SeatCat

SEACAT WEATHERLY SECURES O&M CHARTER AT MORAY OFFSHORE WINDFARM (EAST)

Seacat Services sends OESV to support Moray East’s operations team off the coast of Fraserburgh, Scotland

Class leading offshore energy support vessel (OESV) operator Seacat Services (Seacat) today announces that it has signed a long-term charter for catamaran Seacat Weatherly with Moray Offshore Windfarm (East) Limited. Seacat Weatherly began its assignments earlier this quarter to support Operations & Maintenance (O&M) activity for the Moray East service team working at the 100-turbine, 950MW capacity wind farm. Building wind farms in deeper waters further from shore enables operators to harness greater wind speeds with fewer obstructions than on land, but trades its increased power production potential for more complex logistics. Conducting offshore technicians safely and comfortably to sites like Moray East is critical for the continuous provision of renewable power to Scotland and the United Kingdom. Seacat operates one of the most versatile, reliable, and advanced OESV fleets in the sector, with ongoing R&D programmes refining the formula for passenger experience amid demanding workscopes and challenging operational environments. Seacat Weatherly was the first Chartwell 24 catamaran to enter operational service in 2020, and over the past year has demonstrated the highest standards of performance in charters off the Scottish coast. Accommodating 24 passengers and a total of 11 tonnes of cargo at a service speed of 26 knots, Seacat Weatherly ably fulfils Moray East’s requirements in providing high speed crew and cargo transfer. The vessel is certified to the highest standards of safety and reliability with Bureau Veritas, and incorporates unique shock absorbing and noise reduction features to ensure technicians arrive on-site comfortable and prepared for work. Mark Drew, Managing Director, Seacat Services, commented: “The North Sea is a key location for the UK’s offshore wind industry; capitalising on the region’s strong wind speeds is vital as the government pursues its target for all electricity to be green by 2035. At Seacat we’ve tailored our fleet to support the build out of key offshore wind markets and are proud to be offering our best-in-class support to such important clean energy projects as those in development in Scottish waters.” Paul Cavanagh, Asset Director, Moray Offshore Windfarm (East) Limited, said: “We secured Seacat for this charter due to the reputation of its fleet for safety, reliability, and manoeuvrability. Seacat’s fleet of Chartwell 24s routinely proves its salt across offshore sites in Scotland and the UK; to have a domestic provider with such a track record for delivering high quality performance in the North Sea brings clear advantages to the Moray East project. We look forward to working with them throughout the development and maintenance of the wind farm.” RM

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India is targeting about 450 Gigawatt (GW) of installed renewable energy capacity by 2030 and, of that, a lion’s share – 280 GW (over 60 percent) – would come from solar. For the next 10 years, around 25 GW of solar energy capacity is needed to be installed every year, to ensure the sun continues to shine over the country’s sunrise sector. The target also means India needs to manoeuvre global supply chain issues, irrespective of geopolitical realities and mining concerns, impacting the producers of major minerals required in the solar industry. The Indian solar industry relies heavily on imports of important components such as solar cells, modules and solar inverters. Every year, the industry ends up spending billions on imports. According to the Indian government’s data, in 2019-20, India imported solar wafers, cells, modules and inverters worth $ 2.5 billion. The government has been trying to ramp up domestic manufacturing through various steps including increasing duty on imports. But, at present, India’s domestic manufacturing capacity is not enough to fulfil the demand for the installation of 25 GW solar power capacity every year. Currently, India’s annual installed solar photovoltaic (PV) manufacturing capacity is 3 GW for solar PV cells, 10-15

