Growatt

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GrOWATT rANKED fIrST GLOBALLY

for residential inverter shipments two years in a row

According to the estimates of IHS Markit (now part of S&P Global), Growatt was ranked the No.1 residential inverter supplier globally in 2021, consolidating its market-leading position for a second consecutive year. The company owes the achievement to its vast variety of product portfolios of high quality and reliability as well as its extensive global network and top-notch user services. “At Growatt, we provide intelligent and reliable PV solutions for residential system owners to reduce their electricity bills and reduce their carbon footprint. More than 2.8 million families globally are now enjoying sustainable energy through our products and solutions,” commented Lisa Zhang, the company’s vice president of marketing. Growatt’s residential offerings, in compliance with grid regulations and requirements of various markets, include single-phase inverters with power capacity ranging from 750W to 11.4kW and three-phase inverters from 3kW to 15kW. In particular, the company’s XH Series battery-ready inverters have become increasingly popular among households who look to upgrade rooftop solar plants to energy storage systems in the future. “Our residential inverter comes in a sleek and compact design, and it is easy to install and commission. In addition, it’s got enhanced safety features including AFCI function, giving customers peace of mind,” Zhang added. To date, Growatt inverters have been installed in over 150 countries and regions, and approximately 1.4 million end users have connected the PV systems to the company’s cloud platform – the online smart service (OSS) system. “Our OSS system enables installers, integrators and distributors to manage and maintain solar plants remotely and intelligently for improved service efficiency,” Zhang explained. Moreover, the company has established 34 representative offices worldwide to deliver more efficient and convenient services. “At Growatt, our team works relentlessly to enable everyone to benefit from sustainable energy and transition to a greener lifestyle. And we believe together with our partners around the world, we can make a difference,” Zhang concluded. RM

Cover Cover Story Story

Key development factor for advancement in smart solar energy solution marKet

Abstract Solar energy is gaining popularity in India and is becoming more affordable and easier to generate than ever. Solar energy is the one of the most effective sources of Renewable Energy because of the reliable amount of sun the world gets. Ever-advancing technologies that are emerging will continue to harness this source in better, easier and cheaper ways making solar the fastest growing RE source. Carbon footprint of solar PV panels is already quite small and, as the materials used in them are being increasingly recycled, it continues to shrink. Your electricity bills could decrease quite a bit because of the power you are generating and using and not buying from your supplier. As solar panels are considered ‘permitted development’ you usually don't need a permit to install them on your roof. There are a few limitations you need to bear in mind before installation. Once installed, solar panels require very little maintenance. They are generally installed at an angle which allows rain to run off freely, washing dirt and dust away. As long as you keep them from becoming blocked by dirt, solar panels could last for over 25 years with little loss in efficiency. Investing in a solar power system makes you less reliant on the National Grid for your electricity. As an energy generator, you can enjoy cheaper electricity throughout the day. And if you invest in battery storage, you could carry on using solar energy after the sun goes down. You’ll be contributing to a more efficient way of generating

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energy. Transmitting energy from power plants across extensive networks to your home inevitably results in energy loss. When your power is coming direct from your rooftop, the loss is minimized, so less energy is wasted. The Feed in tariff is a govt. backed scheme offered by your electricity supplier and, if you opt for it, you could get paid for the energy generated by your solar PV system. Solar panels are generally good investment for your home. Current trends in the energy market mean that a home with solar panels could command a higher price in the future than one without. Smart solar is the advanced version of solar energy technology converting the solar energy into electrical or thermal with advanced management and efficient utilization is the new global smart solar market. With the increasing demand of energy worldwide, usage of alternative sources is increasing day by day solar energy is the best evergreen energy option. That is the key development factor for advancement in smart solar energy solution market. Currently smart solar market is valued at $6.47 billion, and it is estimated to achieve $13.89 bn by 2022, at a CAGR of 16.8% during 2016-23. Marketing and the 4 P’s We live in a society that bombards consumers with messages, from pop-ups on computers, to on-line chat room links, to e-newsletters and e-blasts, to advertising in traditional media, all designed to build a “share of mind” for a product, service or social cause. Marketing is not merely communications. It is the sum presentation to the customer of a value equation that results in a sale or action. Marketing is the process of identifying what the consumer needs, how the product or service can address that need, how to communicate that value in a compelling way, and how to deliver that message in the most efficient and effective manner. When state solar incentive program managers think like marketers, they will sharpen the focus of outreach efforts and improve the effectiveness of their solar program offerings. The classic elements of marketing, the 4 P’s: Product, Price, Place & Promotion; offer a useful matrix to assess state solar programs. Solar program initiatives should address each of the 4 P’s. For example, a consumer will not buy a poorly manufactured product or one with a questionable reputation merely because the price is good. Similarly, the best quality product must be affordable to ensure market share. While state solar programs do not produce solar panels, price them, or control quality of technology or installation, their program success is integrally linked to success of solar suppliers. Both share the same goal: building a strong customer base for solar power in their region. Each plays an important part in marketing solar. However, state incentive programs define the 4 P’s in a slightly different way than do solar suppliers. For marketing purposes, state programs can evaluate the Product from the perspective of consumers’ rational and emotional attitudes towards solar technology. These attitudes affect desire to purchase. Consumer reaction to solar tech (e.g., price, reliability, quality issues) informs marketing and communications approaches by identifying both the opportunities, the strengths and positive attributes that should be marshaled, and the barriers, the concerns and “issues” that prevent sales. Price is one of the single biggest barriers to growing the solar marketplace; many states are addressing the financing of solar to help overcome consumer price concerns. Today, financing mechanisms are broadening access to solar power and making it available to new customer groups. However, states must ensure that prospective customers are aware of these new financing strategies and aggressively promote the financial “value” of solar products to consumer targets. Place, or channels through which solar is sold, also is an area where solar programs have an important role through their work with installers, developers, and suppliers. Building a strong supplier network is critical in keeping up with rising demand; ensuring that customers can easily find an installer is part of this task. States also should look at how complex the solar sales process can be for consumers and how solar programs can minimize and ease the transaction process.

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Promotion of solar should be a primary focus as state programs seek to increase visibility of solar installations and broaden the appeal of their solar incentive programs. Using communications and promotional strategies to favorably present solar in the marketplace and ensuring that the right messages are presented to the public will help build a stronger market for solar technologies. As solar incentive programs examine their program offerings through the lens of Product, Price, Place and Promotion, they may conclude that they need to better understand their customer through market research, focus their efforts on specific target customer bases (customer segmentation), and address key messages to reach those audiences effectively and efficiently (communications). This evaluation process informs the elements of a solar marketing plan. Whether a marketer’s goal is to persuade a customer to visit a store, sample a new product, purchase an existing product, visit a website, make a donation to a nonprofit organisation, or inquire about a solar incentive program, the process is the same. In essence, marketing matches the right customer to the right product, resulting in a sale. As states apply marketing approaches to their solar initiatives, they will become more customer-focused, rather than program-focused, and as a result, become more effective in achieving solar goals. If one starts with the end in mind, a solar marketing plan identifies how a state program will achieve installed megawatt goals through acquisition of residential, commercial and institutional customers. 4P’s ensure that all aspects of the sale are covered. Improving process of purchasing solar will not alone make a difference in overall sales if the price/value equation has not been addressed. If consumers are not confident about reliability of solar, improved pricing alone will not matter. All elements must work together to motivate target customer to take action. Hence, the dev. of a solar marketing plan must start with consumer in mind. Developing a Marketing Plan - How to Begin Marketing is a problem solving activity. Finding and understanding what problems require solving is the first and most important Step in constructing an effective marketing plan. Thinking like a retailer is key because it will ensure that programs and initiatives, as well as communications and promotions, are designed to create a call to action and move customers towards the sales process. A marketing plan is a living, breathing document that guides activities over a period of usually no more than one to two years and is focused on achieving quantifiable and measurable goals, such as megawatts of installed solar. Activities within the plan must address core customer segments that are important to the solar program, such as low-income housing, schools and institutions, large commercial customers, and installers. The process of developing an effective plan includes the following steps. Market analyses begin by assessing past successes and failures. Identify what has worked and what has not. Which customer bases are responding and which are under delivering? Are there geographic issues to be addressed within your plan? Customer Research If there are questions about the motivations and attitudes that core customer groups have about solar power, a customer research project and market analysis will identify the opportunities and barriers that must be addressed in the marketing plan. Solar programs may want to rely on an outside resource such as an advertising agency or marketing consulting group to help with this aspect of the plan. Establish Marketing Objectives What wills the marketing plan accomplish? What are the goals? A marketing objective might include a percentage

