Build Inter-Regional Tie-ups to Fight Global Crisis, Says Todd Benjamin

The challenges posed by the ongoing international financial crisis, depleting fossil fuel resources and increasing threat of climate change have created huge opportunities to countries for collaborating with people in diverse geographical entities for mitigating the effects of the crisis.

This was one of the many suggestions made by experts of international finance who were participating at a panel discussion on "Global Leadership & Technology Exchange" organized by Indian Merchants’ Chamber at Hotel Trident on November 11.

Among the experts on the panel were Mr Osvald Bjelland, Chairman of Xynteo Ltd, Mr Mossadeq Umedaly, Chairman of B C Hydro, Canada, Dr. Prakash Hebalkar, President, ProfiTech, Mr Neelabh Bhattacharya, Director of Suzlon Energy, Todd Benjamin, CNN's Contributing Editor, and Mr Shailesh Haribhakti, CEO & Managing Partner of Haribhakti & Co, Mumbai.

The audience consisted of CEOs and CMDs of top multinational corporates such as Dr. Alexander I. Medvedev, Deputy Chairman of Gazprom, Mr. Alan Begg, Senior Vice President Group Technology Development & Quality SKF, Dr. David Lee, Vice Chairman World Trade Centers Association, Mr. Remi Eriksen, Chief Operating Officer DNV Energy, Mr. Bjarn Myklatun, Chairman of the Board Acergy Norway AS, Mr. Alexander Landia, Chairman Siberian Coal Energy Company AOA SUEK and Consul-Generals and Trade Representatives based in Mumbai, CEOs of corporates in India, academics and professionals.

Welcoming the speakers, the IMC President, Mr M N Chaini said that crude oil always dominated that global economic agenda in the past 40 years.

Apart of energy crisis, Mr Chaini said, there were also other major threats such global security, food security, climate change, and global economic recession.

According to Mr Osvald Bjelland, many of these challenges could effectively met by the corporates, if (a) they cared to study the context in which they were operating, (b) the increasing pace of climate change, (c) quality of their own leadership and (d) suitability of their organizations' strategic agenda.

Mr Benjamin said that the corporates should also quickly grab the low hanging fruits in the area of technology, to improve their value chain, and to prune costs in areas like transport by planning production close to the consumption centres. He cited India's special advantage in respect of its comparatively young work force.

He also emphasized the need to step up R &D on fuel technologies and look to unconventional areas of using hydrogen as fuel.

Mr Shailesh Haribhakti said India was planning to develop solar energy in a big and cited a 5000 MW solar power project being planned in Rajasthan . He also stressed that the government, which owned most of the banks in India, should yield its territories to the private sector.

Mr Bhattacharya said that renewable energy development had gathered momentum in India, thanks to the incentives like depreciation allowance. But compared to China, the progress being made by India was not very impressive.

Mr Hebalkar said that renewable energy generation capacity could be raised to 5000 MW without much hassles in India without having to acquire land. He questioned the wisdom behind developing N-Energy, on the background of the mishap of 'three-mile island' in US.

Mr Mossadeq described his work in respect of promoting clean, renewable energies such as hydrogen fuel, solar and wind energies, and hydro power.

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