India’s Solar Power Capacity To Be 22 GW By March: Piyush Goyal
India’s solar power generation capacity would nearly double to 22 GW by the end of current fiscal and more wind power auctions would be conducted in the coming months, Power Minister Piyush Goyal said today. India has set ambitious target of having 100 GW of solar energy and 60 GW of wind power capacities by 2022. “Solar Power generating capacity would be around 22 GW by the end of this fiscal (from over 12 GW at present),” Goyal told reporters here after releasing a report on integration of renewables in the electricity grid. On wind power, he said: “The auction has already been conducted for 1 GW where tariff has come down to Rs 3.46 per unit (earlier this year). One tender for another 1 GW is also in process, which would be completed soon. The bidding activity would also continue in coming 3-4 months and it would get the same encouragement as in case of solar.” Earlier last month, solar power tariff had dropped to all time low of Rs 2.44 per unit in the auction conducted for Bhadla solar park. ACME Solar Holdings had emerged as the lowest bidder by quoting Rs 2.44 per unit tariff for 200 MW followed by SBG Cleantech One at Rs 2.45 per unit for 500 MW capacity. Similarly, the 1 GW wind power auction also evoked good response as the tariff dropped to Rs 3.46 per unit in an auction conducted by the Solar Energy Corp (SECI). Goyal said, “It is time for the people of India to get ready and embrace the change with a ‘New Mindset’ of a ‘New Grid’ for a ‘New India’, which is ready to integrate large amount of renewable energy.” The minister had yesterday told reporters after a roundtable with hydro power producers that government will soon bring out a hydro power policy to revive the stalled projects. Asked about peaking power policy where instead of load shedding, the discoms can supply power at higher tariff than contracted rates during peak hour, the minister had said, “There is no peaking power policy on the unveil.” On stressed power plants of Tata, Adani and Essar that run on imported coal, he had said: “There was a lot of constellation about what would happen to these plants and to the availability of low cost power to some other states. Nothing has come out as yet. “I had suggested that these imported coal based plants may also look at technical solutions to try to use more domestic coal because under SHAKTI scheme we would soon come out with a policy which will allow import based coal based plant to bid for domestic coal.” There was a buzz that Gujarat government did not want to take over majority stake at these plants being offered to the state at just Re 1, because of political reasons. Gujarat will go for assembly poll by this year-end. Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam sources confirmed however that the proposals of these power producers are still under consideration. Justin Bethel Jersey
Govt to map all renewable energy sources in the country
The government is preparing a list of all renewable power generation points in the country to aid integration of clean energy with existing sources. The directives for setting up the registry have already been given, according to the Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Coal, Power, New and Renewable Energy and Mines, Piyush Goyal. Speaking at the release of a report titled, ‘Pathways to Integrate 175 Gigawatts of Renewable Energy into India’s Electric Grid- National Study’, Goyal said, “The Central Electricity Authority Chairperson has assured me that they will be coming out with a mechanism for the same within a month by which this data will be captured.” This information can be updated through a mobile app if needed and the data will be available for the public, he added. He said that the data base when complete will help integration of clean energy to existing energy sources. The report released by Goyal noted that power system balancing with 100 GW solar and 60 GW wind is achievable at 15-minute operational timescales with minimal reduction in renewable energy output. The report also notes that India’s current coal-dominated power system has the inherent flexibility to accommodate the variability associated with the targeted renewable energy capacities. (Source: Hindu Business Line) India Can Integrate 175 Gigawatts of Renewable Energy into the Electricity Grid, Reveals Study Power, Coal, New & Renewable Energy Minister, Piyush Goyal, released the first part of the study “Pathways to Integrate 175 Gigawatts of Renewable Energy into India’s Electricity Grid” at an event organized here today. The second volume, to be released in July, takes a more in-depth look at system operations in the Western and Southern regions. The study, developed under the U.S.