quiet basins of Assam. It has spoken of sedimentary promise, of enhanced recovery, of integrated exploration. But between the seismic optimism and the actual production figures lies a trench of uncomfortable truth: ONGC has spent more money exploring than it has succeeded in discovering. From 2013 to 2024, more than ₹70,000 crore has been written off in the...

ACME Cleantech: Green Ammonia Sets Global Benchmark

19Apr

By Newscript News NetworkNo Comments

News Update, Renewables

ACME Cleantech: Green Ammonia Sets Global Benchmark

By Special Correspondent Newscript, August 18, 2025 ACME Cleantech has put India on the global clean-fuels map by securing the country’s lowest-ever price for green ammonia under SECI’s SIGHT scheme. At ₹55.75/kg ($641 per tonne), ACME’s winning bid sets a new global benchmark, significantly undercutting international averages that typically hover above $800 per tonne. The company has committed to supplying 75,000 tonnes annually for a decade, cementing its role as the most aggressive early mover in India’s green ammonia sector. The achievement is not just about price—it signals India’s intent to become a competitive exporter of green fuels. Backed by heavy investments, ACME has already built infrastructure in Oman and is planning further expansion across the Middle East and Indi...

19Apr

By Newscript News NetworkNo Comments

News Update

Energy Bulletin – India & Worldwide

By Team Newscript India Deepens Nuclear Ambitions with Private Sector Drive and SMR Expansion New Delhi — In a significant advancement of its clean‑energy strategy, India’s Power Minister Manohar L. Khattar and Minister of State for Atomic Energy Jitendra Singh convened on 9 August 2025 to review the roadmap for expanding nuclear energy from the current 8.8 GW to 22 GW by 2032 . A key development: the Bharat Small Modular Reactor (SMR) programme has garnered robust interest from industry, prompting the government to extend the Request for Proposal deadline to 30 September 2025 to accommodate wider participation This initiative signals a broader shift toward private‑sector integration in India’s nuclear ambitions—a strategic pivot designed to infuse capital, expedite approval cy...

Torrent Power: Gorakhpur Hydrogen Plant Marks New Phase

19Apr

By Newscript News NetworkNo Comments

News Update, Renewables

Torrent Power: Gorakhpur Hydrogen Plant Marks New Phase

By Special Correspondent Newscript, August 18, 2025 Torrent Power, traditionally known for distribution and generation in Gujarat, has made a significant leap into green hydrogen. The company recently inaugurated a green hydrogen plant in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh—one of the first industrial-scale private sector facilities of its kind in India. The plant, designed to supply hydrogen for industrial use and mobility, signals Torrent’s recognition that utilities cannot rely solely on fossil-heavy grids. By investing in green hydrogen early, Torrent aims to capture emerging demand in steel, fertilisers, and transport. “Hydrogen is no longer a distant bet; it’s a strategic hedge,” noted an industry consultant. Torrent’s entry into hydrogen differentiates it from peers like Tata Pow...

HPCL profits from slate agility and downstream efficiency

19Apr

By Newscript News NetworkNo Comments

ESG

HPCL profits from slate agility and downstream efficiency

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) surprised with a tenfold jump in quarterly profit to ₹4,371 crore, as marketing margins improved and throughput reached record highs. Visakh and Mumbai refineries together processed 6.66 million tonnes in Q1, operating above 109% utilisation. The company’s edge lies in crude-sourcing agility. Chairman Vikas Kaushal confirmed HPCL is actively scouting non-Russian barrels to cushion against narrowing discounts and sanctions. “Alternative crudes will be critical to hedge volatility,” he said, signalling a portfolio approach more typical of global traders than Indian PSUs. On operations, HPCL has invested in advanced process controls, waste heat recovery, and energy management systems. Fuel and loss were trimmed to 6.88%, a record low. Analysts ...