India, China, Indonesia, South Korea, Germany, and the UK are among countries that have been leveraging the renewable energy transition as a cornerstone of energy security, Simon Stiell, the UN Climate chief said on Thursday at opening of the COP31-International Energy Agency High-Level Energy Transition Dialogue.
Renewables offer safer, cheaper, cleaner energy that can’t be held captive by narrow shipping straits, or global conflicts, Stiell emphasised. “That’s why so many governments are pushing renewables plans into overdrive: to restore national security, economic stability, competitiveness, policy autonomy and basic sovereignty,” he added.
“China, India, Indonesia, South Korea, Germany, the UK, and more, have been clear that pushing forward with the renewables transition is a cornerstone of energy security,” Stiell said.
“War in the Middle East is taking a terrible human toll across the region. Civilians suffering. Lives torn apart. Economies stalling…the fossil fuel cost crisis now has its foot on the throat of the global economy, and stagflation on the march,” he said.
Ironically, the crisis is also driving a boom in renewable energy.
“Those who’ve fought to keep the world hooked on fossil fuels are inadvertently supercharging the global renewables boom. Last year, clean energy investment was set to be double that of fossil fuels. Solar generation was up 600 terawatt-hours in 2024, a colossal increase – though the transition remains uneven,” Stiell said.
The momentum should lead to a real shift, Stiell added, so that, when countries meet at COP33 in 2028 for the second Global Stocktake of climate action, they are closer to meeting the commitments made at the first.
Many developing countries want to embrace clean energy, and climate resilience. But major barriers, including lack of finance , are holding them back, Stiell noted.
“We must get finance flowing, rapidly. That includes delivering the New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG) for climate finance in full and on time, and making the roadmap to $1.3 trillion a reality,” he added.
HT reported on April 28 that India has flagged “mitigation ambition gap” by developed countries in its climate plan for the 2031-35 period submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, pointing out that achieving the targets laid out in this, for India and other developing countries, is contingent on the availability of adequate climate finance.
India ranks third globally in renewable energy installed capacity, after China and the US, according to Renewable Energy Statistics 2026. China has the highest renewable energy capacity at 2,258.02 GW, followed by the US at 467.92 GW and India at 250.52 GW. India is followed by Brazil with a capacity of 228.20 GW and Germany with 199.92 GW. As of March 31, a total of 283.46 GW of capacity from non-fossil fuel sources has been installed in the country. This includes 274.68 GW renewable energy (150.26 GW solar power, 56.09 GW wind power, 11.75 GW bioenergy, 5.17 GW small hydropower, 51.41 GW large hydropower) and 8.78 GW nuclear power capacity.
According to a report by International Institute for Sustainable Development released on Wednesday, subsidies for renewable energy reached ₹26,406 crore ($ 3 billion) in FY 2025 in India, with nearly half of this directed to decentralized solutions such as rooftop solar and farmer-led renewable energy systems. Support for electric vehicles also rose to ₹16,812 crore ($ 2 billion). Together, these shifts ease long-term fiscal pressures and strengthen energy security if supported by targeted policy and investment, IISD researchers said.
However, India’s clean energy subsidies currently still account for only about 10% of total energy subsidies in the country.
“The energy crisis is yet another opportunity for India to boost clean energy supplies. Strategic, targeted support that combines investments in decentralized renewables, clean cooking alternatives, and electric mobility strengthens India’s energy security and mitigates economic risk over time,” said Swasti Raizada, senior policy advisor at IISD.
India spent at least ₹4.3 lakh crore ($ 51 billion) on energy subsidies last financial year, 75% of which were consumption subsidies for electricity and LPG, IISD said.
“The recent tensions in the Gulf highlight India’s exposure to global LPG price volatility. If prices remain elevated at current levels, under-recoveries could exceed ₹60,000 crore ($ 7 billion) in FY 2026-27, increasing pressure on public finances. Scaling alternatives such as electric cooking and decentralized biogas, while better targeting LPG support, can improve affordability and reduce long-term fiscal risks,” said Sunil Mani, policy advisor at IISD.