US-based Environmental Defence Fund (EDF) on Friday launched a made-in-India open-source energy model, Indian Zero Carbon Energy Pathways (IDEEA), to help the country achieve carbon-neutral targets.

The energy model provides multiple options to a consumer to make energy consumption low carbon intensive.

Team EDF provided funding and technical support to the scientists and researchers at IISC, Bengaluru and Jadavpur University, Kolkata, who developed this model, EDF said in a statement.

"US-based Environmental Defence Fund (EDF) today launched a Made in India open-source energy model Indian Zero Carbon Energy Pathways (IDEEA)," it stated.

It explained that India’s energy system is transitioning from a conventional fuels-based power system to one where half of energy comes from renewable sources.

The transition has significant technical, economic, social, and environmental impacts, it noted.

Renewable energy has significant advantages but also comes with unique constraints like weather, land availability and lack of flexibility on when power generation can happen, and when it cannot, it pointed out.

The newly launched open source model will help address these complexities, it stated adding that this model is designed to aid in national and state level power planning of energy.

The IDEEA also aims to become a platform for open-source energy modelling.

"To better plan the transition and to manage a more dynamic system, a large-scale mathematical model that integrates the complex and multiple variables is a necessity.

There is a need for fit-for-purpose, open-source, and transparent models like IDEEA. There is also the need to significantly ramp up the number of energy modellers in India as it is such a gap in supply", said Prof Balachandra Patil, Chief Research Scientist, Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru in the statement.

The IISc and JU, along with EDF, are building modelling capacity within West Bengal and Karnataka while developing the tool, added Prof Patil.

"Open-source model IDEEA can suggest multiple options to a consumer to make the energy consumption low carbon intensive. If India must achieve its carbon-neutral targets government, and industry need to work together for a better future"' said Prof Joyashree Roy, Founder Advisor, Global Change Program – Jadavpur University who played a key role in the development of IDEEA model said.

Dilip Chenoy, Chairman of Bharat Web3 Association and Former Secretary General of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), said, "in the 1980s energy modelling began as energy audits and energy management mainly to overcome energy deficiency. The concept of energy efficiency for cost saving was then introduced." At present, models are required for energy planning, when we need to understand complex systems. Solar and wind are not round-the-clock power, and we can use modelling to understand the requirement of storage, he added.

Models need to be contextualized for India and the IDEEA model is a great foundation, and we need to have such kinds of models in all sectors like manufacturing and transport, he opined.

Hisham Mundol Chief Advisor for India to EDF, noted that As India steers towards a net-zero future by 2070, energy modelling is a vital tool to accelerate progress.

The 'Made in India' IDEEA model, addresses India’s unique challenges, offering actionable insights for sustainable energy and resource planning. The fact that it is transparent gives users the reassurance that decisions are made objectively." The IDEEA is a collaborative effort between the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru, and the Global Change Program at Jadavpur University (GCP-JU) in Kolkata, and the EDF, Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee hosted the IDEEA launch, with knowledge support from SusPoT – Centre for Sustainability.

The launch event also had workshops were over 40 economists and energy modellers from across the country, representatives from government, academia, research institutions, think tanks, and consultancies were present.

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