Following the news that India has pledged to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2070;

George Monaghan, Thematic Analyst at GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company, offers his view:

“The third largest greenhouse gas emitter on earth declining to sign COP26’s coal pact and setting its net-zero goal 20 years later than scientists urge is not good enough. But the Western nations setting 2050 goals have already built their economies with huge fossil fuel use. The only solution both fair and practical is for the West to support renewable capacity expansion in India.

“Tolerating India’s fossil fuel use because its historic emissions are so much lower than those of other major economies is fair but not environmentally practical. Simply demanding 2050 net-zero of India is environmentally practical but not fair. The only fair and practical solution is one in which India sets a 2050 goal and the West use their resources to help India achieve it.

“The largest bottleneck in India’s path to net-zero is its lack of renewable energy capacity, so this is the best place for Western investment. India cannot sign the coal pact because it is too dependent on coal for energy. The West supporting renewable capacity expansion would enable India to accelerate its coal phase-out, thus resolving historic unfairness without massive emissions.”