Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Producing Own Solar Energy is Beneficial


Fed up with constant electricity cuts and government-enforced "power holidays", Indian IT firm Value Labs has turned to the sun beaming down on its head office for help.
In July, it finished building a 13 megawatt solar plant - enough to power 6,000 homes - to keep the lights on and computers humming for more than 3,000 employees at its base in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad.
It is even selling surplus electricity back to the grid.
"We plan to use the entire quantum of power generated from these plants in the coming years for our existing and upcoming campus," said Krishna Reddy, a senior Value Labs executive.
Factories and businesses have installed over 30 MW of rooftop solar panels in the last year, data compiled by New Delhi-based consultancy Bridge To India shows. That is a small amount compared with India's solar capacity of 2,700 MW, but demand may accelerate under Prime Minister Narendra Modi who has made renewable energy a priority.
Bridge to India forecasts compound annual growth will hit more than 60 percent in the next five years, as falling panel prices make installations more alluring.
In a sign that even big business is warming up to alternative energy sources, India's second-largest IT exporter Infosys Ltd is building a 50 MW solar plant in southern Karnataka state to meet 30 percent of the company's power needs.
Bridge To India estimates that commercial rooftop and smaller utility plants have the potential to provide up to 83,000 MW of solar energy, more than half of India's potential solar capacity out to 2024.(credit-Reuters)

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Monday, September 29, 2014

Electrification of Villages and Hamlets

The Government is implementing Decentralised Distributed Generation (DDG) under Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana (RGGVY) for electrification of villages where grid connectivity is either not feasible or not cost effective. This was stated by Sh. Piyush Goyal, Minister of state for Power, Coal & New and Renewable Energy (Independent Charge) in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha today. In XII Plan period, DDG has also been extended to the grid connected area where supply of electricity is less than 6 hours a day. Decentralized Distributed Generation (DDG) can be from conventional or renewable sources such as Biomass, Biofuels, Biogas, Mini hydro, Solar etc. Rs.900 crore as subsidy has been earmarked for DDG projects. However, the allocation under DDG would be flexible to meet any additional requirements within the overall cost of the scheme. DDG scheme provides a subsidy towards 90% of the project cost. The balance 10% is to be arranged by the Implementing Agency at their own or arrange from any FI/REC.

The Minister further stated that Ministry of New & Renewable Energy has been implementing Remote Village Electrification (RVE) Programme for providing financial support for lighting/basic electrification in those remote unelectrified census villages and unelectrified hamlets of electrified census villages where grid extension is not found feasible by the State Governments and hence are not covered under the Rajiv Gandhi Gramin Vidyutikaran Yojana (RGGVY). Such villages are provided basic facilities for lighting/electricity through various renewable energy sources. Under the Programme, Central Financial Assistance of up to 90% of the costs of systems, subject to pre specified maximum amount, is provided for approved projects to the states. The balance cost of projects is financed through contribution from State Plans, beneficiaries, or other sources.

The Minister further stated that during the last 5 years, REC has sanctioned 775 DDG projects for a total project cost of Rs.349.38 crore in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Odisha. Out of these 775 projects, 164 projects have already been commissioned and remaining are at the various stages of Tendering & Execution. REC has so far disbursed an amount of Rs.43.68 crore for the implementation of the DDG projects. The RVE scheme is based on proposal submitted by states for coverage of left out villages/hamlets from the RGGVY Scheme of Ministry of Power; therefore, target is not relevant. During the last five years, 3704 number of villages and hamlets have been sanctioned and around 259.60 Crore fund has been released to various states under the programme, the Minister added.

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

Cost of Renewable Energy Projects

The cost of renewable energy power generation in India is competitive compared to the cost in other countries. In India, the solar power installation cost has reduced significantly over last three years. The installation cost of wind power projects in India is also competitive in comparison of other countries. This was stated by Sh. Piyush Goyal, Minister of state for Power, Coal & New and Renewable Energy (Independent Charge) in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha.

The Minister further stated that the India has signed 39 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) / Agreements in the field of Renewable Energy, under which there are a number of Joint Working Groups (JWG). The cooperation also includes issues of developing renewable energy sources in the country. The 12th Five Year Plan targets a cumulative renewable power installed capacity of 55 GW by end of March 2017. Rs.19,113/- Crore has been allocated in the Five Year Plan for the purpose, the Minister added.

Saturday, August 9, 2014

Installation of Solar Water Pumps

Image courtesy: agricorner.com
The Government has proposed a programme for installation of one lakh solar pumps for irrigation and drinking water purposes across the country. This was stated by Sh. Piyush Goyal, Minister of state for Power, Coal & New and Renewable Energy (Independent Charge) in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha today. He said a total number of 11626 solar pumps have already been installed in the various parts of the country till 31/03/2014. A total of 14788.45 lakh rupees have been sanctioned for solar pumps under “Off grid and Decentralized Solar Applications’’ scheme of Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission to 12 states.