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GW for solar PV modules, 5 GW for solar inverters while we have no manufacturing capacity for “polysilicon/wafer/ingots”, another critical component in case of solar power systems. In 2015, prior to the Paris Agreement, India had announced that it will achieve 175 GW of renewable power by 2022, including 100 GW of solar. It was a huge increase in the target as the earlier solar power target was only 20 GW. At present, India has about 95 GW of installed renewable power and, of that, 40.5 GW comes from solar, which is spread across the country. Solar Energy is an important source of energy Currently Solar Energy fulfills about 0.5% of earth’s energy needs, however, as per several reports; Solar Energy is on the way to become one of the largest sources of energy. It is expected to supply 16% of energy requirements by 2050. India alone has set up a target of 100 GW solar by 2022. Out of which, 40 GW is to come from rooftop solar. Nonetheless, this journey doesn’t seem easy. There are obstacles at every step. One of the biggest markets for solar energy is the distributed rooftop segment. This is a game-changer segment. Advantages of rooftop solar PV plant are multifold. It aids DISCOMs by reducing the peak demand during daytime and leads to decreased transmission and distribution losses as the power is consumed at the point of generation, it reduces land and interconnection costs, it has minimum government intervention as there is less involvement of government infrastructure, it can also be set up in remote places, and it also produces considerable savings for the consumer over its lifetime because of the increasing costs of grid electricity. All the other energy solutions, wind energy, thermal energy, utility scale solar, nuclear and hydro and many others, require huge setups and investments. Then, these also require deeper and troubling government intervention. Hence, solar rooftop segment presents a huge opportunity for countries like India. Despite the obvious advantages, rooftop Solar has not really taken off. In India, Rooftop solar has maintained a 10-12% share of overall solar capacity1. This is much lower than other key markets such as US, Germany, China, Spain and Australia. Please refer figure 1 for a better understanding. Currently, India’s focus is to build more capacity and raise awareness about the technology in the market. At this stage, few topics which require attention are mentioned below. In our country the prime factor for the slowdown of Solar Photovoltaics (PV) sector in last year was the implementation of safeguard duty on imported panels. While imposition of this duty was aimed at incentivizing domestic manufacturing, it led to an increase in tariffs, resulting in the cancellation of many solar auctions and their retendering. This slowdown might be temporary, since long-term trends like falling cost of photovoltaic (PV) modules do remain in place. The growth in India’s solar capacity has been driven mainly by imported PV modules that enjoy nearly 90% share, as their costs are up to 30% lower. The safeguard duty was pegged by the government at 70% on foreign modules, but was introduced at 25% owing to pressure from energy companies. The industry is facing many other challenges which are creating a hindrance in industry’s growth. Challenges for the PV industry in India Cost and T&D Losses: Solar PV is some years away from true cost competitiveness and from being able to compete on the same scale as other energy generation technologies. Adding to the cost are T&D losses that at approximately 40 percent make generation through solar energy sources highly unfeasible. However, the government is supporting R&D activities by establishing research centers and funding such initiatives. The government has tied up with world-renowned universities to bring down the installation cost of solar power sources and is focusing on upgradation of substations and T&D lines to reduce T&D losses. Regulatory And Policy Aspects: The major concern of any project developer or EPC player is usually from regulatory and policy aspects. For example, net metering policy in India is more than 2 years old now. However, implementation on the ground is still not smooth. At state level, the electricity distribution companies are not willing to sacrifice their premium high tariff paying customers. Such policy level inconsistencies are a big deterrent to the ambitious plans of the govt. to meet their solar targets. Fluctuation in PV material price: There is fluctuation of PV material price in the market. A movement in price of Solar PV modules, which forms a major component of the installation cost, has the major impact. At Insolergy, we have seen residential solar market in India responding very fast to such fluctuations. These aspects are likely to impact many solar projects in the country. But we believe that customization and offering valueadded services with innovative solutions is the only way to succeed. India’s PV module manufacturing sector needs serious attention: India’s manufacturing sector is set to take a giant leap forward, with the govt. announcing a slew of measures to boost domestic manufacturing in recent past. As a result, various CoS are gearing up to expand their production facilities in India. However, Indian manufacturers continue to face a stiff competition with Chinese & other global manufacturers leading them to operate insufficiently. There could be various reasons ranging from the govt.’s existing domestic insufficient content policy to fewer types of subsidies or the interest rates on raw material thus making them to be inadequate in promoting the domestic PV module manufacturing industry. However, the challenges in the current policy regime & steps India might take to better position itself to become a global leader in the PV module manufacturing needs a strong overhaul. Solar power is the strategic need for the country as it can potentially save USD 20 bn in fossil fuel imports annually by 2030 & domestic manufacturing can save USD 42 bn in equipment imports by 2030. “In the absence of manufacturing, India will need to import $42 bn of solar equipment by 2030, corresponding to 100 GW of installed

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capacity,” warns a report by KPMG, an advisory firm. The report further highlighted that solar manufacturing can also create direct employment for more than 50,000 people in the next five years assuming local manufacturing captures 50% domestic market share & 10% global market share. Inventory Management & Capacity Utilization: Indian module manufacturers are operating at very low capacity utilization; however the capacity is currently sufficient to cater to the demand. The major reason for this is lack of demand for domestic PV modules & unavailability & limited access to raw material. Therefore, to at least keep their plants running, raw materials are stored in the warehouse. Also, the finished modules need to be kept in the warehouse because of intermittent demand in the market. Therefore, higher inventory levels for raw materials & finished modules increase the operating cost & puts upward pressure on manufacturing costs. More long term contracts with manufacturers could assist in this regard, allowing firms to procure raw material just in time to meet demand. Access to working capital is important for Indian CoS to compete against the firms from China/ South East Asia, who offer better terms. Inferior Technology and Quality: The efficiency and quality of solar panels produced by the Indian players is not able to compete with its global counterparts. This is because of the lack of technical expertise and intellectual property with Indian players. An earlier ban of silicon wafer fabrication, which was removed in 2013, is one of the examples of setback which the Indian panel manufacturers have had to face in the past. This ban has considerably set back the developments in the Indian semi-conductor industry. Another major issue is of dust in our environment. India being a highly populous developing country literally lives in a dust storm. And, as a matter of fact, even a single grain of sand can affect the performance of a solar PV cell/module. These challenges have had an overtly deep impact on the abilities of Indian Solar Panel Manufacturers. Market Scenario of Solar PV and Future of Industry The global Solar Photovoltaic (PV) Panels Market was valued at $118,704 million in 2016, which is expected to reach $307,204 million by 2023, registering a CAGR of 15.0% from 2017 to 2023. The key components of PV power system are various types of photovoltaic cells (also known as solar cells). These components are interconnected and encapsulated to form a photovoltaic module, the mounting structure of modules which is manufactured for the grid connected and off-grid systems. Moreover, solar energy is renewable and helps countries to meet their policy goals for secure, reliable, and affordable energy and provides electricity access with reduced price volatility and the promotion of social and economic development. Therefore,