-India bilateral program “Greening the Grid”, confirms the technical and economic viability of integrating 175 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy into India’s power grid by 2022, and identifies future course of actions that are favorable for such integration. The Government of India in 2015 had set the ambitious target of adding 100 GW of solar energy and 60 GW of wind energy into the country’s energy mix. The report resolves many questions about how India’s electricity grid can manage the variability and uncertainty of adding large amounts of renewable energy into the grid. The results demonstrate that power system balancing with 100 GW solar and 60 GW wind is achievable at 15-minute operational timescales with minimal reduction in renewable energy output. India’s current coal-dominated power system has the inherent flexibility to accommodate the variability associated with the targeted renewable energy capacities. Some of the key operational impacts that came out of the report were: (1) large-scale benefits of fuel savings and reduced emissions due to increased renewable energy production; (2) existing fast-ramping infrastructure is sufficient to maintain grid balance; and (3) in post-175 GW clean energy scenario, coal plants operating at part capacity will need suitable incentives for flexibility. The study also evaluates the value of strategies to better integrate renewable energy and demonstrates the importance of policy and market planning. A multi-institutional team from India’s Power System Operation Corporation (POSOCO) and the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL)produced the report using advanced weather and power system modelling, under the leadership of Ministry of Power and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) with co-sponsorship from the World Bank Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP) and the 21st Century Power Partnership. Speaking at the launch, Piyush Goyal said: “It is time for the people of India to get ready and embrace the change with a ‘New Mindset’ of a ‘New Grid’ for a ‘New India’, which is ready to integrate large amount of renewable energy. It is appropriate time following on Honorable Prime Minister’s meeting with the U.S. President under a robust and focused U.S.-India Energy Partnership. The ministry is extremely appreciative of the continued engagement and support from USAID and congratulates all the stakeholders including POSOCO, NREL, LBNL on the achievement of this outcome. Combined and collaborative efforts such as these are labour and data intensive and detailed and often go unsung but are critical to creating the backbone for a reliable grid.” Highlighting the importance of the study and U.S.-India collaboration on clean energy, Michael Satin, Director of Clean Energy and Environment at USAID/India, said: “USAID has a long-standing collaboration with the Government of India in the area of energy. Energy is a key determinant of growth and India needs sustainable energy sources to continue to grow at 7-8 percent annually. Introducing renewable energy solutions into established energy systems often requires changes to well-established policy, institutions, and market structures. This study will prove to be helpful in scaling up renewable energy in India effectively and sustainably.” The results were based on a number of key assumptions including transmission planning existing within each state but not necessarily on corridors between states; compliance of all coal plants with the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission regulation that coal plants be able to operate at 55 percent of rated capacity; and a better load forecast. Input data, assumptions and study results were validated extensively by more than 150 technical experts from central agencies including the Central Electricity Authority, Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd. (PGCIL), and NTPC; state institutions including grid operators, power system planners, renewable energy nodal agencies and distribution utilities; and the private sector, including renewable energy developers, thermal plant operators, utilities, research institutions, market operators and industry representatives. Other Dignitaries present on the occasion were P.K. Pujari, Secretary Power, R.K. Verma, CEA Chairman, K.V.S. Baba, CEO, POSOCO, I.S Jha, CMD PGCIL and other senior officers from Ministries of Power and MNRE. Elias Lindholm Womens Jersey
Power discoms’ subsidy dependence to rise to Rs 81,000 crore current fiscal: ICRA
The overall subsidy dependence of state-owned power distribution utilities (discoms) for the current financial year (2017-18) is estimated at Rs 81,000 crore, an increase of around 7-8 percent over the previous fiscal, research and ratings agency ICRA said today. “The increase in the subsidy requirement is predominantly driven by the subsidy and concessional tariff announcements in states during the pre-election period and continuation of subsidised nature of power tariff by state governments for certain consumer categories, even in case of upward revision in tariff by State Electricity Regulatory Commission (SERCs),” said Sabyasachi Majumdar, Group Head & Senior Vice President, ICRA. The overall subsidy requirement is further estimated to constitute around 17-18 per cent of the revenue requirement approved or estimated for the utilities for 2017-18, the agency said in a report. According to the assessment, Punjab and Madhya Pradesh are likely to witness a sharp increase in the subsidy support, of 29 percent and 49 percent respectively, in financial year 2017-2018, against the previous fiscal. Majumdar also said the increase in subsidy burden depends on the estimated higher level of consumption by the subsidised consumer categories. The dependence on subsidy support for discoms in states such as Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Karnataka, Haryana, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Telangana continues to be significant, ranging between 11-29 percent of the overall revenue requirement across the states, the report states. ICRA also said that in case schemes such as Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), which is being proposed in Bihar, were to be implemented, the direct subsidy dependence on the state government would reduce for the discoms. Timeliness and adequacy of subsidy support from the respective state governments assumes critical significance from the discoms’ liquidity perspective. According to policy research firm Brookings India, the Indian power sector has been facing sharp increases in subsidies and cross-subsidies since the 1970s. “Part of this stems from the debate over whether electricity is a commodity or a public good; the former is amenable to markets, while the latter has been viewed as a basic, if not fundamental, right,” the report released in April said. Johnathan Joseph Authentic Jersey
