The high volatility in fuel prices in the recent past and the resulting turbulence in energy markets has compelled many countries to look for alternate sources of energy, for both economic and environmental reasons.

With growing public awareness about sanitation, and with increasing pressure on the government and urban local bodies to manage waste more efficiently, the Indian waste to energy sector is poised to grow at a rapid pace in the years to come. The dual pressing needs of waste management and reliable renewable energy source are creating attractive opportunities for investors and project developers in the waste to energy sector

According to MNRE estimates, there exists a potential of about 1460 MW from MSW and 226 MW from sewage.

State/Union Territory	From Liquid Wastes* (MW)	From Solid Wastes (MW)	Total (MW)
Total	226.0	1457.0	1683.0

GRID-INTERACTIVE POWER	(CAPACITIES IN MW)	Contribution (%)	OFF-GRID/ CAPTIVE POWER	(CAPACITIES IN MWEq*)	Contribution (%)
Waste to Power			Waste to Energy
Urban	20.20	27.4	Urban	3.50	4.6
Industrial	53.46	72.6	Industrial	72.30	95.4
Total	73.66		Total	75.8

Transforming agricultural waste into biofuel could create up to one million jobs in India over the next decade, while radically improving India's energy efficiency by meeting up to 59% of the demand for transport gasoline through greener fuels by 2020, according to a new study released today. The Indian Government has already announced an ambitious target of 20% of biofuels in transport by 2017 as part of its Indian Biofuels Policy.