World Solar Technology Summit to see 26k participants from 149 nations

More than 26,000 participants from 149 countries have registered to join the first World Solar Technology Summit (WSTS) organised by the International Solar Alliance (ISA).

New Delhi: Around 26,000 participants from 149 countries are scheduled to take part virtually in the first World Solar Technology Summit on Tuesday, an official statement said.

The event will see inking of four partnership agreements, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) said in the statement.

An international journal on solar technology will also be launched on the occasion.

The first World Solar Technology Summit (WSTS) is being organised by the International Solar Alliance (ISA).

More than 26,000 participants from 149 countries have registered to join the virtual summit which is expected to bring the spotlight on accelerating affordable and sustainable clean energy by showcasing and deliberating on innovative next generation technologies in solar power.

New and Renewable Energy Minister R K Singh, who is also president of the ISA Assembly, and Barbara Pompili, the co-president of the ISA Assembly and France's Minister for Ecological Transition, will be joined by the vice presidents of ISA from Africa, Asia Pacific and the Latin American and Caribbean Region (LAC) during the inaugural address.

K Vijay Raghavan, principal scientific adviser to the Government of India, will grace the inaugural and set the context for the deliberations.

Ministers from several ISA member countries will be joined by senior officials, representatives of diplomatic missions, business and industry leaders, civil society leaders and others at the event, the statement said.

M Stanley Whittingham, winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry (jointly with John B Goodenough and Akira Yoshino) in 2019 for lithium ion batteries will deliver the keynote address in the inaugural.

India's Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas, Dharmendra Pradhan will also address the inaugural.

The inaugural will witness the rolling of an action-packed agenda with the conclusion and announcement of agreements between ISA and International Institute of Refrigeration, a second with Global Green Growth Institute and a third pact with National Thermal Power Corporation, it said.

A tripartite agreement between MNRE, the World Bank and ISA is also set to be inked.

The Global CEOs session which follows the inaugural will see a moderated discussion between the heads of the world's largest corporations that contribute greatly towards the promotion of solar energy integration with other renewables and storage for sustainable energy solutions.

It will be followed by four technical sessions.

The valedictory session will be attended by representatives of the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the International Energy Agency (IEA).

Railway and Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan will deliver the chief guest and valedictory address respectively, it added.

The Prime Minister's Sherpa to the G7 and G20, Suresh Prabhu will also send a message to the summit, the statement said.

(PTI Report)