decrease in price of solar energy has further led to the demand for production of solar power which in turn proves to be a cost-effective solution. The solar photovoltaic (PV) panels market is segmented based on technology, grid-type, end use, and geography. Based on technology, it is classified into thin-film, crystalline, and others (organic and concentrator photovoltaics). Crystalline silicon solar photovoltaic (PV) is further segmented into mono and multi crystalline. Based on grid type, it is bifurcated into grid connected and off-grid. Grid connected is further segmented into centralized and decentralized. By end use, it is categorized into residential, commercial, and utility scale. Based on geography, it is analyzed across North America, Europe, Asia-Pacific, and LAMEA. Recently, India achieved the third rank globally for solar installation capacity. Mercom India, a clean energy research organsation, has reported that the installed solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity has reached over 28 GW as of December 2018. However, this accounts for only about 5.5 per cent of the total global cumulative installations. India may have emerged as the third largest market for solar, but a comparison at the global front suggests that India has a long way to go in order to become a solar super power. India added 8.3 GW of solar capacity. It has observed a 13 per cent dip from the previous year, when the solar PV installation addition was 9.6 GW. The total installations globally accounted 104 GW for FY 2018, during which China and the US added 44.3 GW and 10.6 GW respectively. Surveys suggest that global PV solar installations will see nearly 18% rise in 2019, finally reaching and may be surpassing 100 GW capacity addition. Although, at the end of 2019, we would still be far from ‘0’ emission future, rising PV installation growth and emergence of new markets within developing countries will get us closer to that goal. China is predicted to lead the installation growth in the present year, but its market share will fall from 55% to 19% by 2023. Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa will scale rapidly and several new markets like Egypt, Span, Argentina, Vietnam will also see boost and may account for nearly 7% of global PV installation growth in 2019. The government has also introduced a number of incentives and specific policies to make solar more attractive to overseas investors, including national and state solar auctions, increased investment in the grid and various favourable tax adjustments. As a result, the country has made global headlines for the record low prices being realised in its latest solar auctions. India revises solar manufacturing tender specs to attract investors More than a year and 10 extensions later, the Union government has revised the tender specifications for the first solar manufacturing-linked power plant project in the country. Hoping to attract more investor interest, the tariff cap has been set at Rs 2.75/unit. Solar Energy Corporation India (SECI) on Tuesday issued a request for a selection (RfS) notice for selecting solar power developers. This will be for setting up 6 GW (per annum) of solar power plants linked to 2 GW of solar manufacturing plant. A bidder can quote any capacity up to 1.5 GW of solar power projects linked to 0.5 GW of solar manufacturing capacity, corresponding to one project. A total of four such projects have been put up for bidding. A company can bid for one or all four. In an interesting amendment introduced in the new RfS, SECI has allowed using imported solar modules at the power plant and not necessarily the ones manufactured at the linked unit set up by the company. Earlier, this was mandatory. “The solar power developers or SPDs would be allowed to set up a solar power plant parallelly with a manufacturing facility, that is, the mandatory requirement of using self-produced modules in the plants under this scheme will not be there. This can be set up either through imported modules or through modules made by the manufacturing unit being set up by the bidder or through any other domestic module,” said the RfS document reviewed by Business Standard.

