If we treat climate as business opportunity, we can find ways to grow: CEEW’s new CEO

James Abraham is an entrepreneur, strategist, and institution builder focused on energy, technology, and climate. He helped build India’s early solar industry and has worked across business, policy, and climate finance. His appointment gives CEEW a leader with experience turning climate ideas into commercial and institutional action.

Abraham was a founding partner of the Boston Consulting Group in India from 1998 to 2009. He later co-founded SolarArise, which developed utility-scale solar plants and helped make solar cheaper than coal. In 2023, he founded Mynzo Carbon, using satellite data and artificial intelligence to monitor nature-based investments.

He became CEEW’s new CEO in August, replacing founder Arunabha Ghosh. Abraham now wants India to publicise its climate leadership, build coalitions with developing countries, and treat the green transition as a pathway compatible with economic growth. His background connects CEEW’s research with business and implementation.

COP31 is the 31st Conference of the Parties to the UN climate process. It brings countries together to review climate commitments, negotiate support, and coordinate action. For India, the meeting is a platform to show its own progress while pressing richer countries on fairness, finance, and responsibility.

India wants to persist with its demand for the Loss and Damage Fund. This fund concerns support for countries facing climate harms. India also plans to raise injustice, inequity, and Common but Differentiated Responsibilities, or CBDR. CBDR means countries share responsibility, but their obligations reflect different histories and capacities.

Abraham says India should transparently execute its commitments and offer a Made in India pathway to decarbonise without sacrificing development. He also supports coalitions outside the formal UN process. India has led eight cooperative climate initiatives, while the International Solar Alliance offers another model for countries to learn together.

An NDC, or nationally determined contribution, is a country’s climate action commitment under the global climate framework. It sets targets for reducing emissions, expanding clean energy, or improving carbon removal. India’s target focuses on emissions intensity, which compares greenhouse-gas emissions with the size of the economy.

A 45% reduction means India aims to produce 45% fewer emissions for each unit of GDP by 2030, compared with its chosen baseline. The economy can therefore continue expanding while emissions intensity falls. This differs from promising a 45% cut in total national emissions, which the article does not describe.

CEEW’s analysis says India is on track to exceed this 2030 NDC target. Abraham says the Global Stocktake is an opportunity to demonstrate that progress and encourage other countries to increase their ambition. India’s task is to execute its existing commitments transparently before setting new ones.

The excerpt does not provide a current figure for India’s non-fossil electricity capacity, so no exact “now” number can be taken from it. Non-fossil capacity includes electricity generation that does not burn coal, oil, or gas, such as solar, wind, hydro, and nuclear power. Capacity measures potential output, not electricity produced at every moment.

A 500–600 gigawatt target would represent a much larger clean-power system. It could help meet growing electricity demand, replace some fossil generation, and provide enough supply when solar or wind output is weak. Solar and wind are variable, so installed capacity must exceed average demand unless storage, flexible generation, or stronger grids balance it.

The article only says India is gradually expanding renewable capacity and faces curtailment. It does not establish the 500–600 gigawatt estimate or identify a date for it. Any precise current capacity figure therefore requires a source beyond this excerpt.

Curtailment occurs when grid operators tell a renewable plant to produce less than it could technically generate. The power is not necessarily unavailable; the system cannot safely use or move it at that time. This is especially important for solar and wind because their output changes with sunlight and weather.

For example, a sunny afternoon may bring abundant solar electricity to a region with limited transmission or low demand. Operators may cut solar output to avoid overloading lines or destabilising the grid. Similar problems can occur when wind generation is high but other plants, storage systems, or connections cannot adjust quickly enough.

Adding panels and turbines alone does not guarantee more electricity reaching consumers. India’s article context identifies curtailment as a major issue while renewable capacity expands. The practical answer involves stronger transmission, better forecasting, storage, flexible demand, and power markets that can shift electricity across time and regions.

When a grid cannot absorb or dispatch renewable electricity, operators reduce the plant’s output or disconnect it temporarily. This protects system reliability by preventing overloaded transmission lines, excess supply, or unstable frequency. The electricity that could have been produced is then lost rather than delivered to consumers.

Suppose strong sunshine creates more solar power than a local network can carry. The grid may curtail nearby solar plants, even if their panels are working normally. Consumers may still receive electricity from coal, gas, hydro, storage, or another region. Without storage or sufficient transmission, clean generation cannot automatically replace that supply.

Curtailment lowers the useful output of renewable assets and can weaken their financial returns. It also means new capacity may deliver less climate benefit than its nameplate rating suggests. The article flags curtailment as a major Indian challenge, so future progress depends on grids, storage, flexibility, and coordinated dispatch.

Emissions intensity measures pollution relative to economic output. It falls when a country produces the same amount of goods and services with fewer emissions, or grows faster than its emissions. This allows economic activity and electricity demand to rise while the economy becomes less carbon-intensive.

India’s pathway combines cleaner electricity, more efficient technology, and better use of energy. Solar and wind can replace some fossil generation, while efficient buildings, factories, appliances, and transport can reduce energy needed for each unit of output. The key mechanism is changing the carbon content and efficiency of growth, not stopping growth itself.

The article says CEEW expects India to exceed its 2030 target of reducing GDP emissions intensity by 45%. Abraham argues India can decarbonise without compromising development. Continued progress will require transparent delivery of existing commitments, stronger renewable integration, and cooperation suited to India’s local circumstances.