increase or megawatt goal for specific customer segments, such as commercial and industrial, residential, or institutional solar installations. Marketing Strategies How will the solar program reach its objectives? This report suggests that Cost, Reliability, Complexity, Inertia and Message all must be addressed in an effective marketing plan. There may be other strategies relevant to your specific market that should be included or receive priority. A marketing strategy that addresses value, for example, might include offering financial tools that reduce the high out-of-pocket costs for solar installations. A marketing strategy to address reliability may include raising visibility of solar in the marketplace. Implementation Tactics are the specific programs and initiatives that address the marketing strategy. The examples cited in this report from solar stakeholders across the country are examples of marketing tactics. The rest of the marketing plan includes a budget and timeline, as well as an approach to evaluate the success of specific tactics. There may be other resource needs required by the solar program. All key stakeholders across the organisation should review the marketing plan while in development to ensure that it is addressing the right issues and to ensure buy-in. It is also critical that implementation challenges be coordinated with appropriate personnel to ensure that adequate resources and timeframes are accounted for. In a solar energy project, solar PV panels / modules accounts for around 60 per cent of the total project cost. With increasing penetration of solar power in Indian energy mix, the solar panel market is also seeing a tremendous growth over the recent past years. Currently, India ranks as the third largest solar energy market globally which complements the solar panel market growth in the country. The cumulative installed solar energy capacity in the country has crossed the 28 GW mark. In other words, the country still has to accomplish more than 70 per cent of the 100 GW solar energy capacity targets set for 2022. With India’s eagerness to achieve 70GW of target makes it stand out as one of the most attractive market for solar panels / modules manufacturers and suppliers in days to come. Power Insight looked into the growth of solar panel / modules market in India while also analyzing the solar pv panel price trends and market competitiveness. Global Market Overview The solar PV currently represents one of the fastest-growing sources of renewable energy in the world. Global Solar PV capacity has been estimated to be around 500 GW at the end of the first quarter of 2019 – as per various market reports. Though, the year 2018 witnessed a fall in the demand however, market reports expects 2019 a comeback year for the sector. Various market reports predicts that the global solar PV market will see growth of around 25 per cent in 2019 and will install a total of around 130 GW worth of new solar capacity. Asia region has been generating the highest demand for solar installations since last 5 years and will continue to be the leader with an estimated market share of around 55 per cent for the next five years too. China, India and Japan have been predicted to be the highest contributors – accounting for over 75 per cent of this capacity increase, according to various market reports. Global Solar Pv Panel / Module Market The worldwide market for solar PV panels / modules was estimated at US$ 188.5 billion between 2012 and 2017, according to Global Data, the world’s leading data and analytics firm. Global Data aggregates the global solar PV module market value to decline and likely to be USD 137.6 billion between 2018 and 2022. Analysing the region wise market for solar pv panel / module in 2017, it reported that Asia-Pacific represented the largest share of solar PV panel / module market, registering 74.9 per cent of the global market share, followed by America with 15 per cent of global solar pv panel / module market share. While, Europe, Middle East and Africa region together accounted for remaining 10 per cent of the global solar PV panel / module market value. While many market studies have reported that the global solar PV panel / module market is projected to decline over the coming years due to changes in financial support provided the governments, decline in technology prices, shift in focus towards grid infrastructure development, and growth of other technologies. However these reports also suggest that the Asia-Pacific region that led the solar PV module market over the past years – will continue to lead the market. Although a drop in its share of the global market is on the card. The market is likely to decline as China the largest market for solar PV, has proposed the removal of subsidies in 2018, which is expected to have a negative impact on the market over the coming years. Similarly Japan has reduced its feed-in-tariff rate for solar PV which is likely to cause the market to drop. However, global efforts to reduce power sector carbon emissions

www.renewablemirror.com

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and improve self-sufficiency are few primary drivers which will contribute to the continued deployment of solar PV in various nations across the world. Top solar PV panel / module manufacturers that lead the global solar pv market are Canadian Solar, Jinko Solar, Yingli Green Energy, Hanwha SolarOne, JA Solar, Sharp, First Solar, Kyocera, Renesolar, SunPower and Trina Solar. India Solar PV Panel / Module Market Indian solar pv panel / module market has seen tremendous growth as the country has witnessed huge solar pv capacity additions in the last four years. With mega solar power plants developing in India at a full swing backed by huge amount of domestic and foreign investments is good news for solar pv panel / module manufacturers and suppliers. This was also possible due to ease in land acquisition and other legal approvals from the central and state government. The governance of the market is maintained by large domestic and international project developers with partial intervention of government. Solar pv panel market demand seems positive during 2019 as a positive market growth is on card. This is based on analysis of various market reports that says that over 400 MW of solar PV projects are in pipeline across India at the end of 2018. In addition, solar pv panel market is also expected to see a boost in demand from the rooftop segment. With technological developments in solar rooftop PV segment such as Net-Metering, Feed-In Tariff, Accelerated Depreciation Mechanism, Generation Based Incentives, etc., have pressed the use of renewable solar energy at small scale and this is expected to boost the solar rooftop PV market – too, over the coming years. Though solar pv panel market in India is set for a strong growth ahead, however, there had been some chaos in the market during the recent past. India that was the second largest solar market in the world till first half of 2018 has slipped to the third position. Experts believe that the solar PV market in India will continue to face disorder for some time moving forward. The solar energy installations in the country weakened mainly due to imposition of the safeguard duty and the Goods and Services Tax (GST), among other issues. Imposition of safeguard duty on imported solar pv panel was aimed at incentivizing domestic manufacturing. Unfortunately, it led to an increase in tariffs as solar components have become more costly. Thus, resulting in the uncalled for delays as well as cancellation of many solar auctions. According to certain market reports this duty levy could result into reducing the solar PV market demand in India by around 2 GW through to 2020. However, as India is aspiring to reach it 100 GW of solar pv targets and still has a long way to go. The country will remain as one of the major region that will create a substantial demand for the solar pv panels market. Solar PV Panel Technology Trends in India The three major types of solar pv panel / module available in the Indian market are Mono-crystalline solar pv panel, Multi-crystalline or Poly-crystalline solar panel and Thin-film solar panel. India, being a price sensitive market, the use of multi crystalline solar panel / module still leads the market. However, developers have seriously started considering mono crystalline solar pv panel for projects looking at the added advantages it offers. Solar markets around the world are noticeably inclining towards mono crystalline solar panels technology. Recent trends in the Indian solar market have also shown a significant increase in market share of mono crystalline solar pv panels. Mono crystalline panel’s offers high efficiency along with many more advantages over multi / poly crystalline panels. Increasing demand for energy efficiency and optimum resource utilization are set to propel the mono crystalline solar panel / module market growth in India. Meanwhile, one of the most important aspects of mono crystalline panels is higher ROI along with reduced use of land when used