www.renewablemirror.com

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Another addition in the tender is regarding manufacturing, wherein the companies can submit a bid for setting up manufacturing units for ingots and wafers as well as solar cells and modules. Ingots and wafers are key components in the making of solar cells. The module is a collection of solar cells and panels are the single power producing unit. The tender, however, has not included the long-awaited demand of the industry to include the existing solar manufacturing units. “As this scheme calls for setting up solar manufacturing plants in India, commissioned manufacturing plants cannot be considered under this RfS. However, expansion of the existing manufacturing facilities can be done anywhere in India,” said the RfS. After several extensions, the Central government, in January, decided to cancel the lone bid that came for setting up solar panel manufacturing along with a solar power plant. The single bid came from Azure Power in tie-up with Waaree Energies. The government re-issued the tender in March and it was also extended again. The latest global tender closes in August 2019. Indian solar cells and modules manufacture 'obsolete', says MNRE At a time when the government of India is trying to decide on whether or not the Indian solar cells and modules manufacturers deserve protection by way of anti-dumping duty, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has said that the cell/module manufacturing capacity in the country is “obsolete”. In a ‘concept note’ for supporting solar manufacture in India, the Ministry speaks of a “direct financial support” of Rs 11,000 crore and a ‘technology upgradation fund’, for solar manufacture. The Ministry notes that the country has installed capacity for producing 3.1 GW of cells and 8.8 GW of modules (cells are used to make modules). However, “even this capacity is not being fully exploited because of obsolete technology,” the concept note says. Only 1.5 GW of cell manufacture and 3 GW of module manufacture are used. It adds that the existing capacity is mainly of the conventional technology of multi-crystalline Al-BSF (Aluminium-Back Surface Field) solar cells, which have efficiency limitations and that very few players have ventured into the superior PERC (Passivated Emitter Rear Cell) technology. PER cells, which have a light reflecting layer on the rear, are more efficient and cost-effective. The Ministry has said it would bring in a ‘Technology Upgradation Fund’, borrowing the concept from a scheme of the same name for textile industry. The TUF could be an interest subvention scheme (as it is for the textile industry) or capital subsidy for technology up gradation projects. Apart from providing financial incentives for solar manufacture, the Ministry also proposes to “revive” the ‘domestic content requirement (DCR)’ scheme, which reserved a slice of the market for locally made cells and modules. The scheme was adjudged violative of global trade rules by the World Trade Organisation. Today, 1,436 MW of solar projects have been commissioned under the DCR and another 1,000 MW are under construction, but there won’t be any more. However, the government proposes to get central government-owned companies to set up 12,000 MW of projects using local-made products. The concept note also speaks of capital subsidies to those who set up solar manufacturing capacities, with subsidies indexed to the levels of value addition. Conversely, they could also set up solar power plants to supply the electricity needed for the manufacture, with facilities to bank the power with the grid for later withdrawal. Manufacture of solar panels (also called modules) start with polysilicon, which is made from silicon. Polysilicon is made into ingots, which are cut into wafers. Cells are made with wafers and a string of cells is a module. Today, only modules and cells are made in India, with imported material. At present, the only incentives available for manufacturing these is the Modified-Special Incentive Package Scheme, which is available to all electronic goods manufacturers and implemented by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, but there have been few takers for the scheme. However, a few companies have expressed desire to set up manufacturing facilities in India—notably, Trina Solar and Longi, both of China. “If these incentives are seriously implemented and there is clear market visibility of the next five years, then more manufacturers may decide to establish manufacturing units in India,” says Mercom, a renewable energy consultancy. India needs a solar manufacturing strategy India has made significant progress in creating capacity for solar energy generation in the last few years. The Prime Minister’s emphasis since 2014 has given a new fillip to solar power installation. The unit costs of solar power have fallen, and solar energy has become increasingly competitive with alternative sources of energy. India expanded its solar generation capacity eight times from 2,650 MW on May 26, 2014 to over 20 GW on January 31, 2018, and 28.18 GW on March 31, 2019. The government had an initial target of 20 GW of solar capacity by 2022, which was achieved four years ahead of schedule. In 2015, the target was raised to 100 GW of solar capacity by 2022. Relying on imports This rapid progress should have been made earlier, however. India is energy deficient, yet blessed with plenty of sunlight for most of the year. It should have taken a lead in solar panel manufacture to generate solar energy long ago. Despite the new policy focus on solar plant installation, India is still not a solar panel manufacturer. Just as India has had no overall industrial policy since economic reforms began, there is no real plan in place to ensure solar panel manufacture. The share of all manufacturing in GDP was 16% in 1991; it remained the same in 2017. The solar power potential offers a manufacturing opportunity. The government is a near monopsonistic buyer. India is regarded by the global solar industry as one of the

