Refinery sector must balance energy security with net-zero push: industry experts at The Hindu Sustainability Summit

India's refining and energy sector will have to balance growing energy demand and energy security with the transition towards net-zero emissions, industry leaders said at a panel discussion at the The Hindu Sustainability Summit 2026 in Chennai.

At a discussion on the topic of ‘Fossils to Net Zero: Transforming India’s Refinery and Energy Landscape’, S.G. Venkatesh, Director (Technical), Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited (CPCL); Nandakumar Velayudhan Pillai, Director (Refinery), Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL); Santosh K. Singh, Chief Sustainability Officer, Larsen & Toubro; and D. Senthil Kumar, Managing Director, Tamil Nadu Petroproducts Limited, spoke about the challenges facing the sector. The session was moderated by Srinivasan Ramani, Deputy National Editor, The Hindu .

Mr. Venkatesh said achieving net zero for a refinery involved reducing the energy required to produce the same quantity of finished products and progressively shifting to cleaner energy sources and technologies.