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in large-scale projects. Since, land availability has been one of the major challenges in India – mono crystalline panel’s market share is projected to witness gain over the coming years. However, increasing investment toward utility installations coupled with declining component cost will keep the positive drive the polycrystalline solar PV module market for some time. PV Panel / Module Price Trends – India The decline in the cost of solar PV panel / module is one of the major factors driving the global solar PV market. If we look at the trends of solar panel prices – by 2014 the price of solar PV panel / module was reduced by 75 per cent, as compared to that in 2009. This decline can be mainly attributed to the improvement in material efficiency, production optimization, and economies of scale. Asia accounted for about two-thirds of the world’s solar photovoltaic additions for the last three to four years. In 2017, nearly 85% of the total addition came from the top five markets in China, the United States, Japan, India and the UK. While the Indian solar market completely depends on the demand and module supply. The last few years’ trends show a huge market boom in the country. The growth during the period was majorly dependent on the supply of modules at the lowest prices leading to competitive environment in the industry. As South East Asia – especially China has been the major supplier of solar pv panels to India – India has witnessed a declining price trends in solar pv panel / module space since 2014 till January 2019 with the increase in solar pv demand. The solar pv panel / module prices have seen decline of around 31 per cent during the period. The CAGR of module prices have been estimated to -14.78 per cent year on year basis. If the trend continues, the pv panel / module prices are expected to fall down to approximately 8 cents by 2026. As further analysed by the industry experts, the pv panels / modules prices trends in India have been in direct proportion to the demand trends. However, stable module prices are expected throughout the year, which is a direct result of continued high demand. Way Forward: The Sun has been worshiped as a life-giver to our planet since ancient times. The industrial ages gave us the understanding of sunlight as an energy source. India is endowed with vast solar energy potential. About 5,000 trillion kWh per year energy is incident over India's land area with most parts receiving 4-7 kWh per sq. m per day. Solar photovoltaics power can effectively be harnessed providing huge scalability in India. Solar also provides the ability to generate power on a distributed basis and enables rapid capacity addition with short lead times. Off-grid decentralized and low-temperature applications will be advantageous from a rural electrification perspective and meeting other energy needs for power and heating and cooling in both rural and urban areas. From an energy security perspective, solar is the most secure of all sources, since it is abundantly available. Theoretically, a small fraction of the total incident solar energy (if captured effectively) can meet the entire country's power requirements. There has been a visible impact of solar energy in the Indian energy scenario during the last few years. Solar energy based decentralized and distributed applications have benefited millions of people in Indian villages by meeting their cooking, lighting and other energy needs in an environment friendly manner. The social and economic benefits include reduction in drudgery among rural women and girls engaged in the collection of fuel wood from long distances and cooking in smoky kitchens, minimization of the risks of contracting lung and eye ailments, employment generation at village level, and ultimately, the improvement in the standard of living and creation of opportunity for economic activities at village level. Further, solar energy sector in India has emerged as a significant player in the grid connected power generation capacity over the years. It supports the government agenda of sustainable growth, while, emerging as an integral part of the solution to meet the nation’s energy needs and an essential player for energy security. National Institute of Solar Energy has assessed the Country’s solar potential of about 748 GW assuming 3% of the waste land area to be covered by Solar PV modules. Solar energy has taken a central place in India's National Action Plan on Climate Change with National Solar Mission as one of the key Missions. National Solar Mission (NSM) was launched on 11th January, 2010. NSM is a major initiative of the Government of India with active participation from States to promote ecological sustainable growth while addressing India’s energy security challenges. It will also constitute a major contribution by India to the global effort to meet the challenges of climate change. The Mission’s objective is to establish India as a global leader in solar energy by creating the policy conditions for solar technology diffusion across the country as quickly as possible. The Mission targets installing 100 GW grid-connected solar power plants by the year 2022. This is line with India’s Intended Nationally Determined Contributions(INDCs) target to achieve about 40 percent cumulative electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel based energy resources and to reduce the emission intensity of its GDP by 33 to 35 percent from 2005 level by 2030. In order to achieve the above target, Government of India have launched various schemes to encourage generation of solar power in the country like Solar Park Scheme, VGF Schemes, CPSU Scheme, Defence Scheme, Canal bank & Canal top Scheme, Bundling Scheme, Grid Connected Solar Rooftop Scheme etc. Various policy measures undertaken included declaration of trajectory for Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) including Solar, Waiver of Inter State Transmission System (ISTS) charges and losses for inter-state sale of solar and wind power for projects to be commissioned up to March 2022, Must run status, Guidelines for procurement of solar power though tariff based competitive bidding process, Standards for deployment of Solar Photovoltaic systems and devices, Provision of roof top solar and Guidelines for development of smart cities, Amendments in building bye-laws for mandatory provision of roof top solar for new construction or higher Floor Area Ratio, Infrastructure status for solar projects, Raising tax free solar bonds, Providing long tenor loans from multi-lateral agencies, etc. RM

Mr. Bharat Bhut

Co-founder & direCtor

Goldi Solar Pvt. ltd.

Goldi’s growth has never stopped. In just 11 years, we have grown exponentially from 10 MW to 2.5 GW manufacturing capacity. A leading OEM supplier catering to several international brands in 20+ countries like USA, UAE, Turkey, Myanmar, Italy, Greece, Germany, France, Denmark and Croatia we deliver high-end quality at a competitive price. Goldi has created significant in-roads in the EPC segment with value-based services and on-time completion of projects. With expertise across the solar value chain right from design and engineering to the execution of the solar projects, the company offers quality, reliability and performance commitment.

Q. Is there any product launch in RENEWX- 2022? We are not launching any products, but we’ve just started our production of 2.5 gigawatts, so we are selling 540 mono and glass to glass bi-facial. Q. How much footfall you are expecting? This is a very important market for us and we’ve seen large crowds today. We expect that this will be better than last year. Q. Please enlighten us about Goldi Solar Goldi Solar is a leading international solar brand serving 500+ clients and exporting to 20+ countries with high-efficiency solar products and solutions. Goldi has a 2.5 GW solar module manufacturing capacity with two facilities: 500 MW at Pipodara and 2 GW at Navsari. We rank among the top three Indian solar manufacturers. The company also recently forayed into the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) business and also has its own IPP projects and will have a 500 MW multi-technology solar power park in Gujarat. Q. How Goldi Solar’s journey been during pandemic and after the lockdown? We faced some difficult times, but with some strategic moves we ensured our production capacity utilization was at more than 65%. There was a boom after COVID because it was closed for many months. The first year of COVID we had very good demand. The second year the industry saw disruption in the supply chain and a rise in commodity prices. We still increased revenue by more than 80% as a company. So, despite many hurdles we grew a lot. Q. What are the products that Goldi Solar has showcased till now? At Goldi Solar, we've got a range from 335-watt poly to 550-watt mono perc bi-facial. So, 335 is standard conventional panels. The new panels which we are manufacturing currently are bi-facial and mono-facial with 10 and multi-bus bar. This is a very new technology to India because it has 10 bus bars and has multi-contact. As a result, the resistance of power is less, efficiency is higher and there is a lower temperature co-efficient. Overall, the generation at the power plant level and LCOE is better. In commercial terms, if you install multi-bus bar panels, your ROI will be reduced. Q. What are the new technologies that your company is adapting or currently working on? Goldi is working on two major technologies: one from Europe that will increase our module efficiency by up to 25%, and the other from the United States. There have been some changes to the cell and glass level. We hope to have this product ready within a year. There is one more technology that Goldi is working on, which is very high efficiency of the panel without increasing the size of the panel. We could manufacture a panel from 700 to 750 watts. Q. How Goldi Solar is supporting Atmanirbhar Bharat & Smart Cities Mission? For the last 11 years, we have been making solar panels in India and we have been buying a lot of material from India. We have 100 percent BIS for most of our products. But as far as Atmanirbhar Bharat is concerned, we are scaling up the capacity to feed developers and EPC. By FY25, we will start a 5-GW cell manufacturing line and expand our module manufacturing to 6 GW. We are coming up with a complete ecosystem where we’ll have raw material manufacturing, so as per India’s demand, we are very well equipped. Q. Is there any message you want to convey to customers? Goldi is very quality-conscious. Quality and reliability are two aspects that everyone expects and everyone delivers. The second factor is business transparency and commitment, as well as service availability. Many panels came from different countries to India and dump low-quality products in India, without any promises of after-sales services. So, I would say the next 5 years will be the era of service availability. RM

www.goldisolar.com

Álvaro Casado Portuondo

MAnAGInG DIrECTOr MIDDlE EAST PvHardware

At PVH we know that the efficiency of a PV solar plant depends not only on the reliability of the tracker, but also on perfect control and monitoring of its production. Our smart controllers, developed at our laboratories with our own Deeptrack IIOT technology, allow us to obtain the maximum performance from the photovoltaic plant through the analysis of big data and a precise control and monitoring of the energy production.

