The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) has released the report of the Expert Committee on Energy Statistics, constituted under the chairmanship of Dr. Rangan Banerjee, Director of IIT-Delhi. The committee, comprising representatives from energy ministries and research institutions including TERI and AEEE, conducted a comprehensive review of India's energy statistics database to support evidence-based policymaking and monitor the country's energy transition toward renewable targets and Net Zero aspirations.
The committee's key recommendations focus on adopting international standards for energy statistics collection and dissemination, specifically aligning with International Standard Industrial Classification (ISIC) Rev. 5, National Industrial Classification (NIC)-2025, and Standards International Energy-product Classification (SIEC). A critical recommendation emphasizes the need for all energy ministries to adopt uniform conversion factors to ensure inter-ministerial consistency in energy statistics.
Methodological recommendations address significant data gaps, including a framework for capturing the contribution of biofuels to India's energy consumption, which the United Nations Statistical Division currently estimates at 31-34% of total annual energy consumption without consolidated national data. The committee also proposed methodologies for refining sectoral end-use consumption data for imported coal (approximately 20% of total coal consumption) and domestic coal routed via auction, utilizing the Annual Survey of Industries (ASI) database.
Additional recommendations include using ASI data to capture industry-wise end-use electricity consumption and developing initial methodological frameworks for two significant data gaps: electricity consumption via captive/off-grid mode and electricity consumption by electric vehicles (EVs) in India. The committee recommended that the Bureau of Energy Efficiency develop and maintain a comprehensive database under the Perform, Achieve and Trade (PAT) scheme.
The report emphasizes that effective implementation requires continued collaboration among concerned ministries and stakeholders to build an integrated, reliable, and internationally comparable energy statistics framework for India.