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most promising markets, but low-cost Chinese imports have undercut its ambitions to develop its own solar technology suppliers. Imports, mostly from China, accounted for 90% of 2017 sales, up from 86% in 2014. Substituting for imports requires human capabilities, technological capabilities and capital in the form of finance. On the first two capabilities, the supply chain of solar photovoltaic panel manufacturing is as follows: silicon production from silicates (sand); production of solar grade silicon ingots; solar wafer manufacturing; and PV module assembly. The capital expenditure and technical know-how needed for these processes decreases from the first item to the last, i.e. silicon production is more capital-intensive than module assembly. Most Indian companies are engaged in only module assembly or wafer manufacturing and module assembly. No Indian company is involved in silicon production, although a few are making strides towards it. According to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (2018), India has an annual solar cell manufacturing capacity of about 3 GW while the average annual demand is 20 GW. The shortfall is met by imports of solar panels. So we may not see domestic players, in the short term at least, replacing imported ones. While the safeguard duty now puts locally made panels on par with imported ones in terms of cost, the domestic sector needs to do a lot more to be effective. For instance, it will have to go down the supply chain and make the input components locally instead of importing them and putting the modules together here. Public procurement is the way forward. The government is still free to call out bids for solar power plants with the requirement that these be made fully in India. This will not violate any World Trade Organization commitment. However, no bids will be received as manufacturing facilities for these do not exist in the country. But as Ajay Shankar, former Secretary, Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, argues, if the bids were large enough with supplies spread over years, which gives enough time for a green field investment to be made for manufacturing in India, then bidders will emerge and local manufacturing can begin. Conclusion The large-scale adoption of renewable power, including a serious push for solar, is crucial for India’s clean energy transition goals. Though India has seen rapid growth in the solar industry, the road ahead is full of challenges. Manoj Gupta, who is the vice president of Fortum India, a company involved in renewable energy projects, told MongabayIndia that it is likely that the renewable energy target of 450 GW is achievable but India still has a long way to go. “To get to the stated targets, it needs to install more than 250 GW of renewable energy capacity in 10 years, or 25-35 GW of renewable energy capacity per year. This is more than twice of what India has been achieving in recent times and is by no means going to be easy.” He explained that over the last five years, India has added around 34 GW of solar power installed capacity. “While our domestic manufacturing capacity of 10 GW of modules is sufficient to meet this demand, we imported over 80 percent local demand for modules across 2015-19,” said Gupta while highlighting that the total value of solar cell and module imports during those five years was around $12.4 billion. However, the rapid targeted growth, which India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been talking about, would require millions of solar modules and every solar module would need a steady supply chain of all materials required for its manufacturing as well as for batteries. Vinay Rustagi, who is the managing director of Bridge to India (BTI), a renewable power consultancy, said that for every megawatt of installed solar power, on average, about 3,000 solar modules are needed. “A few years ago it was about 4,500 solar modules for every MW of solar power but with an increase in the size of modules and improvement in technology and efficiency the required numbers have come down,” Rustagi told Mongabay-India. 1 MW of installed renewable power capacity needs, on average, 3000 solar modules. A 25 GW capacity needs 75 million solar modules — every year. This means that India, which is trying to push its domestic manufacturing, may still end up depending largely on imports of solar modules from other countries. India’s solar power sector is heavily reliant on imports In March 2021, India’s Ministry of New and Renewable Energy had noted that “India’s solar sector, just like in any other country of the world, is heavily reliant on imports of solar equipment.” “Government have also noted instances of certain countries dumping solar cells and modules to kill the nascent domestic

industry, because of which government had to impose safeguard duties. Covid-19 pandemic brought disruptions in international trade including imports of solar modules and solar cells affecting solar capacity additions in the country. Considering India’s huge solar targets and that electricity is a strategic sector of the economy, India needs to develop domestic solar manufacturing capacities and reduce its dependence on imports to avoid disruption in future,” it had said. It had emphasised that the focus on achieving self-reliance has taken India toward the decision of “scaling up domestic manufacturing” which would also enable India to “export solar modules”. “This would also provide other countries an alternative avenue for procuring solar modules,” it had said. The government thus announced a basic custom duty (BCD) of 25 percent on solar cells and 40 percent on solar modules from April 1, 2022. Whether India manufactures those solar modules itself or imports them as a finished product from countries such as China, the supply chains of materials, including many metals, required for building them will be crucial. A May 2021 report “The Role of Critical Minerals in Clean Energy Transitions” by the International Energy Agency stressed that clean energy technologies including electric vehicles would require a huge amount of minerals. “The shift to a clean energy system is set to drive a huge increase in the requirements for these minerals,” it said. Depending on the kind of technology used, a solar module typically requires materials such as glass, silicon, copper, silver, aluminium, cadmium, tellurium, indium, gallium and selenium. What worries many countries pursuing renewable energy is that the supply and refining of many crucial minerals required in the solar and overall renewable energy systems are limited to a few countries. For instance, the IEA report highlights, South Africa and the Democratic Republic of the Congo account for 70 percent of global production of platinum and cobalt while China accounts for 60 percent of global REE production (rare earth elements). Moreover, China has a strong presence in the processing and refining of many minerals operations required for renewable energy systems. “This creates sources of concern for companies that produce solar panels, wind turbines, electric motors and batteries using imported minerals, as their supply chains can quickly be affected by regulatory changes, trade restrictions or political instability in a small number of countries. The Covid-19 pandemic already demonstrated the ripple effects that disruptions in one part of the supply chain can have on the supply of components and the completion of projects,” the IEA report said. India needs a long-term policy to ensure stability for the solar sector For a country like India, which doesn’t produce many of the minerals required for renewable energy systems, it should mean long-term policymaking to ensure that disputes with countries such as China don’t derail its ambitious renewable energy targets. Rishabh Jain, who works with the Centre for Energy Finance (CEF) of the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), a not-for-profit research organisation, emphasised that “estimating the mineral requirement across the renewable energy manufacturing value chain will help the government in taking a strategic decision on which technology and manufacturing step to support.” “Improvements in the manufacturing process, increase in efficiency and development of new products can significantly reduce the mineral requirement to produce every MW of renewable energy equipment. Recycling should be used as an important tool to recover critical minerals which may be difficult to procure in the international markets,” Jain told Mongabay-India. While on the issues of batteries required for renewable power systems, BTI’s Rustagi said: “India is yet to finalise a clear storage policy with targets. It is difficult to estimate the storage capacity required to support 450 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030. Currently, we are not producing batteries or even the minerals required for batteries. We are simply importing the finished products from abroad. The government has recently given a push for manufacturing batteries within India but at the moment we don’t make any.” Also, the mining activities for these metals, across the world, could end up triggering more social and environmental conflicts as many past experiences show that it leads to problems with local communities and severe pollution. In fact, a 2019 report by the Institute for Sustainable Futures (ISF) at the Sydney-based University of Technology, had said that if not managed appropriately, there are significant “environmental and social impacts associated with the mining and processing of metals used for renewable energy and technologies” which include “pollution of water and agricultural soils through the release of wastewater and dust, the risk of tailings dam failures and health impacts from workers and surrounding communities.” RM