Q. How is PVH’s business shaping up in India? Which are the new technological innovation and digital efforts that PVH is successfully focused on?

PVH is heavily investing in India. Starting in 2019 we partnered with a solar training institute on which over 500 workers have been trained to install both our 1P and 2P solutions. We have recently opened our office in Gurgaon where our mechanical, civil and electrical engineers are based to support the engineering, construction and aftersales of projects. On that same office we will have our aftersales and business development anc commercial team to bring the same level of quality and support PVH is providing in other regions. Q. What are the market’s challenges, particularly in terms of cost, technical advancement, and getting raw materials?

There is globally an increase in cost of logistics and raw material that is penalising all sectors. We have the advantage of being capable of manufacturing our tracking systems everywhere, including our controller which is manufactured inhouse. With this possibility to manufacture everywhere we are avoiding the increase in cost and being able to support clients by manufacturing all tracker locally in India. Q. How successful was PVH as a global player?

PVH is a reference to all other players in terms of quality and being first to market on innovations. Because we have the capability to manufacture and test inhouse we reduce the time it takes to develop our products. This is particularly important in such a fast paced sector such as solar. With our client centric approach we are currently leaders in Europe and Middle East and we are the third largest tracker supplier in the world. Q. What are the new products showcased by PVH in recent years?

We keep updating all our products constantly to ensure we remain a reference in the market. Our latest development was focused on the dual row solution Axone Duo and the change to octagonal torque tube. With this change we were able to reduce the weight of the tracker (compensating for the increase in steel price and logistics) and to manufacture our tracker in most of the existing steel facilities around the globe (ensuring the manufacturing of the tracker as close to the site as possible). Q. How is PVH contributing or adding to India’s energy growth and development?

By setting up our training facility we have ensured there is local workforce able to successfully support in the complete value chain of the tracking system. From manufacturing all the way to assembly and commissioning of the tracker. Q. What customer support and services is PVH offering?

PVH provides local support to ensure our clients always have the best performance of our products and a fast support from us. Q. How is PVH promoting and encouraging innovative solutions to optimize time and cost benefits for its clients?

We always have our clients in mind when developing new products. We saw that there were inefficiencies in unloading the material on projects. The solar market has evolved really fast and we have gone from projects in the range of a few MW to projects in the scale of thousands of MW to be executed in the same timeframe. This creates a huge pressure to the construction companies to ensure there is always a good flow of material to the project and the best way to slove it is to automated. There was no solution available in the market and that’s why we developed the automatic unloading tool. From one hour, risk of damaging material and labour intensive work we went to only ten minutes and only two people needed to unload a full container. Q. How PVH is going to participate in RENEWX-2022? What are your expectations for this big event?

We are helping all players in solar market in India to see the advantages of tracking systems and helping them transition from fixed tilt to tracking systems with as less effort as possible. Q. What will be the industry's outlook for coming years?

Solar market will only continue to increase. There is a global requirement to reduce the reliance on fossil fuels and with solar and all the developments happening on yearly basis on the sector this target will be achievable really soon. RM

www.pvhardware.com

Mr. roHan sHelar

BUSInESS lEADEr, DISTrIBUTED, nOrTh & SOUTh InDIA longi Ms. sHikHa uPadHayay

hEAD MArkETInG, InDIA longi

Founded in 2000, lOnGi is committed to being the world’s leading solar technology company, focusing on customer-driven value creation for full scenario energy transformation. Under its mission of 'Utilizing Solar Energy, Building a Green World' and brand philosophy of 'Steadfast and reliable Technology leadership', lOnGi has dedicated itself to technology innovation and established five business sectors, covering mono silicon wafers, cells and modules, commercial & industrial distributed solar solutions, green energy solutions and hydrogen equipment. The company has honed its capabilities to provide green energy and has, more recently, also embraced green hydrogen products and solutions to support global zero carbon development.

Q. Kindly share your thoughts about Longi Solar Shikha: LONGi is a market leader when it comes to manufacturing globally and we are the largest module manufacturer when it comes to shipments. We are also one of the very few virtually integrated module manufacturers with wafers, cells, and modules in house. In India, we’ve been here for more than 5 years. We have supplied almost more than 7.5 gigawatts. That’s probably the highest volume for an international player in the country and we are very committed to the Indian market with a strong team in India and dedicated to Indian customers.

Q. What are the services and commitments you have given to your customers? Shikha: Longi has recently launched its customer-based 'LONGi Lifecycle Quality' which was established to guarantee that its products perform reliably and efficiently throughout their lifespan, allowing clients to achieve a high return on investment throughout the entire lifecycle of a PV plant. As we all know, solar is a very long-term commitment. It has to perform for 25 years and reliability plays a big part in it. Longi is a company that has been dedicated to providing support and value to its customers for the duration of its existence. Apart from that LONGi is proud to share that its most likely the only company that shares over 5% of its operating profit on the R&D, and that was staggering 589 Million USD last year. Q. What products Longi have been showcased till now? Shikha: We are a technology first company and have spearheaded many innovations in the industry.The HiMO 5 series, is an example of such innovation, and has many differentiating qualities like Smart Smoldering, MONO PERC, Gallium Doping, M10 Standardised cell, Low PID and LID losses and high efficiency of more than 21.3%. with 30 years of performance warranty. Its available in both Mono and Bifacial models in 72 cell format for Indian customers. The popularity of this product can be gauged by the fact that in over 2GW of supplies to India in the last fiscal over 85% was the HiMO5 Bifacial! Rohan: We are the world leaders in terms of technology, and the major products that we deal in are Hi-MO 4 and Hi-MO 5, which come with the mono-perc half-cut cell technology with M6 and M10 wafers. Apart from that M10 wafer, we are having Hi-MO5 that reaches upto 550 watts as a capacity per module and more than that, which is one of the kinds of innovative technology, i.e., bifacial and launched to the market, it’s been accepted vary widely in India. So, our bifacial product is one of the finest products which has the highest efficiency up to a 30 year warranty, and it’s been kind of giving fantastic generations across various tenants in India. Q. What are your plans for REI- 2022? Rohan: REI is a platform where all the eyes across India are always there. But we’ll definitely plan and come up with something new. It’s a platform where people across India come. There is a major footfall happening. We will make sure that some innovative things are introduced.We are also looking at launching our new product in the new market which is a big surprise. Q. What is the biggest challenge that you see in the solar industry presently? Rohan: One of the biggest challenges that we see is an intense focus on the watt-peaks and not on the energy yield. This is really important to understand that higher watt-peak does not mean higher generation! We should focus on innovation that increases the efficiency of the module and not increasing the size of the module to get a higher wattage. Customers are getting smart and they can’t be fooled by companies that promise higher watt-classes by increasing only the size of the modules and not any thing on the cell level innovation!

Q. Is there any message you want to convey to your customers? Rohan: Reliability and bankability are two of the most important things, and sustainable growth has to be there in the solar sector. Longi can be your long-term partner for all that because we are one of the finest and most bankable players in the industry. As solar is a long term commitment, there has to be a focus on quality first and we should always keep that on priority and quality comes at a price but in long-term the pay-backs and the IRRs justify the investment by providing consistent and higher energy yield, which is much more critical than merely focusing on watt-peaks. RM

www.longi.com

kHusHboo saCHdev

MAnAGInG DIrECTOr su-vastika systeMs Private liMited

Su-Vastika is a rapidly scaling startup that is preparing robust energy storage systems for a sustainable future. With an expert team of professionals from various industries, and under the leadership of khushboo Sachdev, the company aims to disrupt and reform the solar energy and backup landscape. We are a Power Storage and Power Generation Company as we generate power through solar energy and help in finding solutions to your problems related to Power Storage.