Indian renewable market to witness strong growth: Moody’s
As India is moving towards meeting its commitments under the Paris agreement on climate change, its renewable energy market is likely to witness a strong growth over many years, says Moody’s Investors Service. “However, renewable energy projects face challenges related to the weak credit quality of offtakers, an evolving regulatory framework, as well as financing and execution risks,” Moody’s vice-president and senior analyst Abhishek Tyagi said in a statement issued here. According to the rating agency, India’s emission reduction commitments under the Paris agreement will lead to a sharp rise in renewable energy capacity. India aims to achieve 40 per cent of cumulative installed capacity through non-fossil fuel sources by 2030 from the current 30 per cent and also plans to grow its renewable energy capacity to 175 GW by 2022 from the current 57GW. “Such growth will be driven by the public and private sector. However, the key offtakers for most renewable projects are state-owned distribution companies, and these firms typically demonstrate weak financial profiles. “This situation poses a key challenge for developers. And, while there is no history of defaults under power purchase agreements, payment delays are quite common,” he said. Moody’s also points out that the evolving policy framework for renewables presents a risk for renewable projects. “Adherence to renewable purchase obligations has been limited, leading to lower demand for renewable energy. Nevertheless, the feed-in-tariff and competitive bidding guidelines for wind and solar projects are well established and improve revenue visibility over the life of purchase power agreements,” the agency noted. It further said the rise in renewable energy capacity will bring execution challenges, including land acquisition, establishing resource quality, grid connectivity and availability. On the financing of renewable energy projects, India will need to invest close to USD 150 billion to meet its 2022 renewable energy targets. Since domestic banks are constrained in their lending to renewable projects, foreign capital will play an important role. However, foreign currency financing is constrained by the limited hedging products available to fully cover the rupee currency risk of purchase power agreements, it said. Zach Cunningham Authentic Jersey
Solar power helps pump up petrol sales amid power shortage
Solar energy is displacing fossil fuels across the globe. But in India, it is helping boost sales of diesel and petrol at filling stations. As petrol pumps start using solar energy, many of them, especially in the hinterland with ample sunlight, are reclaiming as much as 10 per cent of sales earlier lost due to inadequate and erratic grid power supply. Some of the newer pumps have opted for solar only to avoid the higher cost of grid power. “Solar is not just about being environment-friendly. It is paying off financially as it helps raise sales as well as bring down the operating cost for petrol pumps,” said AK Sharma, director (finance) at Indian Oil Corp, the nation’s largest fossil fuel retailer, which has about a quarter of its 26,500 pumps using solar energy. Hindustan Petroleum and Bharat Petroleum have about 9 per cent and 7.5 per cent of their pumps using solar energy, respectively. Three years ago, Vikas Sharma, the manager of an Indian Oil pump at Bhojpur in Ghaziabad district, would lose up to 10 per cent of his monthly sales as electricity was available for only 8-10 hours daily, not necessarily during business hours. “Not every customer is ready to wait. By the time you get your boys to start the backup generator, the customer would have left. That’s the cost one pays daily for being dependent on grid,” said Sharma, who runs a fuel outlet for rural customers, about 50 km from the Delhi border. Sometimes the staff at filling stations is too lazy to even start the generator, knowing the cost of running it would be more than the money made from a motorcyclist wanting to fill Rs 20 worth of petrol. “All these accumulate into a substantial loss of business in a month,” said Sharma, who installed solar panels in early 2015 at his decade-old pump to the meet fuel demand that’s growing with rising rural incomes and roads getting increasingly better. “This has changed everything for us,” he said, pointing to the silicon sheets shining in the summer sun on top of his sales office at the filling station surrounded on three sides by fields awaiting sowing of the season. “Earlier, half the time our boys would be busy calling up the grid power supplier’s office to correct faults, or starting the diesel generator or getting some mechanic to repair the generator if it was acting up,” he