Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on Monday called for enhanced global cooperation to accelerate low-carbon industrial transition, while addressing the LeadIT Industry Leaders’ Roundtable at the UNFCCC COP30 summit in Belém, Brazil.
Speaking as Co-Chair of the Leadership Group for Industry Transition (LeadIT), Yadav said the meeting comes at a crucial moment as the world marks 10 years of the Paris Agreement. “We now have to move from goal setting to implementation,” he said.
The minister highlighted India’s climate initiatives across renewable energy, disaster resilience, biodiversity, and industrial transition under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership. He described LeadIT – launched by India and Sweden in 2019 – as a successful model of global collaboration, noting that the platform has grown to 18 member countries and 27 companies.
According to Yadav, LeadIT has helped advance industrial transition roadmaps, improve transparency in decarbonization efforts, and create platforms for knowledge exchange. He also pointed out that India has managed to decouple economic growth from emissions, reducing the emission intensity of its GDP by 36% between 2005 and 2020.
Yadav outlined recent progress under the Industry Transition Platform (ITP), jointly funded by India and Sweden, which will soon see 18 industries and research institutions begin collaborative projects. These include initiatives on carbon capture and utilization, value creation from industrial by-products, electrification, hydrogen-based heating, and the use of artificial intelligence for process optimization.
He also cited the partnership between Tata Motors and Volvo Group – facilitated by LeadIT – to decarbonize heavy-duty transport as an example of how joint efforts can advance global industrial transformation.
Announcing the addition of SKF as the newest LeadIT member, Yadav said technology-sharing would remain central to achieving global sustainability goals.
The minister urged countries, industries and international partners to intensify cooperation, saying collective action is critical to meeting the objectives of the Paris Agreement and ensuring a sustainable future.