Q. How has Su-vastika Solar grown over the years and what a milestone has it achieved? Which are the specialist segments that Su-vastika Solar is successfully focused on? Su-vastika has grown in a satisfactory upward curve since its inception, from being a start up to 60 Crore company in less than 3 years. We have been lucky to have a couple of milestones in this short journey the top ones being namely our Intellectual Property growth; we have filed over 30 technology patents and have already received 2 Technology patents and numerous Trademarks, design patents and have many copyrights material under our belt. We have had a breakthrough in developing new products for lift backups the Emergency Rescue Device which replaces the old technology of ARD. We have installed our products in nearly 200 sites and have success in running hassle free for more than one year in various high rise buildings to name a few Tata Housing, M3M, BPTP and Signature Towers etc. This technology has given a big relief to the customers as lot of people used to struck into the lifts with the earlier basic technology. Our range of big products from 5-15 KVA Inverter/UPS storage solutions along with 3 phase Heavy Duty UPS having the range from 10KVA to 250 KVA which is to replace the generator sets as the Govt has banned DG sets in the Delhi NCR. Also working on Ongrid and Off grid solar solutions aggressively which is the future of the world. Q. What is Su-vastika Solar areas of expertise and its initiatives in promoting innovative and sustainable solutions to optimize time and cost benefits for clients? Su-vastika’s area of expertise is providing storage solutions for every need of the customer be it small products to big backup solutions with most advanced features and remote monitoring of the systems which are solar compatible. We work on solving the problem of the customer for example ensuring longer battery life in the Lead Acid battery we have introduced ATC technology which increases the battery life and increases the back up time along with other host of features. Also focusing on Wi-Fi based monitoring and controlling solutions for our various product range. Our latest project of inbuilt Lithium-Ion batteries backup solutions will solve the problem of needing huge space for a traditional Lead Acid Battery bank and it will give longer backup life too. Q. As quality comes with a price, how do you balance quality with affordability? Quality is one of our prime factors that we stress on because our largest customer base is oversees, Africa, Middle East and Asia, so we have to ensure that all our products are checked for quality thoroughly leaving no possible margin for error. We have developed Automatic Testing Machines at all important checkpoints in out production unit and all components like transformer, PCB Cards and the final product are checked and passed by the testing Machines in order to remove the manual error that can happen in testing by persons. These machines are having latest AI softwares built in and can be used for various other industries as well. These machines do the various tests in a particular time and has a printer attached to it which comes out after the test is finished. So, these stickers become the quality control check point for all our products. Al these stickers are having QR code which is automatically generated through these machines and there is no room for error by our testing engineers.im attaching few pictures for your reference as well. We have filed technology patents already on all these machines. Q. What are the new products shown by Su-vastika Solar in recent years? Our MPPT based solar pcu are a seeing a demand from the market, Solar industry is growing by the day and customers need reliable Indian products this is the space we are looking at capturing for our bug storage solution from 5-15 KVA in single phase and 10 to 200 KVA in 3 phase range. Also, the ban on diesel generators is another area where our heavy-Duty UPS products both single and three phase are playing a major part in providing reliable maintenance free power back up products to hotels, schools, hospitals, commercial as well as residential buildings. Lithium-Ion inbuilt storage solutions that we have developed will solve multiple problems of the customers. Q. What are your plans for capacity expansion and for growing your basket of value-added products? We intend to raise funds in the next two years as for basket

www.suvastika.com

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of products is concerned our Research and Development in the area of Lithium Ion, Solar and Lift storage solutions are ever evolving and will keep getting updated with new technologies, for example we have developed products with Wi-fi that will enable any customer to see the status of their storage solutions over the mobile device. Our application shares information on battery health, back up time, power sharing between grid and solar etc. in very consumer friendly easy to understand graphics. We like to take technology to people so they understand more about it. Q. Due to COVID-19, several industries are now using new technologies like artificial intelligence, machine learning, data analytics, etc. How is the construction and infrastructure industry using these technologies? Does it affect the industry or employment? Yes, all the industries are making a shift towards the AI based products and we are also working on the AI based products, in fact all our products have an intelligent program that goes in the micro controller and this program controls the functions and features of the inverter. We are providing digital warranty in our products so the hassle of keeping papers etc can be done away with and helps in keeping a check on false claims and tracking of AMC. It may look like that technology is taking away some jobs because machines provide accuracy and speed but that doesn’t mean new jobs are not being created. It also is opening many new fields of work. Specially the Wi-Fi based UPS we have introduced help the customer to check for any faults remotely without any visit to the customer and customers are really liking these kinds of things. Q. What will be the industry's outlook for coming years? In my opinion industry will see a huge shift from lead acid batteries to Lithium-Ion based battery. As not only this is cheap in pricing compared to Lead acid, but also is attractive for the customer. The life of these batteries is 8 to 10 years whereas the Lead Acid life is 2 to 3 years. The Wi-Fi based technology attracted the customer first time to understand the feature of inverter/UPS as the customer always thought of these products as having simple technology but after seeing wifi technology customer realizes the high tech of inverter/UPS. Another area is definitely replacing generators, with the pressing environment issues, alternatives of generators is the need of the hour. Q. What positive impact will the Budget 2022-23 have on the solar industry? The push to increase the share of PV module manufacturing seems promising but it also requires a lot of support from the government. So, its still to be seen how things will unfurl by end of year. But at least I see prices of solar panels going up due to the ban on Chinese products and increase in GST on panels and solar Inverters. Q. How is your export business shaping up? Exports is our main domain we have been supplying to many countries in Africa, Middle East and Asia. The penetration of market is increasing and we are continuously opening newer geographical locations each year. Focussing on South American countries as that is also a big region for us. The demand for made in India products is huge and people have garnered trust in us. RM

State Overview Gujarat

INSTALLED CAPACITY (IN MW) OF POWER UTILITIES IN THE STATES/UTS LOCATED IN SOUTHERN REGION INCLUDING ALLOCATED SHARES IN JOINT & CENTRAL SECTOR UTILITIES

(As on 30.05.2022)

State Ownership/ Sector

Gujarat Modewise Breakup

Thermal Nuclear Hydro RES Grand Total

State Coal 4510.00 Lignite 900.00 Gas 2177.82 Diesel 0.00 Total 7587.82 0.00 772.00 (MNRE) 92.79 8452.61

Private 7144.67 500.00 3985.00 0.00 11629.67 0.00 0.00 16993.80 28623.47 Central 6047.17 0.00 424.00 0.00 8471.17 559.00 0.00 243.30 7273.47 Sub-Total 17701.84 1400.00 6586.82 0.00 25688.00 589.00 772.00 17329.69 44349.65

Gujarat is located on the western coast of the Indian Peninsula. It has the longest coastline in the country of about 1600 kms. Therefore, Gujarat plays host to foreign trade and is a natural ‘Gateway’ to the fast growing economy. Conducive business environment, abundance of natural resources, skilled and semi-skilled man power, proximity to markets, responsive administration are a few reasons why Gujarat has turned a ‘Leader.’ A steady implementation of structural reforms to make Gujarat shine with its vibrant economy.’ MNRE steps in to help green energy developers The renewable energy ministry has held discussions with state governments to find out how much land they are willing to set aside for renewable energy parks.