said. With quality power supply from solar, even the cost of equipment maintenance has fallen. In about two and a half years, Sharma has more than recouped his investment of Rs 5.5 lakh on solar installation. His electricity bill halved to Rs 7,000 a month and expenses of Rs 15,000 a month on the backup generator disappeared, saving him Rs 22,000 a month. Sharma isn’t going totally off-grid because it would be difficult if he ever wanted to draw power from the grid in future. On the other hand, dealers like Prabhat Tyagi have never looked at grid as an option. He has relied on solar for all energy needs since 2012, when he started operating a filling station in Ghaziabad. “The initial cost of connecting to a grid was Rs 2.5-3 lakh then. And for a supply of 6-8 hours a day, I would have had to pay a minimum Rs 5,000 every month. Add to this cost of a diesel generator. Therefore, I chose solar installation, which came for Rs 6 lakh and no operating cost.” Brandon Allen Womens Jersey
Government stitches rescue plan for Tata, Adani power plants
The biggest rescue package being stitched together for distressed power plants could see lenders take over three imported coal-fired generation stations of the Tata, Adani and Essar groups, involving an estimated investment of over Rs 40,000 crore, and transfer 100% equity for Re 1 to consumers states, including Gujarat where these plants are located. But the transfer of ownership of these plants, aggregating a capacity of 9,820 MW, will not get the promoters off the hook as far as bank loans are concerned. At a meeting of stakeholders, called by the power ministry on June 20, lenders insisted that the corporate guarantees given by the promoters will continue even after the change in ownership. The plan hinges on the outcome of due diligence conducted by India’s biggest generation utility, state-run NTPC. Sources in the know said the promoters offered to operate and maintain their respective projects even after the ownership transfer. But Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd said the state would prefer to source coal, which is at the crux of these plants becoming unviable. Both the Adani and Tata groups have made the audacious offer to sell majority stake in their projects, located at Mundra in Gujarat, for Re 1 to the state. These projects became unviable after the Supreme Court denied higher tariff to compensate for increase in fuel costs due to policy changes in Indonesia, where the captive coal mines are located. It is not clear at the moment whether Gujarat alone will take over the ownership of these plants or the states will take ownership in proportion to the quantity of capacity they have tied up under the 25-year power purchase agreements. Once the change in ownership of these projects, awarded through tariff-based bidding, will turn them into public property. This will allow new owners to seek suitable tariff from regulators under ‘cost-plus’ formula to make them viable and save banks from being burdened by additional non-performing assets. Government officials said the scheme will not burden consumers and provide power that will be cheaper than alternative sources. “These are modern assets, efficient power source. Look at how much variable cost (essentially fuel price) states are paying to alternative sources. Rs 4-4.50. So if fuel cost for these plants is brought down by blending domestic coal, the overall impact on tariff may be minimal, if at all. But it will still be cheaper than alternative sources,” one official told TOI. The sources said, the Tata group has been asked to examine the option of changing boiler configuration to allow use of domestic coal — at least for blending imported coal by 30% — to reduce fuel cost. They said the Adani group is already using 30% domestic coal to reduce costs. Jaromir Jagr Jersey
BHEL Bags EPC Order For 15 MW Solar Photovoltaic Power Plant
Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) has secured an order for setting up a 15 MW Solar Photovoltaic (SPV) Power Plant on Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) basis, in Gujarat The order has been placed on BHEL by Gujarat Alkalies and Chemical Limited (GACL) for setting up the SPV Power Plant at Gujarat Solar Park at Charanka in Gujarat. Significantly, this will be BHEL’s first ground-mounted Solar PV project in the state of Gujarat. The company is presently executing over 180 MW of ground-mounted and rooftop Solar PV projects across the country. BHEL has been contributing to the national initiatives for developing and promoting renewable energy based products on a sustained basis, since the past three decades. The company has enhanced its state-of-the-art manufacturing lines of solar cells to 105 MW and solar modules to 226 MW per annum. In addition, space-grade solar panels using high efficiency cells and space-grade Battery panels are manufactured at its Electronic Systems Division, Bengaluru. BHEL is one of the few companies in India whose solar business is backed by a dedicated R&D team. BHEL offers EPC solutions for both off-grid and grid-interactive SPV power plants and has set up solar plants in various locations in India including the Lakshadweep Islands for island electrification. Willie Snead IV Womens Jersey
‘India’s thermal plants may become economically unviable’
