Nitin Gadkari and RK Singh Inaugurated National Conclave on Energy Efficiency in MSME sector

Mr Nitin Gadkari, Union Minister for Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) and Road Transport & Highways and Mr RK Singh, Union Minister of State for Power and New & Renewable Energy (IC) and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship jointly inaugurated the National Conclave on Enhancing Energy Efficiency in MSME sector. The two-day Conclave is being organized by Bureau of Energy Efficiency(BEE) with participation from MSME entrepreneurs, Industry Associations, technology and service providers, sectoral energy experts and senior officials from the Government. Along with the Conclave, the Ministers also inaugurated an Exhibition displaying Energy Efficient Technologies for MSME Sector.

In his inaugural address, Shri Nitin Gadkari congratulated Power Minister Shri RK Singh for organisisng the Conclave and said the initiative will help MSMEs by taking this sector towards sustainable and green pathway. “Energy is the driving force for all the economic activities including MSME sector. Making efforts towards energy conservation and taking appropriate measures to mitigate carbon emissions is our key priority”, said the Minister. He also added that “Energy efficiency measures would reduce MSMEs’ power bills and make them competitive in the international market.” The Minister further said that the Government is committed to the development of MSMEs with an objective to transform the sector through green and sustainable initiatives towards high growth.

Speaking on the occasion, Shri R K Singh said that “Industrial energy demand in India has almost doubled in the last five years and it is expected to go up by over three times between 2012 and 2040. Therefore, adopting energy efficiency Initiatives and following best practices in this regard would be helpful in reducing the energy demand and strengthening energy security”

The Minister further said that upcoming New Tariff Policy proposes DBT (Direct Benefit Transfer) method for transfer of power subsidies and this would incentivize energy saving by consumers. He also stressed upon the need to make electricity prices rational for MSMEs. Towards this end, the New Tariff Policy provides a trajectory to reduce cross subsidies, he said. The Policy also has provision for providing open access in a time bound manner, the Minister told. ‘Your (MSMEs) energy consumption is huge, so the potential for savings is also huge. This potential need to be tapped’, said the Power Minister stressing that ‘We have to give a better world and cleaner environment to our future generations’.

Development Commissioner (MSME) stated that Indian MSME base is one of the largest in the world, after China. Apart from being instrumental in economic development and large scale employment provider, the sector holds its strength for on-demand manufacturing service, responsiveness to innovations, quick adoptions to changes and well established value added supply chain. He also credited Indian MSME sector with a pride in supporting ISRO for Chandrayaan 2, an ambitious space program of India. The space agency has already demonstrated partnering with MSMEs, sourcing quality component and services to support indigenous space programs/missions”.

The Ministers also released Energy Conservation Guidelines for MSMEs and launched the Knowledge Management Portal “SIDHIEE” under the BEE’s MSME Programme. This portal will host useful information including fifty videos of multimedia tutorials for MSMEs for early adoption of energy efficient technologies.

During the inaugural session, an MoU for enhancing energy security in MSMEs was also signed between the Development Commissioner, MSME and DG,Bureau of Energy Efficiency for developing a long term roadmap for enhancing energy efficiency and security for the MSME Sector through focused intervention. The MoU includes area of cooperation for comprehensive energy mapping of MSMEs on pan India, development of appropriate schemes and programs to improve energy security of MSMEs

It is expected that National Conclave on Enhancing Energy Efficiency in MSME sector will be useful in creating a platform for pooling the knowledge and synergising the efforts of various stakeholders. The delegates would deliberate strategies to promote energy efficiency while discussing the key issues like technical and financial capabilities of MSMEs, capacity building and awareness programme.

Director General, Bureau of Energy Efficiency, Shri Abhay Bakre informed that specially for MSME Sector, the Bureau has established energy management centers across India, developing more than 300 energy efficiency case studies and preparation of investment grade DPRs.  BEE has also implemented about 50 energy efficient technologies as pilot projects and periodically conducted nationwide awareness and capacity building workshops/training programs for various stakeholders, including support to 40 MSME units for adopting energy management systems as per ISO 50001 standards.

Shri Sanjiv Nandan Sahai, Additional Secretary, Power and Shri Rajpal, Economic Advisor, Ministry of Power also addressed the gatehring.