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This follows a recent announcement by the ministry that it will ensure that land and transmission facilities are in place for developers who win wind and solar projects in auctions conducted by the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), its nodal agency. Last week, MNRE officials held discussions with their counterparts in Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, the central government official said, requesting not to be named. Meetings with Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Karnataka are in the offing, the official added. “We want the states to identify actual parcels of land where projects can be set up,” the official told ET. “Developers can bid comfortably knowing they won’t have to hunt for land. We will make sure Power Grid Corporation of India provides connectivity in these places too. PGCIL is already working on extending its transmission.” It is learnt that Gujarat has agreed to provide land to accommodate 10,000 MW; Andhra will be giving space for 8000 MW, while Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh have offered land for 19,000 MW and 5,000 MW, respectively. “The broad areas of land have been identified. In around a month, SECI will start floating more tenders,” the official cited earlier said. Gujarat, in particular, had been reluctant to provide land for centrally-auctioned renewable energy projects, since the power produced would not necessarily go to Gujarat, but could be provided anywhere in the country through the inter-state transmission network. The ministry hopes that these meetings will iron out any differences that may have arisen with the states. In March, it had announced an incentive scheme by which states putting up renewable energy projects would be entitled to Rs 0.02 of every unit of power produced by the plant, irrespective of where the power was supplied. Gujarat has associate degree put in capability of around 30394.29 MW. 22.94% of this is often contributed by Renewable Energy (RE) supply. The state has planned augmentation of generation capability considering current demand provides things additionally as demand from coming customers. Gujarat has remained frontrunner in climate economical initiatives by adapting numerous policies for promoting property energy sources. Another sig. undeniable fact that contributes to glorious power conditions in state is that the dominance of pvt. players within the generation sector. pvt. sector contributes to around 61.49% of total power generation followed by State Utilities with 25.35% and Central Plants having contribution of 13.14%. The rules and new policies have given a positive momentum to capability addition in past years. Generation capability addition in Coal primarily based thermal plants has been important alongside star & wind. 2 of the most important Power comes within the country i.e. 4620 MW (Adani Mundra Project) and 4000 MW (Mundra UMPP of Tata Power) is found within the Gujarat. Torrent Power is working 3130 MW of typical power comes in several components of the State. In last 6 years state utilities has value-added capability of 7,214 MW in coal, 1,429 MW in gas, 2424 MW in wind and 1127 MW in star comes. By 2022 state utilities has planned to feature 3540 MW from typical sources. Throughout an equivalent time it's expected that around 8000 MW from renewable sources are out there within the state. RE generation in state can result in property development. Gujarat is on the verge of infrastructure revolution. State’s gross domestic product has been rising at rate of growth of 9.3% over the last decade. State is involving integrated developments of enormous areas like SIRs, PCPIR and DMIC to rework the economic state of affairs within the state. India’s 1st SEZ for international money services GIFT emerges as a fore runner of recent opportunities in Gujarat. Attributable to the high pace of development peak demand of State is predicted to achieve 21,847 MW by FY 2022 at a CAGR of vi.3%. State has created adequate progressing to meet the coming demand. Considering the main target of GoI on promoting RE sources State would be needed to feature 8000 MW of RE by 2022. Gujarat is a renewable rich state and is witnessing frequent deviation in schedules due to variability in RE generation. In case the RE generation is excluded while working out the deviation at inter-state level, the impact of the RE generation would be minimized and would encourage further augmentation of RE sources. Alternatively, RE power may be absorbed in the national grid so that the generating stations of the State Utilities are not subjected to cyclic loading. The state has undertaken several initiatives leading to increased Pvt. participation in generation segment and has achieved consistency in capacity addition to meet its rising demands. Some of the initiatives take up by state for promotion of the sector are as follows. State has emphasized on increasing power generation from renewable sources such that RPO obligated entities like Discoms will able to meet their targets. To promote solar as well as non-solar power generation GERC has set separate RPO targets in each category. In order to promote solar power generation State has come up with Solar rooftop Net metering regulation & Solar pump schemes where in power generated can be used for captive consumption and excess power can be sold to third party or state distribution companies. State of Art Solar Power Park Project – Charanka Gujarat: Proposed capacity more than 750 MW. Currently 350 MW commissioned. Land selected 2000 Ha Govt. Waste Land for development of the Park. Enables accelerated development of solar project through availability of suitable land common infrastructure grid connectivity water availability.

Solar Canal Top Projects: State commissioned the world’s first canal-top solar power project over 750m on Narmada branch canal new in Mehsana district of 1MW capacity producing 1.6 MU/year/MW. Another 10MW Sardar Sarovar canal top project has been made operational in 2014 generating 16.2 MU/year. Solar Rooftop Project: For promotion of distributed power generation the state has developed solar rooftop projects of 5 MW at Gandhinagar and 4 MW at Vadodara. For wider consumer participation the state has rolled out the solar policy 2015 with special emphasis to solar rooftop project. Subsidy of Rs. 10,000/KW (maximum 2 KW) is provided by the state for these projects. Upcoming Ultra-Mega Solar Power Park Project: Capacity more than 700 MW. It is proposed to be built on 1,407 acres of waste land in Banaskantha district. MNRE released grant of Rs. 30 Cr through SECI to GPCL for development of this project. MNRE/GoI will provide central finance assistance of Rs. 20 lakh / MW based on achievement of milestone. Energy efficiency adoption is gaining momentum in Gujarat. GEDA is State Nodal Agency for MNRE and State Designated Agency for BEE. It works on RE& energy conservation policies framework and their implementation in State. It also undertakes investment grade energy audits on Govt. buildings including offices, educational institutes. Some of the other initiatives are as follows. State has broadened fuel base by adding renewable capacity over last few years. State is developing gas network & LNG terminals for improving gas availability. 1ststate to implement Energy Efficient pump sets in Agri sector. Conducting Energy conservation awareness & training programs. Implementing energy efficiency programs like Domestic Efficient Lighting Program, National LED Street Lighting Program and Super-Efficient Fan Program & PAT scheme in State. RE resources are remotely located from the load centers. Due to variability of RE generation the system operator is facing issues of grid management. State Regulatory Commission has incorporated scheduling of wind and solar generators in its Grid code in 2016. Forecasting is done by generators & SLDC is ensuring secured grid operation. Technical collaboration with Academia like IIT’s, NIT’s for solving RE grid integration issues and optimum utilization of transmission line is an initiative taken for promoting transmission sector by Gujarat. And in order to evacuate electricity from large capacity RE projects state transmission utility GETCO has made financial provision of 1,737 Cr to add 1,570 ckm of dedicated transmission lines with capacity of around 6,160 MVA by FY 2020. The State has a potential of 35,000MW in wind energy and 69,000MWin solar energy. Gujarat houses one of the Asia’s largest solar parks. After a feasibility study of Indian offshore wind potential, Gujarat is one of the two states that has been selected as ideal to feature the first Indian offshore wind farm. The state with a ~1600km coastline also has a potential of 8200 MWin tidal energy. Gujarat has the 4thlargest Wind Power installed capacity in the country which is about 3948.61 MW (as on March 2016). The Centre for Wind Energy Technology, an autonomous R&D institution under MNRE, has identified and approved 40 sites for wind energy deployment with annual average wind power density greater than 200 W/sq. m. at a

