11 - The Geopolitics of Energy in India: Implications for Southeast Asia

Summary

Introduction

Politically unstable and almost on the verge of default in 1991, India's minority government was forced to introduce economic reforms under the supervision of the then Finance Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh. The road has been treacherous and after about fifteen years the situation has radically changed. The economy, foreign exchange reserves, and energy demands are growing. However due to inherent limitations of coalition politics the successive governments have not been able to accelerate reforms in parliament. Coincidentally, Dr Manmohan Singh is Prime Minister of India since 2004. India, the home of over 1.1 billion people, has emerged as one of the economic giants in Asia in recent years.

India's Energy Policy is shaped by various ministries and departments such as Petroleum and Natural Gas, Power (State and Central), Coal, Atomic Energy Commission, New and Renewable Energy, Shipping and Transport, and Environment and the Planning Commission. The general observation is that these ministries and departments function quite independently, politically.

It is very time consuming for governments and organizations in Southeast Asia to deal with various ministries and departments. However, some would argue that knowing your niche area would help you deal directly with the respective ministry or department. Recently, the Prime Minister of India has formed a coordination committee to address these and related issues and to streamline policies, including investment policies, in various energy sectors.

Many experts have warned that unless India takes urgent measures for infrastructural developments, high economic growth is less likely to be sustainable in the long term. The energy sector is dominating infrastructural developments and one of the critical concerns for the government is the geopolitics of energy security. This chapter will focus on the geopolitics of energy in India and its implications for Southeast Asia.

ENERGY SECURITY

Energy security is understood and interpreted in different ways by planners, academics, and industries. According to R.S. Pathy, Energy Security deals with (a) guaranteeing fuel supplies at affordable prices;