At its recent annual ministerial meeting in Paris last week, the International Energy Agency (IEA) welcomed the progress being made on India’s request for full membership of the organisation. As of now, India is an associate member of the Paris-based agency, which is a leading intergovernmental body that works on energy security, global energy policy, and, now increasingly, on climate change and energy transitions.ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW VIDEOBut India’s request for membership is not straightforward. It would require IEA to amend its founding legal framework which restricts membership only to OECD countries. We explain.IEA was created in 1974 as one of the responses to the global oil crisis, triggered by the decision of the major Arab oil producing countries to impose an embargo on oil supplies to countries that were seen to be supporting Israel during the Yom Kippur War the previous year. The embargo had led to unprecedented rise in oil prices and fuel scarcity.The crisis exposed the vulnerability of major industrial countries, which also happened to be the biggest consumers of oil. These countries, which had formed the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) a decade earlier, decided to act together to reduce or manage their dependence on imported oil in future. One of the results of their decision was the setting up of IEA by 17 OECD countries.Also in Explained | Renewables edge out coal as world’s biggest source of electricity: Many positives, some concernsIEA’s original mandate was to ensure that oil supplies were kept stable, and potential disruptions in future were anticipated and prevented through timely action. It also developed an elaborate mechanism to deal with oil emergencies in future, making it mandatory for every member country to maintain certain minimum strategic stocks of oil that can be used to neutralise supply disruptions. The emergency mechanism has been used several times, including the 1991 Gulf War and in the wake of Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.Many more countries became members of IEA at a later stage, but the membership was kept open only for OECD countries. There are now 32 full members. At last week’s ministerial meeting, Colombia was inducted as the 33rd full member. Colombia had become a member of OECD in 2020, thus clearing the way for its induction into IEA.ExpansionIn 2015, IEA opened the doors for non-OECD countries to become associate members. The associate members participate in the policy discussions and activities, but do not have decision-making rights. India became an associate member in 2017. There are 13 associate members right now.Story continues below this adOver the years, IEA’s role has changed significantly because of diversification of energy sources, newer technologies, expansion of energy production, and the crisis caused by climate change. The IEA now concerns itself not just with oil, but a variety of energy sources, including renewables. Climate change, decarbonisation and energy transition now form important areas of its work. Recently, it also launched a critical minerals programme.The energy production and consumption landscape has also changed considerably, with non-OECD countries like China, India and Brazil becoming major players in the energy market. When IEA was set up, its member countries accounted for more than 60 per cent of global energy demand. This share had come down to about 40 per cent a decade earlier, despite the number of member countries increasing to 30. With associate members, that includes both India and China as well other large consumers like Brazil, South Africa, Indonesia, Egypt and Thailand, the IEA family now accounts for 80 per cent of global energy demand.India has been seeking full membership for the last few years. In October 2023, it submitted its formal request to IEA. The issue of India’s full membership has come up in India’s bilateral discussions with the US as well.The move to become a full member arises mainly from the desire to have a role in the decision-making process of IEA. IEA has been playing an increasingly influential role in guiding global energy policies. While it remains the most important agency to deal with energy -related emergencies, it has also been evolving into a very useful knowledge platform for energy transitions, climate change, and clean energy technologies. It hosts one of the most reliable and comprehensive energy databases.Story continues below this adAlso read | India open to encouraging SMR-led nuclear energy push to power AI data centre boomAgreeing to India’s request, however, would require IEA to amend its founding charter. IEA’s expansion till now has happened either through countries that were already OECD members or through those that joined OECD.Since there is no inclination from India to seek OECD membership, IEA would have to either amend its eligibility criteria for members, or make an exception for India. Current deliberations suggest that an amendment to IEA’s legal framework might be on the cards. Recently, even Brazil, also a non-OECD member like India, has sought full membership of IEA.IEA has repeatedly supported India’s bid to become a member, and has said it was actively considering its request.“As the world’s most populous country, India is set to play an increasingly central role in efforts to safeguard energy security, drive inclusive energy transitions, and combat climate change… In the next three decades, India is poised to see the largest energy demand growth of any country in the world as industrialisation and urbanisation surge and per capita income rises sharply,” IEA said in one of its statements.Story continues below this adAt last week’s ministerial meeting, the delegates “welcomed recent developments in discussions with India following the Indian government’s request to become a full IEA member”, according to an IEA statement.IEA’s engagement with India has also increased significantly in recent years. It has published several India-focused reports and data. India also engaged IEA recently to do a special report on its LiFE (Lifestyle for Environment) initiative. The IEA report revealed that widespread adoption of simple lifestyle changes had the potential to avoid global emissions by as much as 2 billion tonnes by 2030.