India's Energy Insecurity and Its Impact on Food Security

The current conflict in West Asia highlights India's deep energy insecurity, which significantly affects food security. Since the Green Revolution, India has become heavily reliant on urea for nitrogen, essential for crop yields.

Dependency on Urea

• Urea Consumption:
  • Urea accounts for 56% of all fertilizers consumed in India.
  • It constitutes nearly 80% of all nitrogenous fertilizers.
  • Over 80% of domestic urea production relies on imported natural gas.
  • More than 20% of total urea consumption is imported.
  • Thus, nearly 90% of urea consumption is import-dependent.
• Fiscal Burden: The urea subsidy increased from less than Rs 500 crore in 1980–81 to Rs 1.65 lakh crore in 2022–23.

Potential Solutions

• Urea Production Process:
  • Current process involves producing ammonia from hydrogen and nitrogen, and reacting it with CO2.
  • Hydrogen and CO2 are derived from natural gas, and nitrogen is drawn from the atmosphere.
• Green Urea Technology:
  • Hydrogen can be produced from water through electrolysis.
  • Carbon capture and utilization (CCU) is used to recover CO2 from flue gas.
  • These technologies enable urea production using electricity, potentially powered by renewables to create "green urea."

Economic Viability of Green Urea

• Cost Analysis:
  • By 2028, green urea could be cost-effective for new plants.
  • By 2030, costs could be 20% lower than grey urea, widening to 100% by 2050.
  • Average levelised cost of green urea (2025-2050): $475 per tonne versus $540 for grey urea.
  • Current global market price of grey urea: $600 per tonne.

Government Initiatives and Recommendations

• National Green Hydrogen Mission: Focuses on exporting green ammonia.
• Carbon Capture Program: Rs 20,000 crore earmarked for CO2 supply to urea plants.
• Proposed Green Urea Mission:
  • Transition urea manufacturing to green hydrogen.
  • Optimize urea consumption and rebalance fertilizer mix.

Potential Benefits by 2040

• 90% urea production using green hydrogen.
• 30% of farming area under non-chemical farming.
• 30% improvement in nitrogen use efficiency.
• 30% reduction in urea proportion in nitrogenous fertilizers.
• Eliminate urea imports, reduce subsidies by 65%, and decrease GHG emissions by over 60%.
• Cumulative benefit value could exceed Rs 1 trillion over 25 years.

Conclusion

Structural reforms are necessary for the heavily regulated urea sector, which currently lacks innovation incentives. A phased decontrol, encouraging market competition, is essential. The Green Urea Mission represents a pathway to self-reliance with compelling economics and available technology, addressing environmental imperatives.