India’s ultra thermal plants, designed to run on foreign coal, may no longer afford to do so economically in the future, says a top financial analyst with a leading US-based institute. This can be seen in the case of India’s two largest thermal power projects in Gujarat’s port town of Mundra — Adani Power’s 4.6 GW and Tata Power’s 4 GW plants. Both are no longer competitive owing to nearly doubled price rise of coal from Indonesia since their planning and incapability to hike tariffs, says Tim Buckley, Director of Energy Finance Studies Australasia with the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA). Adanis’ Mundra plant has previously been disclosed to be operating with 100 per cent imported coal from Indonesia while Adani Power has been operating at a net loss, and has been doing so for the last seven years, Buckley told IANS in an email interview. The Mundra plant is by far Adani Power’s largest and is the intended destination for the majority of its thermal coal imports from the Carmichael proposal in Australia under Adani’s “pit to plug” strategy. After an adverse Supreme Court ruling disallowing any tariff revision to compensate for higher cost of imported coal, Adani Power discontinued 1,250 MW of power supply from Mundra due to unviability of running these units on imported coal. “These plants will curtail production rather than lose money with every unit of production. It is a likely conclusion that a $1-2 billion write down of Adani Power’s $5bn plant is on the cards. As it stands, this plant is a clear stranded asset,” said Buckley. Adani Power has approached state-run Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam (GUVNL) to bail out its Mundra plant. According to reports, one option for GUVNL is to take a majority stake in the plant post a write-down of equity. Likewise, Tata Power has written to the central government proposing to sell 51 per cent equity of its ailing asset for a nominal fee of Re 1, citing challenges faced by the company since Indonesian coal prices doubled. According to Buckley, a written-down plant can be reconfigured to be viable, particularly if cheap ($20/tonne) domestic coal can be procured in proximity to the plant without exorbitant rail freight costs. However, a key requirement is that blending in low energy and high ash Indian coal requires high quality existing Australian thermal coal which is high energy and low ash. But coal from Carmichael would be low energy and high ash and far from ideal for blending with cheap domestic Indian coal, he said. Commenting on Energy Minister Piyush Goyal’s recent assertions that India would need to keep importing coal, including from the proposed Carmichael mine, Buckley said: “The strategic aim to cease non-coast power plant usage of imported thermal coal within the next two to three years means domestic operators will need to reconfigure their plants so that they can use domestic coal.” In May, the Indian government stated that it was considering auctioning Coal India’s domestic coal for supply and blending at import coal-based power plants where possible. As India works through and resolves domestic supply shortages, the need for imported thermal coal will continue to progressively decline. India targets for all public sector undertakings to be using 100 per cent domestic coal by this fiscal, following NTPCs move to virtually cease coal imports in 2016-17. “As proof of the gradual success of this program to protect India’s current account deficit and currency, Indian coal imports peaked in 2014-15, and have progressively declined since then. May 2017 saw a six per cent year-on-year decline for the month,” said Buckley, who is in Mumbai and New Delhi this week. For India, tapping renewable energy sources is a great opportunity, he said. “The move away from thermal fuel imports improves the balance of payments, helps improve the currency and hence reduces imported inflation generally,” Buckley added. An IEEFA report titled “NTPC as a Force in India’s Electricity Transition” showcases how the Indian government is shifting rapidly towards a low-carbon economy — a step towards achieving the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement aim of cutting greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels. India’s draft “Ten Year Electricity Plan” calls for a staggering 275 GW of renewable energy by 2027, in addition to 72 GW of hydro and 15 GW of nuclear energy. Phil McConkey Womens Jersey
India should aim to get 40% electricity from nuclear power by 2050: M R Srinivasan, Former AEC chief
Indigenous manufacturing of major components and ensuring a strong participation from the domestic industry are the major challenges before the Indian nuclear power programme now, says former Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) chief M R Srinivasan. “For a large nuclear power capacity to be built in a country like India, it is very important to have major components made within the country. Otherwise economics will be not so good,” Srinivasan told IANS in a wide-ranging interview here on the sidelines of the Atomexpo 2017 organised by Rosatom. Lamenting that nuclear power formed only three per cent of India’s electricity generation, he said: “in our view by 2050 we should have a much larger nuclear component, may be 30 per cent to 40 per cent of the overall electricity capacity,” he said, adding, “We think there is a scope for India to substantially increase nuclear power.” Srinivasan said while the country should encourage solar and wind power to the maximum extent, for the base load requirements the way forward was either nuclear or gas. “Base load requirements will