Asserting that the India-United States bilateral cooperation was on track, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Energy, Daniel. B. Poneman on Monday said there was no “inconsistency” in the Nuclear Suppliers' Group (NSG) guidelines. Mr. Poneman was interacting with the students of The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) here. He sought to allay fears that the group's recent decision to tighten enrichment and reprocessing (ENR) technology transfer norms was a “betrayal of sorts”.
“There is nothing new in this. There is no betrayal of sorts. That we have to be very clear about,” he said, adding that since its inception, the NSG had been dedicated to minimising those transfers which could lead to proliferation.
He said the U.S. was looking forward to entering the Indian nuclear market and the ratification of the U.N. Convention on Supplementary Compensation by New Delhi would allow U.S. companies full participation.
At a roundtable of the American Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM), Mr. Poneman said India's future economic growth was heavily dependent on breakthroughs in energy efficiency, tapping both renewable and conventional energy and better use of nuclear energy for civil purposes.
He said energy and related issues would occupy an important berth in the economic dialogue. Mr. Poneman was accompanied by U.S. Export-Import Bank chairman Fred Hochberg, Overseas Private Investment Corporation president Elizabeth Littlefield and Director of the U.S. Trade and Development Agency Leocadia Zak.
Mr. Poneman said the investment opportunities in the Indian energy sector had to be properly mapped. During the discussions, U.S. corporations pointed out that there should be a paradigm shift in the focus of the energy-related projects in India. Though they were employment-generating projects, greater stress had to be laid on their capital and technology requirement. Regulatory standards had to be laid down for green buildings, installation of roof-top solar equipment and pricing of bio-fuels.
