India has formally begun discussions for a full membership with the International Energy Agency(IEA), the Paris-based agency announced.
Following the international agency's 2024 ministerial meeting, Fatih Barol, IEA executive director, said on Wednesday: “We are very happy that ministers from the IEA’s member countries have agreed to start membership talks with India – this is a major milestone for international energy governance.”
A total of 31 member countries agreed to initiate talks with India after its formal request for full membership in October 2023. The move acknowledges India's strategic importance in addressing global energy and climate challenges.
"I am sure IEA will benefit when India plays a bigger role," India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi said while virtually addressing IEA's 2024 ministerial conference.
Modi said that India is well ahead of its targets under the Paris Agreement and remains firmly committed to addressing the issue of climate change.
IEA, which also celebrated its 50th anniversary at its 2024 ministerial meeting, currently has 31 member countries and 13 association countries.
In 2017, India was admitted to the agency as an association country and joins Chile, Colombia, Israel, Latvia and Costa Rica who are also seeking full membership.
IEA guides its member states and associate countries in matters related to global energy security and the energy transition needed to tackle climate challenges.
The agency was founded in the wake of the global oil crisis of 1973-74 in order to take coordinated measures to secure oil supplies in the event of recurring crises.