Appendix D – From the Australian Greens

The Greens believe that strengthening the relationship between Australia and India promises significant mutual benefits and opportunities.  Such opportunities are not only limited to economic or defence interests; as the world's largest democracy, with its diverse population and rich, ancient culture, Australia has a great deal to learn through exchange with India.   

The Greens additional comments relate to the Committee's brief reference to the issue of nuclear energy.  

The Committee's inquiry process yielded divergent opinions from experts on the likelihood of India fulfilling projections relating to its nuclear programme, which are reflected in the report (3.22 – 3.24). Immediately after the section dealing with nuclear energy, which notes India's low prospectively for major uranium deposits, the Committee comments that "Australia is well situated to capitalise on India's growing energy and resources needs." (para 3.25).  The Committee then notes that current policy with respect to uranium prohibits sales to India because it stands outside the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT). 

There are many good reasons for Australia to maintain the principled position of not selling uranium to India. 

The import of uranium will free up more of India's domestic uranium for its military nuclear weapons program.  Indeed, the former head of India's official National Security Advisory Board, K. Subrahmaniyam, is on record as arguing: "Given India's uranium ore crunch, it is to India's advantage to categorize as many power reactors as possible as civilian ones to be refueled by imported uranium and conserve our native uranium fuel for weapons-grade plutonium production." (cited in the Wall Street Journal, 10 July 2008, Opinion, Henry Sokolski) . Selling uranium to India is not viable given this reality, and Australia's renewed efforts towards a nuclear-weapon free world and strengthening of the global nuclear non-proliferation and disarmament regimes. 

Given India's vast population and growing middle class, and it's potential to make a significant contribution either to catastrophic climate change or a low carbon future, India should be supported to invest in technologies that limit greenhouse gas emissions rather than nuclear energy which is extremely carbon intensive in all but one phase of its cycle. 

Building more reactors won’t solve the emissions problem. India could reduce emissions more effectively simply by being more efficient. Even by the estimate of India’s own Bureau of Energy Efficiency, up to 20,000 megawatts per year—the projected equivalent of the country’s nuclear-power capacity for the year 2020—could be saved by increasing the efficiency of the production and use of energy forms already in existence.

Between 2002 to 2007 in India, 3,075 MW of renewable grid-tied power was planned, however, the actual capacity addition exceeded 6,000 MW by 2006. A large share of this was wind energy, which is expected to add more than 10,000 MW of additional capacity by 2012, followed by small hydro (1,400 MW), co-generation (1,200 MW) and biomass (500 MW).

According to the 11th New and Renewable Energy five-year plan proposed by the government of India, from 2008-2012 the renewable energy market in India will reach an estimated US $19 billion. Investments of US $15 billion will be required in order to add the approximately 15,000 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy to the present installed capacity. The government of India has planned a subsidy support system of approximately US $1 billion in government funds. This amounts to adding renewable energy capacity at 1 Watt per US $1, with potential subsidy support of US $0.07/Watt.

The Indian government has also set specific targets for renewable energy: by 2012 it expects renewable energy to contribute 10% of total power generation capacity and have a 4-5% share in the electricity mix. This implies that growth in renewable energy will occur at a much faster pace than traditional power generation, with renewables making up 20% of the 70,000 MW of total additional energy planned from 2008-2012.

As is evident from these projections, there are many more potential mutual benefits for cooperation between Australia and India in the renewable energy field.