Q. What is Ginlong Solis's highest commissioned capacity in India?

At present in utility we are having 70MWs plant which is getting part commissioned in Assam. Considering the rooftop installation we have various 8MW to 10MW plants which are running very well across various geographies of India. Total capacity is now 2GW with more than 1 lakhs of inverters supplies so far. Globally we have supplied 20GW+ shipments. Q. What new products will Solis introduce to its Indian customers? What are the key products introduced in India Renewable Leadership Summit?

Recently we have launched our off grid product in the range of 4k – 5k. These product are the having top notch design which can support Solar PV, Grid or any other generation source and External Battery pack. It can operate in conditions where there is no grid at all and can also be used to optimize the overall system efficiency by drawing minimum power from grid with no export. Another advantage for these products is the compatibility with both Lead Acid and Li-on batteries with a variety of battery brands . Product is also having the most required feature of one click fast charging. It Supports 1PH Parallel Connection- Support max 1p units parallel connection on 1PH System & Support 3PH Parallel Connection- which Support Balanced/Unbalanced parallel connection on 3PH System. Max total 10 units per system. Q. Will EVs become a viable choice for mass adoption in the absence of cheaper energy storage technologies?

I think with the new policy liberalization on EV Charging stations from the central government, the flexibility of setting up the EV charging station shall be eased which is a step closer towards mass adaptation. Also I am counting on the PLI schemes to make a sustainable eco system for energy storage technologies. Q. Which technology, in your opinion, will lead the solar inverter industry in the future?

I still perceive Grid Tied segment to perform well as compared to other technologies. The reason is evident from the fact that the current storage capacity is limited also the technology is already proven one. The rooftop has great penetration because of various support reasons be it a land or system’s modularity. Simultaneously Utility projects are very well adoption the string inverters which can provide better efficiency and optimize the overall O&M cost. This translates in lowering the LCOE cost of the plants. Q. What is the highest rate of Solis inverter performance? Do these inverters perform equally well in all weather conditions?

All the inverters from Solis are tested under extreme test conditions like temperature test like heat run or extreme cold conditions. Solis Inverters are designed to endure these climatic extremities. We have experience of working in most toughest terrains or the world. Parallelly we are regularly sharing our knowledge sharing segment where installers and end users can get to know the best practices for handling such equipment. Q. Do you detect any significant distinctions between the Indian and other large markets when it comes to inverters? What do you consider to be your most significant market challenge?

India has done very well last year in 2021 if you compare with US or Australia. Europe, Brazil and China Domestic market is still doing well which has support us in overall better revenues. We expect there would be a slight slowdown in Q1, 2022 due to the expect BCD on modules announcement but despite this I am bullish on the total installation to be done this year. Certainly, it would take some time to overcome this taxation change. Overall around increase of 30% capacity as compare to last year, would be figure which would be decent one.

Q. Can you tell us about Ginlong Solis' response to the COVID19 pandemic, the following lockdown, and any financial consequences?

