India’s Gas Crisis Exposes Industrial Risks as Solar Electric Heat Turns Cheaper: UC Berkeley–Energy Innovation Report

VoM News Desk | April 29, 2026 | 10:23 AM IST | Energy, Featured by VoM, India |
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India’s Gas Crisis Exposes Industrial Risks as Solar Electric Heat Turns Cheaper: UC Berkeley–Energy Innovation Report

Berkeley, CA [April 28th 2026]: India’s Gas Crisis Exposes Industrial Vulnerability: New UC Berkeley – Energy Innovation Report Finds Solar-Powered Electric Heat Already Cheaper Than Fossil Fuels

A new report by the India Energy and Climate Center (IECC) at the University of California, Berkeley and Energy Innovation finds that India’s industrial sector can cut costs and reduce exposure to volatile global fuel markets by shifting from fossil fuels to solar powered electric heat.

The report comes at a moment of rising concern for Indian industry. As global gas and oil prices surge due to geopolitical tensions, manufacturers that rely on imported fuels are facing sharp increases in operating costs. The report argues that this volatility is not temporary, but a structural risk tied to dependence on globally traded fossil fuels.

In contrast, India now has access to some of the lowest-cost solar power in the world. When combined with a new generation of electric heating technologies, this creates a fundamentally different pathway for industry, one that is both lower cost and more resilient.

The report shows that solar-powered electric heat is already cheaper than oil and natural gas across industrial applications, and in many cases, cheaper than coal. This cost advantage is driven not just by low electricity prices, but by the efficiency of electric technologies themselves.

At the center of this shift are industrial heat pumps. Unlike conventional systems that burn fuel to generate heat, heat pumps move heat using electricity and can deliver multiple units of heat for each unit of energy consumed. This makes them particularly effective for low and medium-temperature processes that dominate sectors such as food processing, textiles, and chemicals. When powered by low-cost solar, they reduce both energy consumption and operating costs.

For higher temperature processes, the report highlights the role of thermal batteries. These systems store solar electricity as heat in low-cost materials and deliver it on demand. Because they store heat directly rather than electricity, they can provide continuous industrial heat without relying on expensive battery storage. This allows industries to use cheap daytime solar power to run around the clock operations, even in energy intensive applications.

“Electric heat powered by cheap solar energy is the best way for India’s industrial sector to protect itself from volatile fossil fuel markets,” said Sonali Deshpande of Energy Innovation. “Running manufacturing processes on abundant domestic solar is already cheaper than relying on expensive oil and gas imports from other countries, and even cheaper than domestic coal in many cases.”

The report finds that electrifying industrial heat can reduce total industrial energy use by more than 20 percent and cut over half of carbon dioxide emissions when powered by clean electricity. It also delivers major reductions in air pollution, with significant public health benefits.

Together, heat pumps, thermal batteries, and other electric technologies can meet nearly the full range of industrial heat demand, from low temperature steam to very high temperature processes. This makes large scale electrification not just a long term climate solution, but an immediate economic opportunity.

“India’s industrial sector is at an inflection point,” said Amol Phadke, co author of the report and faculty at the University of California, Berkeley. “With some of the lowest solar costs in the world, India can build manufacturing that is globally competitive, less exposed to fuel price shocks, and significantly cleaner.”

The report concludes that policy should focus on streamlining open access and group captive rules, enabling industrial clusters to procure low cost clean power at scale, and supporting early projects that demonstrate reliability and cost savings. At the same time, pricing air pollution and tightening emissions standards can shift industry away from fossil fuels, making clean electric heat the most economical and compliant choice while delivering major public health benefits.

“The case for clean electric heat no longer rests on climate goals alone; it rests on favorable economics and energy security. The industries that make this shift now won’t just be more resilient, but increasingly more competitive. The question is no longer whether — it’s how fast.” said Nikit Abhyankar, co-author of the report and faculty at the University of California, Berkeley.

For further information, please contact: Dr. Amol Phadke (aaphadke@berkeley.edu) Associate Adjunct Professor,
Faculty Director, India Energy & Climate Center (IECC)
University of California, Berkeley.

About the report

Electrifying Industrial Heat in India: Technologies and Policies to Transform Indian Manufacturing is a joint publication by the India Energy and Climate Center at the University of California, Berkeley and Energy Innovation.

The India Energy & Climate Center (IECC) at UC Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy leverages clean energy technology and policy expertise at the world’s top public university, Silicon Valley, and the state of California to catalyze the rapid transformation of energy systems that can deliver significant environmental, economic, and energy security benefits. IECC works collaboratively with Indian policymakers and business leaders to design an innovation and deployment ecosystem through tech-informed policy design, capacity building, a leadership dialogue platform and south-to-south collaboration.

Energy Innovation is a non-partisan energy and climate policy think tank. Our team provides customized research and policy analysis to decision-makers to support policy design that enhances security and access to affordable energy.

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