Iceland Wants to Assist India Develop Hydroelectric & Geothermal Renewable Energy

By Manu Sharma

Indian government has set a target  to have 100 GW solar power, 60 GW wind energy, 10 GW small hydro power, and 5 GW biomass-based power projects operational by March 2022. Since this a huge target to achieve, It’s time the Prime Minister Modi led government looks at getting technology expertise from advanced countries like Iceland to speed up the process.

Iceland is the world's largest electricity producer per capita. Ibsen says, “The presence of abundant electrical power due to Iceland's geothermal and hydroelectric energy sources has led to the growth of the manufacturing sector. We can assist India in building its renewable energy.”

By harnessing the abundant hydroelectric and geothermal power sources, Iceland's renewable energy industry provides close to 85% of all the nation's primary energy - proportionally more than any other country - with 99.9% of Iceland' electricity being generated from renewables.

The other major industries in Iceland include: fisheries and meat processing, food supplements, aluminum smelting, ferrosilicon production, tourism and services. “We don’t have a Free Trade Agreement in India yet but the negotiations are in progress. We have strong skills in food supplements like Omega3, cosmetics and mineral water technologies. The trade between Iceland and India presently amounts to about $70 million. 

"We were not focused on India so far but now are learning to deal with Indian businesses," he concludes.