be substantial, it will not be less than 50 to 60 per cent. That capacity will have to come from coal, gas or nuclear,” he said. The widely respected atomic energy expert said there was a great scope for a substantial increase in the share of nuclear power in the country’s overall electricity capacity and highlighted India’s collaborations with the international community, particularly the strong scientific cooperation with Russia, in the field. “Cooperation among the international community is a good thing…Of course in the context of Russia, our cooperation is very good, it has become strong. We hope the scientific cooperation between India and Russia in the nuclear field will intensify over a period of time,” the 87-year-old scientist said. Having worked in his early years with Homi Jehangir Bhabha, considered the father of India’s nuclear programme, Srinivasan said that Bhabha had also stressed on self-reliance. “He recognised that when we develop it (atomic power) fully we should be largely self-reliant. That means we should create internal capacities in India,” said Srinivasan, replying to a poser on Bhaba. Calling the present NDA government at the centre “supportive” of harnessing India’s nuclear power potential, the Bengaluru-based veteran atomic scientist exuded confidence that the authorities would continue to back the programme. “Our challenges will be to see to it that the Indian industry participation is strong, and they also make necessary investments, training of personnel, so that the economy can move ahead,” said the Padma Vibhushan awardee. Queried on the safety of India’s nuclear power plants, Srinivasan said: “They are operating safely, their radiation discharge is far below the authorised limits, personal exposures are very low, and there has been no accident related to release of nuclear material.” The fact that they had been operating for very long, he added, was proof that they are safe. “The debate on safety of nuclear projects is a continuing debate. But I think by and large people in India accept nuclear power, so long as those reactors are operating well, and they see benefits for the economy.” He described the Kudankulam nuclear power plant in Tamil Nadu as one of the safest reactors. “It has got one of the safest designs. We have worked jointly with Russia to make sure it has got what is called a passive heat removal system,” Srinivasan said. “It has got multiple levels of safety and redundancy built into the systems and it has been validated for all the earthquake or tsunami and other circumstances at the site. It is a very safe site; it is a very safe design without a doubt,” he said. Anton Stralman Womens Jersey
Developers reel under losses as Rajasthan companies shut off wind power supply
Wind power developers in Rajasthan face losses once again as state distribution companies unplug their supply from the grid, a practice known as backdown. “Every day, 15-20% of wind power is being curtailed,” said an official of the Wind Independent Power Producers Association (WIPPA). “On some days, power has even been switched off completely by the discoms’ state load distribution centres (SLDCs).” Sunil Jain, president, WIPPA, estimated the backdowns in a different way, saying, “In May, on average, there were five hours of backdown per MW of wind, which, given the state’s capacity of around 4,000 MW, would be 20,000 hours.” Rajasthan’s installed wind power capacity is 4,280 MW. It’s a repeated problem and particularly galling for wind power producers, since the pre-monsoon and monsoon period, April-September, is when winds blow the strongest and generate maximum power. “Last year, the problem occurred in May-June and stopped after a while but this year, it began from April itself,” said the WIPPA official. “Discoms are doing it for commercial reasons. They are backing down wind power and taking thermal power instead, which is cheaper.” However, the matter is far from simple. A key characteristic of wind energy is its ‘infirm’ or ‘erratic’ nature. A wind farm’s output can vary considerably depending on the speed at which the wind is blowing. Additionally, wind farms do not store energy, which would increase costs significantly and make tariffs unviable. They transmit all power produced immediately to the grid, which could trip if power supplied is well in excess of the average, as is often the case in the pre-monsoon and monsoon months. Devices to forecast wind power likely to be available are being introduced but are not yet wholly reliable. “Forecasting is an issue,” said BK Dosi, managing director, Rajasthan Renewable Energy Corporation, the state agency handling renewable energy. “If the schedule given to us is not accurate, there will be problems. Due to variations in weather, there are variations of demand as well. But backdowns are not due to commercial reasons.” The Rajasthan Electricity Regulatory Commission (RERC) had, some years ago, directed that wind power be given priority over power from conventional sources — wind has ‘must run’ status. In practice, though, SLDCs often find it more convenient to use power from conventional sources if available, since it is steady and reliable. WIPPA has already appealed to RERC, which has held four hearings. “We will take the issue to higher authorities if not resolved at the earliest,” said Jain. Dosi said, “We have taken up the matter seriously and will be meeting developers and the state principal secretary soon.”? Darryl Strawberry Womens Jersey