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50 m height in Gujarat. Over a period of last more than 25 years more than 65 sites have been monitored for the wind speed and wind power density, and over 50 sites have been found feasible for harnessing wind power. Gujarat has over 1GW of installed solar capacity, accounting for ~17% of India’s total. Gujarat also has Asia’s First Solar Park in Village Charanka,Ta: Santalpur, Patana in 2024hectares of wasteland. For setting up 3000 MW Generation & Manufacturing Facilities. 345 MW Capacity Power Plants have been installed at Charanka Solar Park. 91 plants totaling to about 1121 MW capacity were commissioned in Gujarat up to March 2016. The total bio-mass potential for Gujarat is about 1,800 MW from crop residue and about 140 MW from forest residue. 41.10 MW capacity biomass projects commissioned in Amreli, Junagadh and Vadodara. 14.389 MW waste-to-energy power generation projects. Institutional biogas plants with capacity15730 m3/ day across the state. Gujarat has initiated the world’s first canal-based solar power project on Narmada branch canal new Chandrasan village of Mehsana district. Energy generated from this pilot project will be directly fed into the local electricity grid and utilized by nearby towns and villages Gandhinagar: The Model Solar City project: GoI declared to develop Gandhinagar as a Model Solar City setting an example for Solar Cities throughout India and other nations. Two solar projects with cumulative installed capacity of 2000kWinstalledin the city. 7415 kW Grid Tied RoofTops installed under the Solar City Project. Wind-solar hybrid system with 60 KW capacity installed in the city. The Model Solar City project has led to an annual savings of 149.20 lacks in Gandhinagar. The project has helped reduce 14,900 tons of carbon emission and avoid usage of 10,430 tons of coal. Gandhinagar & Vadodara Solar Rooftop Programme: This Programme provides an opportunity to property owners in Gandhinagar City for participation by offering their rooftop or terrace for installation of Solar Photovoltaic System for solar power generation. 5 MW solar rooftops have been setup in Gandhinagar as part of the Model Solar City Project on Govt. and Pvt. Households. 328 locations have been covered in Gandhinagar including 276 households and 52 Govt. Buildings. The programme has been replicated in Vadodara too where solar rooftops with capacity of ~4 MW are setup. The owner of property is paid a “Green Incentive” on the basis of units (kWh) of electricity generated by the SPV system installed on the property. To raise the contribution of renewable energy in overall electricity generation within the state, the Gujarat government plans to add 3,000 MW of renewable power generation capacity every year till 2022, which includes 1,000 MW from wind and 2,000 MW solar energy sources. Renewable energy currently constitutes around 28% of total 27,200 MW installed power generation capacity in Gujarat. “In order to meet our renewable purchase obligation (RPO) of 17% by 2022, we plan to add 1,000 MW and 2,000 MW from wind and solar every year till 2022,” said Pankaj Joshi, managing director, Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd (GUVNL). RPO is the minimum percentages of the total power that electricity distribution companies and some large power consumers need to purchase from renewable energy (RE) sources. To meet its RPO target, GUVNL purchases electricity distribution companies and some large power consumers need to purchase from renewable energy (RE) source. To meet its RPO target, GUVNL purchases electricity from private and public sector renewable power project developers at tariffs reached through competitive bidding. “GUVNL will soon invite bids for 1,000 MW solar power projects to be developed in the first phase of 5,000 MW Dholera Solar Park. Also, a tender for procurement of power from solar and wind hybrid projects will also be floated in the near future,” added Joshi. To promote renewable power, state energy and petrochemicals department has organized a seminar on “Renewable Energy Opportunities in Gujarat and India” on January 20 as part of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2019. “Since the first Vibrant Gujarat Summit in 2003, more than 100 large investments in renewable energy sector have fructified within the state. These investments total over Rs 40,000 crore,” said Raj Gopal, additional chief secretary, energy and petrochemicals department, government of Gujarat. Apart from renewable energy, defence and aerospace is yet and aerospace is yet another focus area for the state government, which has organised a special plenary meet and seminar on the opportunities for industry in defence and aerospace on January 18. The seminar will bring together senior policymakers from the government of India, defence personnel, industry leaders and academic experts to deliberate on the emerging opportunities in the Indian aerospace and defence sector. India's jobs deficit: Project in Gujarat struggling to create employment The developers were tasked with transforming an expanse larger than New York's Central Park into a city with more than 100 skyscrapers supporting more than 1 million jobs - all within a decade. When he was Chief Minister of Gujarat in 2011, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi kicked off an ambitious project to develop a financial hub in the style of Singapore or Dubai. The developers were tasked with transforming an expanse larger than New York's Central Park into a city with more than 100 skyscrapers supporting more than 1 million jobs - all within a decade. Nearly eight years later, Gujarat International Finance Tec-City, or GIFT City, supports only 9,000 jobs and only about 3

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million of its 62 million square feet of planned development have been built, according to documents from the company's current presentations to investors reviewed by Reuters, and interviews with GIFT officials. Three million square feet are under construction. Despite efforts by the Modi government over the past five years to offer tax and regulatory concessions, and a big push to get banks and brokerages into GIFT, the project remains far short of expectations. GIFT's future is uncertain, with its main partner in financial trouble over soured bets in other projects. The lack of development and job creation at GIFT, critics say, reflects one of Modi's challenges as a whole as he begins a second term in office. Critics contend GIFT is a high-profile example of some of Modi's ill-conceived and over-ambitious initiatives. They note demonetisation - Modi's move in 2016 to ban all high-value currency notes then circulating - is another big example of overstretching, as was his government's hurried and botched rollout of a nationwide goods and services tax. Those moves stung small businesses and dented India's economy. "The real issue is Mr. Modi's quixotic approach to macroeconomic management," said Sebastian Morris, a senior faculty member of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, one of the country's top business schools. He said GIFT was impracticable, ignoring issues such as location and skills availability. Some bankers also complained that the Gujarat state's decades-long alcohol prohibition policy hasn't helped either. Modi's office and the Gujarat chief minister's office did not respond to requests for comment. A spokesman for GIFT said that the project's timeline had been roiled by subdued demand after the global financial crisis and the lack of a clear regulatory framework until 2014, when Modi took power. GIFT is now at an "inflection point," as the Modi government only set up a favourable tax regime in 2016, the spokesman said, adding that dozens of finance and technology firms, including Tata Consultancy Services and Axis Bank, have now set up shop in GIFT. He said two foreign banks, which he declined to name, are expected to begin operating there. India's two top bourses have begun international operations in GIFT and trading volumes have grown, but are still a fraction of that at India's main exchanges, making firms tentative about trading via GIFT. "Location has been a huge problem," said a retired stategovernment bureaucrat involved in the project for four years, who asked not to be named as he is not authorized to speak to the media. "Most companies are willing to pay higher rents and operate out of Mumbai because the talent pool exists." IMAGE MAKEOVER GIFT was conceptualised in 2007, soon after Modi returned from a trip to Singapore. He was eager to be seen as a business-friendly leader and rebrand himself in the wake of the 2002 Hindu-Muslim riots in Gujarat that tainted his image, four people who closely worked with Modi since 2003 told Reuters. GIFT was set up as a joint venture between the government of Gujarat and Infrastructure Leasing and Financial Services Ltd (IL&FS), which provides construction services and financing for infrastructure. Lease terms required that Gujarat get 50 percent of the profit from the sale of development rights in the first phase, and 80 percent thereafter. Reuters could not determine how much has been spent on development so far. To add to GIFT's troubles, IL&FS, which is laden with 910 billion rupees ($12.95 billion) of debt, largely tied to road and other infrastructure projects unrelated to GIFT, defaulted on several debt obligations late in 2018. One source involved in the project said IL&FS's woes had little to with GIFT, and he estimates that less than 0.5 percent of IL&FS's outstanding debt is tied to GIFT projects. The defaults by IL&FS and its group entities relate to loans and bonds financing other infrastructure projects as well as unsecured lending to non-creditworthy entities, according to an interim report from audit firm Grant Thornton, which IL&FS's new board hired to dig into the books. India's government took over the company in October, in a rare move that it said was needed to protect the country's financial system and markets from potential collapse. Law enforcement officials are also investigating IL&FS over potential fraud. Last month, India's Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) arrested the former chairman of IL&FS and accused him of abusing his powers and granting loans to

