Decarbonising Industry: How Waste-to-Energy Can Drive India’s Net Zero Ambitions

India stands at a crucial point in its journey to net-zero emissions, and waste-to-energy conversion is key to the decarbonisation puzzle. Transforming industrial and municipal waste into a renewable source of energy can mitigate methane risks, support cleaner cities, and ensure a stable electricity supply.

December 09, 2025. By News Bureau

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Decarbonising Industry

Ethanol Blended Petrol

Waste-to-Energy

Waste from factories, and municipalities, for long, has followed a linear pathway – a quiet exit out the back door and straight to the dumpsite. Heaps and heaps of organic waste just ended up occupying the land and choking the water bodies. At this time when India strives to electrify the nation while accelerating the transition to renewable energy, these organic wastes could be the key to advancing our effort to meet the emission goals by 2070.

Biofuels: The Fuel of the Future

Indian cities generate more than 62 million tonnes of municipal solid waste annually, a figure expected to reach a staggering 400 million tonnes per year by 2050. Waste would become a major crisis if we fail to use it efficiently and innovatively. More waste would mean increased methane released, higher greenhouse gas emissions, and greater pollution. It would eventually threaten the quality of our soil, water, and air. By turning waste into biofuels, we would not just be preserving our ecosystem; we would be actively taking charge of our future.

Biofuels produce lower emissions when burned compared to traditional non-renewable counterparts like coal, oil, and natural gas. Some advanced biofuels derived from waste biomass, agricultural residues, or by combining biofuel production with technologies like carbon capture and storage (CCS) can even achieve net-negative emissions.

In hard-to-abate sectors like aviation, shipping, and heavy-duty transport, biofuels offer a critical pathway for reducing emissions. Considering that they can be used with existing infrastructure as a lower-carbon alternative to fossil fuels, they are an immediate and practical solution to decarbonise. All these factors make biofuels not only a sustainable alternative to fossil fuels but also a crucial key to India’s net-zero goal.

International Energy Agency (IEA) data suggest that the demand for biofuels in the global energy mix is surging, which is a wake-up call for India to scale up its ecosystem. Biofuels could account for up to 10 percent of global energy demand by 2050, and India, with its vast agrarian economy, could position itself as a global leader in the biofuel transition before the window of opportunity closes.

Overcoming Bottlenecks to Speed Up the Waste-to-Energy Revolution

Ministry of New and Renewable Energy data suggest that India's urban and industrial organic waste has an estimated energy generation potential of about 5,690 MW. These data highlight the potential of India to lead the biofuel revolution, provided we overcome the existing bottlenecks.

While the government has introduced the Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme to promote the use of alternative and environmentally friendly fuels, there is a need to streamline policies, provide tax breaks and incentives, and issue clear guidelines to attract private-sector participation. Many industries currently invest in industrial waste treatment solutions merely to meet regulatory compliance. Providing them with tax benefits and incentives in waste-to-energy initiatives would encourage them to take further steps forward.

We also need to invest in technologies and R&D facilities to enhance waste-to-energy conversion processes and improve energy recovery rates. At present, inefficiencies in waste sorting, pre-treatment, and conversion technologies also lead to higher operational and maintenance costs, while reducing the overall energy yield. Investing in the development of advanced technologies such as automated segregation systems, high-efficiency digesters, and improved thermal conversion techniques can help optimise resources and boost plant performance.

India stands at a crucial point in its journey to net-zero emissions, and waste-to-energy conversion is key to the decarbonisation puzzle. Transforming industrial and municipal waste into a renewable source of energy can mitigate methane risks, support cleaner cities, and ensure a stable electricity supply. Today’s waste becomes tomorrow’s clean energy if we handle and process it meticulously.

- Sunil Rajan, CEO, WOG Technologies