Cement, Energy and Environment

I RENEWABLE POWER NORMS Seventeen States are yet to meet the renewable purchase obligations (RPO) norms, according to rating agency ICRA. RPO is the minimum stipulated percentage of the total power that electricity distribution companies and large power consumers need to purchase from renewable energy sources. In 2008, the National Action Plan for Climate Change specified a minimum RPO target of five per cent in 2009-10, to be increased one per cent every year for 10 years to reach 15 per cent by 2019-20. The long-term trajectory for RPO up to FY- 2017 is in place only in 11 out of the 28 States. The State Electricity Regulatory Commissions (SERCs) in 20 States have stipulated the RPO norms for FY-2015. Courtesy: The Hindu Business Line, Mumbai, 14.05.2014 Pg. No. 13 Solar FUTURE BRIGHT FOR A SHINING INDUSTRY If you look closely at India's solar sector, you are bound to conclude that the future is bright. For sure, little happened all through 2013, but 2014, promises a lot. Why? One can broadly divide the solar power industry (keeping aside, for the time being, the manufacturing side), into three broad categories. First, the large, MW-scale plants. These produce electricity that is relatively more expensive, but costs are coming down. The primary role of these large plants is to develop the industry, create the eco-system, provide the scale for costs to come down. Different story Second, the rooftops, which aga1n may be disaggregated into commercial and industrial rooftop projects, and residential rooftop projects. The power they produce is expensive than what is sold over the grid, but higher costs do not matter in the case of commercial/industrial rooftops, because consumers here often do not get the cheaper grid power, but have to rely on even costlier power from other sources such as diesel. The residential rooftops, though , is a different story. The third category is the "mini and micro grids" , where solar plants are tiny, but they create the most social impact, by supplying electricity to those who don't have any. In those places that micro grids have happened, such as in the Meerwada village, where the US-headquartered solar giant, SunEdison, has put up a plant, the social impact is immeasurable. If you look at the current phase of the Indian solar industry, all the categories mentioned above, with the possible exception of residential rooftops, are buoyant. The immediate future is bright, the long term future is scintillating. Let us look at each sub-sector one-by-one. MW-scale projects The 'large, MW-scale projects' will happen this year. Look at what has happened this year. At the end of January, the total solar capacity in the country was 2,206.75 MW. By the end of March, this figure rose to 2,631.9 MW - as much as 425.2 MW were added in February and March. {Incidentally, the story of 'wind' is also similar, when the capacity increased by about 800 MW in these two months.) As much as 948 MW were added to the capacity in 2013-14. This year will see solar power crossing the milestone of 3,000 MW. The large-scale projects fall into one or the other of four buckets. The first is projects coming up under government schemes, where the tariff is determined by a competitive bidding process and project developer will sell the power to electricity distribution companies. Under the Phase II of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission, 750 MW of projects have just been awarded. Several State governments have come up with their own schemes - Madhya Pradesh 100 MW, Karnataka 50 MW, Andhra Pradesh 60 MW. Momentum to continue Then there are projects that come under 'REC scheme', where a solar power producer will sell the electricity at the specified 'average cost' to the distribution company and will get 'renewable energy certificates' which can be sold in the market to those who are obligated to buy either solar power or the certificates. About 200 MW of projects came under 'REC scheme' last year and this momentum is expected to continue . The third is projects being put up by the public sector companies. A six-PSU joint venture is planning a 4,000 MW project in the Sambhar district of Rajasthan, which will be the world's 39