Events & Issues

New Delhi, 25 November 2015

‘Sunshine Countries’

INDIA’S FOCUS ON SOLAR POWER

By Dhurjati Mukherjee

A conclave of 107 countries implementing the government’s vision of creating a worldwide platform for “sunshine countries” should soon see the light of day. Christened InSPA (International Agency for Solar Policy & Application), India is in the running to get the headquarters located in the country. France is likely to jointly launch this alliance at the climate change meeting in Paris month-end. Importantly, the idea of a sunshine grouping was first espoused by Prime Minister Modi in January at the first meeting of the reconstituted Council on Climate Change, with major economies endorsing it.

This alliance, when implemented, would embody a paradigm shift that India has called for to pursue clean energy pathways and curb the high growth of emissions. Moreover, with advanced technology there is reason to believe that solar power would become cheaper and acceptable to a major segment of the population in most countries.  

India’s grand plans to expand solar power to 100,000 MW in seven years at an estimated cost of Rs 6 lakh crores is expected to create more than a million new jobs, according to predictions by the Delhi-based Council on Energy Environment & Water (CEEW). The analysis suggested that the plan to raise the installed solar energy capacity from the current 3000MW to 100,000MW by the year 2022 will add about 315,000 permanent and a million temporary jobs.

The CEEW report has accordingly detailed that the jobs would be distributed across business development, design and construction and maintenance and operation. However, the number of job additions would hinge on how much solar energy will eventually be added, especially on open land and also on roof tops. The expansion will have to be through a mix of roof top, medium sized solar stations and giant solar parks. 

The grand plan has been a dramatic increase from the 20,000 MW envisaged in the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission launched by the UPA government way back in 2010. The present stress on solar power at the behest of none other than the Modi himself is indeed a strategic tool for the Government under its changed attitude towards the Paris Summit beginning on November 30.

Meanwhile, the Government has just decided to allow free transmission of power from renewables and also move to double the number of solar parks in the country to 50, according to Power and Renewable Energy Minister Piyush Goyal. While 25 solar parks have been finalized, there is thinking to set up another 25 and the Cabinet is to be approached shortly. 

India receives about 5000 trillion kilo watt (kWh) equivalent of energy per year through solar radiation. Just one per cent of the country’s land area can meet its entire electricity requirement till 2030. Experts believe that solar power is one way of meeting India’s shortfall and increasing energy requirements in the coming years. It is indeed regrettable that nearly 400 million people in the country do not have access to electricity but less than 6000 solar lanterns are used today.    

In a survey undertaken by McKinsey & Company way back in May 2009, it was pointed out that India has one of the world’s highest solar intensities with an annual solar energy yield of 1700 to 1900 kilowatt hours per kilowatt peak (kWh/KWp) of the installed capacity. After India, the US mainly California State, Hawaii and Spain are the largest solar power producers with 1500 to 1600 kWh/KWp followed by Italy, Australia, China, Japan and Germany.

It may also be heartening to note that as per Ernst & Young’s renewable energy country attractiveness indices, which ranks countries based on regulatory environment, fiscal support, unexploited resources, suitability to different technologies and other factors determining renewable energy growth in a country, India attains a ranking within the top five in the world. 

Since the government adopted the National Action Plan on Solar Power, the cost of such electricity has been rapidly declining. This provides the opportunity to swiftly augment solar power to about 50,000 MW.  The potential of Eastern and North Eastern States have not been fully tapped and there is need to focus attention in these regions of the country. The higher penetration of renewable energy to the grid calls for smart initiatives to be taken up like setting up of Renewable Energy Management Systems (REMS), deployment of energy storage devices, framing the policy framework for ancillary services for frequency balancing mechanism, special tariff structure for peaking power plants etc.      

To ensure that solar energy capacity is boosted up, the problems that need to be seriously looked into are: procedure to avail duty exemption is lengthy, involving multiple bodies – State and the Ministry concerned; nearly five to 10 acres of land required per MW and its acquisition has been an area of concern with JNNSM leaving formatives to State-level agencies; fluctuating prices and availability of raw materials; and non-availability of advanced thin film technology in India. 

Various independent studies, including one last year by CEEW, estimated that one MW of solar energy would require about five acres of land to support the standard commercial flat solar panels that receive light from the sun and turn it into electricity. Thus, the addition of 80,000MW of solar energy capacity would require a massive area of about 1600 sq. km, which is greater than the size of a metropolis.     

Availability of land is obviously a big problem at this juncture and thus the focus may be largely on roof tops where though employment generation may be less but there would be faster growth of solar power. It would be pertinent to add that to save land, the Gujarat Government has set up solar generation stations along canals due to lack of availability of land. However, some States such as Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Telengana have sufficient land -- not suitable for agricultural purposes -- for expanding solar energy.  And, they need to tap it to the hilt.

And, State governments must keep in mind Kerala’s achievement in the solar field. Its Kochi airport has the distinction of becoming the first in the world to operate on solar power. It has a 12 Mega Watt Solar plant spread across 45 acres, which will help meet its electricity requirement by generating over 48,000 units. The pilot project promises to be financially sound. Further, it will be connected to the State Electricity Board grid and the excess power generated will be supplied to it on a daily basis. Undeniably, the message for States and the world is go Solar. –INFA

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