India and UK are working closely on energy security: Grant Shapps

Panaji: India and the United Kingdom are working closely on energy security, a senior British government functionary said here on Friday.

Grant Shapps, UK's Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, told PTI that it was important for India, with its "tremendous ambition", to have energy security to realize its potential.

He was speaking on the sidelines of the G20 14th Clean Energy ministerial meeting and 8th Mission Innovation meeting in Goa.

He speaks to his Indian counterpart, Union Minister of Power and Renewable Energy R K Singh, on a regular basis, Shapps said.

“He (Singh) is coming to London as my guest next....We work very closely on energy security. It is important (for) India, with tremendous ambition, to reach its potential, it has to have security and supply of energy,” he said.

India has the advantage of scale, both geologically and in terms of the number of people, he said, adding, “this means the new markets, new ideas can be tested on vast scale in India.”

“The UK has advantage with the energy and particularly the transition. For example having built the world's largest offshore wind farm....There is lot to learn from each other in every direction,” Shapps said.

Both countries have to increasingly transition to green energy and are working together on a whole range of joint projects, the UK secretary said.

Earlier this week he welcomed Tata Group which has announced four billion dollar investment in a gigafactory for the production of electric car batteries in the UK, Shapps said, adding, “It is a massive investment.”

On G20 meetings, he said it was very important for the member countries to work together on energy security.