During the reporting period, COVID-19 brought some inevitable pressure and challenges to Ginlong Solis. However, the company's capacity rapidly recovered increased to seize more domestic and foreign market share through the positive response of the company." Ginlong Solis pointed in the announcement that due to the recent rapid recovery of overseas market demand, the shareholders of listed companies will increase significantly during the reporting period. As a leading manufacturer of string inverters, Ginlong Solis has achieved steady growth in recent years. In Q3 of last year the company reported its strongest ever quarter. Yiming Wang, the president of Ginlong Solis, said that the company has launched some new products since Q3 of 2019. At the same time, the company promoted sales in traditional and emerging markets with marketing channels and marketing teams. Solis expansion into overseas markets continues to increase with the growth of Ginlong Solis's overseas offices, the company's product improvements, new technology response and competitive prices. As a result, Ginlong Solis boosted its global market share. In Q3 of 2020, since there is no time limit for pre-installation of residential systems, the average monthly installation numbers continue to grow. Sales of commercial inverters are growing rapidly as component and system costs continue to come down. "We expect several markets may exceed 1GW each year, and there will be a gradual improvement over time as installations accumulate and years of use grow. Q. What are your plans in India over the next two years? Is there anything new you're intending to release in the first half of 2022?

We are aggressive about the India market and so is the response. We are very strong in residential and C&I with the total installation, that's why we are the No 1 Solar Inverter Company of India, and achieved almost 80% growth as compared to last years overall. Projects with our utility product of 255k picking up very fast with total installation around 300MW by FY 2021. Next two years we are planning to achieve 80% to 90% growth. This year we are also in process to launch many more products in storage and Utility segments. Utility product shall be of higher capacity than our present product with more advanced features. EM

www.solisinverters.com

There is associate ever increasing demand for energy in spite of the inflation of oil fuel / depletion of fossil fuels. Energy demand, especially electricity production has resulted in creation of fuel primarily based power plants that allow out substantial inexperienced house gas / carbon emission into the atmosphere inflicting global climate change and heating. The Government of state is committed to mitigate the global climate change effects by delivery out policies causative to market renewable energy generation within the State. The govt. intends to create renewable energy a people’s movement a bit like rain water gathering. The state is endued with numerous styles of renewable energy sources viz., Wind, Solar, Biomass, Biogas, tiny Hydro, etc. Municipal and

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Industrial wastes may even be helpful sources of energy whereas making certain safe disposal. Renewable Energy (RE) sources give a viable possibility for on/ off grid electrification & wide industrial applications. Establishment of TEDA The Government of state complete the importance and want for renewable energy, and started a separate Agency, as registered society, referred to as the state Energy Development Agency (TEDA) as early as 1985,as per G.O.Ms. No.163, P. & D. (EC) Department, dated 29.11.1984 with the subsequent specific objectives:To promote the employment of latest and renewable sources of energy (NRSE) and to implement comes so. To promote energy conservation activities. To encourage analysis and development on renewable sources of energy. Despite Tamil Nadu (TN) slipping temporarily to the third position in terms of India’s commissioned solar infra. & its wind farms reaching their end of life, the state could account for 67% of the total installed capacity & 56% of generation from zero-emission technologies, says a report by the Institute for Energy Economics & Financial Analysis (IEEFA). In its latest study on nine of the top-15 countries & power markets globally in terms of wind & solar power, TN was ranked 9th. Ahead of it on the list were Denmark, South Australia, Uruguay, Germany, Ireland, Spain, Texas & California. In another report on TN's energy model, the institute has warned against the state’s efforts to build 22,500 MW of coal-fired power plants despite its favorable investment advantages & lower wind & solar tariff costs. With a 14.3% share of India’s total wind & solar power generation in 2016-17, TN is the top state in terms of variable renewables market share& installed renewable energy capacity. Of the 97 TWh produced in the year, the state accounted for 13.9 tetra watt hours. In terms of installed capacity, of the 30 GW across TN as of Mar’17, variable wind & solar power accounted for 9.6 GW, or 32%. Firm hydroelectricity added another 2.2 GW or 7%, nuclear 8% & biomass & run of river 3%. As such, zero-emission capacity is 50% of TN’s total, according to the institute’s report, ‘Power - Industry Transition, Hear & Now’. "With much of TN’s renewable energy coming from end-of-life wind farms installed 15-25 years ago, the average utilization rates are a low 18%, making the contribution of variable renewables to the total generation even more impressive," it added. The state was set to announce a 1-GW offshore wind tender in 2018 for commissioning in 2024-25 which would provide further system diversification in the medium term, it added. The state also has India's largest pumped hydro storage project of 500 MW underway at Kundah and with renewable energy deployments across the state likely to grow by 10-20% annually over the coming decade, this facility would provide the much-needed extra capacity to manage peak demand requirements, it added. A proposed interstate green power corridor would help the state, with more than 2,000 MW currently under construction, to supply zero-emission power to other states. In another report, 'Electricity Sector Transformation in India - A Case Study of TN', published earlier this month, the institute forecast that 67% of the installed capacity & 56% of the generation in TN would be derived from zero-emission technologies. At present, it is 42% of total installed power generation capacity & 18% of generation, making it one of the top states globally, behind only a few provinces in China