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entities that were not creditworthy. IL&FS has not publicly responded to the allegations and did not respond to multiple requests from Reuters for comment. The former chairman and his lawyer were also not immediately reachable for comment. GIFT's chief executive, Ajay Pandey, quit last month without citing any reasons. He did not respond to calls and messages seeking comment on his departure. The GIFT spokesman said that Pandey stepped down as part of a larger exodus of top IL&FS officials, and that IL&FS's troubles would not stall the project. IL&FS did not respond to multiple requests for comment about its financial health, the ongoing fraud investigation and its current role in the project. IL&FS did not respond to multiple requests for comment about its financial health, the ongoing fraud investigation and its current role in the project. "Mr. Modi sold GIFT as the flagship programme of Gujarat 12 years ago," opposition Congress party spokesman Sam Pitroda told media this month. "Today ... no one talks about it. There are failures after failures." The renewable energy (RE) sector is witnessing rapid strides on behalf of Gujarat that has entered with an array of mega green energy projects. These projects include issues related to electricity generation and equipment manufacturing. Gujarat's RE power generation capacity, backed by policy initiatives and strong investor support, is expected to jump to 38,466 MW by 2025 and 61,466 MW by 2030, as per estimates by the state government. The state's present total installed power generation capacity from renewable energy sources- solar, wind, hydel, biomass and bagasse, is about 13,152 MW. As told by Mamta Verma, principal secretary, Energy and Petrochemicals department, Gujarat government, told the TOI. "In the next 3-5 years, Gujarat will certainly be a global hub for the renewable energy sector. Our installed capacity to generate power from renewable energy sources is expected to surge to over 38,000 MW by 2025 and over 61,000 MW by 2030. These estimates are based on project plans that have already been finalized. The estimates are likely to be revised soon given the influx of fresh proposals." She added, "With the state and central government's policies and positive approach, Gujarat's dependency on non-renewable energy will be negligible or zero in the coming years," he further noted. Several mega projects are being implemented across the state to boost electricity generation from renewable energy sources. The foundation stone for a 30,000 MW hybrid (solar and wind) renewable energy park in Kutch, claimed to be the world's largest of its kind, was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The park, spread across 72,600 hectares, is being set up near the Indo-Pak border, around 90 km from Khavda. The project is estimated to attract an Rs 1.5 lakh crore investment. Four power distribution companies, affiliated with the state-run Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd (GUVNL), recently signed power-purchase agreements (PPAs) for 3,979 small-scale solar power projects (0.5-4 MW) with a total generation capacity of 2,500 MW. Expected to be commissioned within the next 18 months, these projects will bring an investment worth Rs 10,000 crore in sectors associated with green energy. Work-related to the development of solar energy parks at Dholera near Ahmedabad, and Raghanesda and Harshad in Banaskantha. Gujarat, the top state in solar rooftop installations, is also working on a slew of other solar and wind energy projects auctioned by the Solar Energy Corporation of India. RM

RenewX Expo Post Event

renewX eXPo to Consider reforMs to PoliCy in tHe renewable energy seCtor

The 6th edition of South India’s largest renewable energy expo, RenewX 2022, concluded in Hyderabad, which is emerging as the clean technology hub of the country. India has set an ambitious target of meeting half of its energy needs, which is 500 Gigawatt, from renewable resources by 2030 and reaching net zero emission levels by 2070. The Expo emphasised the increased penetration of renewable energy adoption and encouraged stakeholders to work toward long-term development goals. Overview interest facts - RenewX 2022 RenewX intends to accelerate the growth of the South Indian Renewable Energy Industry and contribute to the country's sustainable economic development. RenewX will provide an excellent platform for organisations to capitalise and penetrate this lucrative market. The event will bring together stakeholders from the sector and will help set a growth agenda for the future. This platform will offer multiple opportunities to network with key industry experts, showcase innovations by leading manufacturers and service providers and access sector trends, all under one roof. A comprehensive renewable energy event in South India, RenewX 2022 expo and conference will convene business, policy and finance experts from across the region and contribute to the country’s sustainable economic development. The expo will create an ecosystem in line with the PM’s vision to take up India’s renewable energy capacity to 500 GW by 2030 and provide a platform to the sectoral buyers and sellers, enabling them to connect and collaborate for generating business opportunities. The opening ceremony of the event will take place in the presence of key dignitaries such as Sri Sunil Sharma, IAS, and Special Chief Secretary to Government, Energy Department & Housing Department, Sri. G. Raghuma Reddy, Chairman & MD – Southern Power Distribution Company of Telangana

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Limited, Shri. N. Janaiah, Vice Chairman & MD – TSREDCO, Sri. Ajay Mishra, IAS, Director General – RESI and (former) Spl. Chief Secretary, Govt of Telangana, Mr. BRUSSELMANS PierreEmmanuel, Consul General, Consulate General of the Kingdom of Belgium in India, and Shri. Vinay Rastogi, MD – Bridge to India Pvt. Ltd, among others. With over 100+ exhibitors under one roof, including companies like Waaree Energies, Goldi Solar, Jinko Solar, Premier Energies, Jakson Group, Rayzon Solar, Adani Solar, Evervolt, Enpossibilities, Redington, Touch Energy, DNV, Impulse Green, ICON Solar, Raydean Industry, Invergy, Sunbound Energy & many more, the expo will display a wide array of latest product and technologies from different categories– PV modules, Hybrid systems, materials and Equipments, Inverters, charge controllers, batteries, Testing and monitoring systems, Component manufacturers, Bioenergy equipment manufacturers, Back sheet manufacturers and System integrators. RenewX has garnered tremendous support from the Ministries, Government Departments and top Industry Associations such as, Indo German Energy Forum, National Solar Federation of India, Bridge to India pvt Ltd, Indian Bio Gas Association and many more, to accelerate the transition to a more resilient and sustainable energy economy while also harnessing investment, employment and import replacement opportunities. To address the current challenges and solutions, RenewX once again is geared to 2 days of power packed conference with the theme ‘Unlocking the Era to Net Zero Emissions’. The conference agenda will comprise panel discussions and presentations on topics such as ‘Policy Regulations Need of the Hour for India for Effective Circular Economy in Solar Energy’, ‘Innovations and Technology the way forward to RE’, ‘Green Hydrogen – India’s Pathway to Green Economy!’, ‘Power Crisis – addressing peak demand through Renewables’, ‘E-Highways are Economic and Green only when powered by RE’, ‘Business Opportunities for AgriPV in India’, and ‘Bioenergy – A must for the emerging India Energy market!’ This year’s edition will also see the maiden edition of the RenewX Awards to be held at the Hitex on June 11, 2022. The awards will further support and encourage industry players with an impact in South India, who strive hard to bring about a sea change in the renewable energy domain with groundbreaking innovations and initiatives. A well-regarded jury panel comprising industry experts will confer and select from over 60 Nominations that are expected to be received. The awards will be conducted methodically with EY as Process Advisors. Another key highlight will be the elite All CEO Conclave which is intended to carve out a medium-to-long term blueprint for stakeholders to define the roadmap to achieve 500 GW of renewable energy by 2030. The 90 Mins closed-door format session is being chaired by Shri Sunil Sharma, IAS, and Special Chief Secretary to Govt., Energy Department, and Government of Telangana and will be attended by 20 – 25 CEOs across the floor. They will delve on the subjects of efforts Policy makers are undertaking to improve Indian entrepreneurial landscape in RE domain & up scaling the investment climate in the country with special emphasis on EV in Southern region. Speaking on the announcement, Mr. Yogesh Mudras, Managing Director, and Informa Markets India said, “We are happy to encourage various deliberations on policy matters that will define the renewable energy landscape at the 6th edition of the RenewX Expo with a focus on the hub of South India. India’s ambitious clean energy targets and bold policies reforms will take centre stage, which would include the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme of up to Rs. 24,000 Crores and the introduction to Sovereign Green Bonds in Public Sector projects, which would provide a vital boost to domestic manufacturing. As previous editions, the RenewX conference will be held in parallel with the exhibition creating a collaborative ecosystem that will bring together solution seekers and providers under one virtual roof with an opportunity to understand the manufacturing challenges and co-create solutions.” According to industry reports, the southern states (Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana &Andhra Pradesh) have 1,526 GW of solar energy potential and 1,124 GW of wind energy potential, making them the major contributors to India’s renewable energy ambitions. Organising RenewX 2022 in the southern part of the country with important initiatives like CEO Conclave and RenewX Awards will no doubt encourage buyers to invest in newer clean energy technologies and help India to achieve its renewable energy target,” he added. The Indian Government’s favourable schemes and policies which include green hydrogen and green ammonia policy, schemes in solar module and battery manufacturing, green energy corridor schemes and privatisation of state-owned assets have created lucrative opportunities for the Indian manufacturers. India is looking to become a leader in green hydrogen spurred on by the target of 20% ethanol blending being brought forward from 2030 to 2025. RenewX will also address the call for localisation and ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ and will be a reflection of the country’s green economy goals.