The ongoing trouble with access control at the Bella Center in Copenhagen has resulted

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in several officials and business persons missing their meetings. On Tuesday morning, Jamshyd N Godrej, chairman of CII’s national council on climate change and former president of the industry body, was expected to speak at a side event inside the centre arranged by the World Resources Institute on turning ideas into action on mitigation, adaptation and finance. But he could not make it because most people took between two and three hours to enter the security check area. Godrej later spoke to Hardev Sanotra over phone to discuss what the industry expects and hopes from Copenhagen. Excerpts.

n What does Indian industry expect from COP 15?

The industry is very much in favour of an equitable global deal that will help developing countries cope with the effects of climate change. We are keen that India’s position is supported by the global community. But more than that, the industry wants certainty, because uncertainty hurts business. We would like to see a clear direction to emerge from Copenhagen.

Will the changes emerging from Copenhagen hurt industry?

No, not really. What is important for the industry is competition. And in the coming world of business every one is talking about the processes that companies would follow. If you are a supplier to international companies, you are asked what kind of energy consumption your production process has gone through, where does the company stand on carbon footprint and how green are the processes. Cost and production methods have become an environment concern in business.

The Indian government is going to change fuel norms, building codes, appliances standards and other changes. What impact will this have?

I am sure no one is against greening of business. In fact, the CII has taken initiatives on green buildings. Everytime you bring efficiency into business it would be beneficial. But what we want is very deep and wide consultation between industry and the government before the major steps are taken. Fuel efficiency standards would be good, so would changes in norms in other areas which are done keeping the climate question in mind. Industry is not unconcerned with these larger issues, but we just want talks so that nothing comes as a major surprise.

Yet, the industry would have to make investments to cope with the changes, which may add to the cost?

Investments are part of the normal business process. One has to see whether those investments can yield the return in the period that the industry plans. Some investments yield returns in two, three or four years. Others take longer. We have to see what kind of investments are needed.

Is reducing carbon intensity with a target of 20 to 25 per cent over the next 11 years, the right approach?

For a country like India, that’s the right approach, since we are inefficient in many ways in our use of energy. It would not be difficult for India to reduce up to this level because we would be using efficient processes also and because of growth.

Would you expect easier or cheaper transfer of technology from developed nations to cope with climate change steps?

Indian industry is quite adept at absorbing technology. Most of the technologies are already available. In fact, if you are talking about steps on climate change, almost 90 per cent of the technologies are available and Indian companies can easily bring them in, unless you are talking about clean coal technologies or carbon sequestration, it’s not an issue. And intellectual property rights for technology should also not be an issue in India,