As India strives to become a developed economy by 2047, the International Energy Agency (IEA)'s World Energy Outlook, released on Wednesday, predicts that India will become the world's third-largest electricity consumer by 2050, thanks to above 4% annual demand increase in all scenarios.

According to the yearly study, India's daily variability in electricity consumption reached 15% in 2023 and is expected to nearly triple by 2050. Cooling will become the most important driver of daily demand variability, however increased appliance ownership and the use of EVs will also have an impact. However, China and the United States will have more electrical demand than India by 2050.

According to the IEA, demand for air conditioning in India will drive growth snce more people will be able to buy it as their salaries rise. The similar pattern is anticipated to apply to all emerging markets and developing economies (EMDEs). Electricity consumption growth in EMDEs will be driven primarily by the affordability of residential appliances as wages rise and industrial activity expands, according to the IEA. 

Based on current policy settings, the paper predicts that the globe will enter a new energy market scenario in the next few years, distinguished by persistent geopolitical risks as well as a reasonably abundant supply of different fuels and technologies.

This includes an overhang of oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies coming into view in the second half of the 2020s, as well as a substantial surplus of production capacity for some critical clean energy technologies, particularly solar PV and batteries, according to the International Energy Agency.

"We've witnessed the Age of Coal and the Age of Oil - and we're now moving at speed into the Age of Electricity," claimed the news organization. This will shape the global energy system in the future, with a greater emphasis on clean electricity sources, it stated.

Coal is expected to continue to play an important role in India's energy mix for the foreseeable future. By 2030, about 60GW of coal-fired capacity will be installed net of retirements, while coal-generated power will increase by more than 15%. Furthermore, coal has played a significant role in satisfying industry energy demand, accounting for 40% of its energy needs in 2023. By 2035, coal consumption in industry will have increased by 50%, with its proportion of overall industry demand maintaining at current levels, it noted.