& Texas in the US.“IEEFA bases its forecast on a clear tipping point achieved in 2017: New renewable investments are being underwritten at tariffs of Rs 2.43-3.00/kWh, below the average tariff paid to NTPC, India’s largely central government-owned power generator, for thermal power in 2016-17 of Rs3.20/kWh,” said Tim Buckley, IEEFA’s director of energy finance studies, Australasia & lead author of the report. While it has temporarily slipped to the third position in terms of commissioned solar infra. In the country, the very successful 1.5-GW solar tender of July 2017 will see the state vying for leadership again by the end of 2018-19, it added. Estimates are that the total installed capacity in TN is forecast to expand to 55 GW by 2026-27. The wind tender outcome has come down to a record low of Rs 2.43 per kWh, down eight% on the previous record low & 50% on pre-2016 wind tariff norms, along with the lower solar tariff prevailing in the past two years, could act as an accelerant to the sector in the state. The study has cautioned against the state’s efforts to build 22,500 MW of coal-fired power plants in spite of its favorable investment & lower tariff for wind &solar. Assuming the state completes all plants with a capacity of 4.5 GW under construction & half of the new 5-GW coal-fired power plants permitted, the high priced coal-fired power plant capacity utilization will collapse to an unsustainable 45% average by 2026-27, it said. The total coal capacity will reach 16.6 GW even after allowing the closure of all the 3.75 GW of beyond end-of-life coal power plants. The state will have a 5.6% compound annual growth rate in electricity demand over this period."The addition of 10.3 GW of new utility-scale solar by 2026-27 looks entirely commercially feasible after the 1.5 GW solar auction of July 2017 at just Rs 3.47 per kWh. Combined with 1.5 GW of rooftop capacity, solar is forecast to provide one-third of all new generation needs this decade. Onshore & offshore wind capacity additions will provide an estimated 41% of the production uplift needed. Bringing online the 1 GW Unit 3 of Kudankulam nuclear would provide 19% of new supply needs, with biomass & run-of-river hydro the balance. Total installed capacity expands to a forecast 55 GW by 2026-27& coal-fired generation is reduced from 69% to just 42% market share in TN," it said. IEEFA holds enormous confidence that India is increasingly embracing an accelerating electricity sector transformation, moving up alongside China as a new world leader in this, the Asian Century. The merits of energy transition are multiple: lowering dependence on fossil fuel imports; improving India’s energy security; reducing India’s increasingly chronic air & water pollution pressures; accelerating domestic & foreign investment into India’s renewable & grid infra.; bringing much needed high quality employment growth; baking in a deflationary trajectory for energy prices for the first time in many decades; & building on the “Make in India” vision that will drive the value-added manufacturing & exports needed to sustainably grow the economy at the 7% annual target. This report provides an analysis of the state of TN’s electricity system &the likely investment pathway over the coming decade to 2026/27. IEEFA has modelled expected electricity demand & supply for TN, mapping a deflationary trajectory for wholesale electricity costs that also builds in a steady diversification away from the state’s current over-reliance on increasingly imported fossil fuels. Reducing losses from India’s distribution companies (Discoms) is critical for the transformation & long-term health of India’s electricity sector. The TN Generation & Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO) was slow to buy-in to the central government’s utility reform program, Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana (UDAY), but the progress made in the last two years has been staggering & will serve TN well in the coming decade. Progress is evident across several key parameters: a sustained reduction in the unmet power deficit; a material reduction in the average cost of supply (ACS) of electricity (thanks to ever lower solar & wind tariffs); higher average revenue received (ARR), some reduction of aggregate technical & commercial (AT&C) grid losses, particularly the ft & corruption; the benefits of refinancing & restructuring off-balance TANGEDCO debts; most recently now exporting renewable energy to other states at a premium to its acquisition cost (Rs5-6/kWh vs Rs3-4/kWh cost).TANGEDCO reported a record unfunded loss of Rs13,985Cr. (US$2.1bn) in 2013/14 & the ongoing financial distress has been a major constraint on electricity sector progress in TN. One benefit of TANGEDCO’s improving performance is that renewable energy costs will continue to decline as the bankability of the company’s PPAs continues to improve. IEEFA’s confidence in the sustained nature of the electricity sector transformation in TN can be traced to two interconnected developments: the significant reform progress at TANGEDCO & the fact that TN is the leading state in India in terms of renewable penetration, driving ongoing wholesale electricity price deflation. TN is home to NLC India Ltd (NLCIL), the integrated lignite mining & pithead power Generation Company that is the largest

www.renewablemirror.com

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electricity generator in the state, generating power at around Rs4/ kWh. However, as TN’s electricity demand continues to grow at 5-6%annually, the state has put in place what IEEFA believes are entirely unrealistic plans to treble thermal power capacity. This would rapidly build a reliance on imported liquefied natural gas (LNG) & thermal coal sourced largely from either Indonesia or central-eastern India, the later requiring coal transportation of over 1,650 kilometres. These new thermal power proposals all come at a prohibitive cost of electricity (Rs5-6/kWh). This looks increasingly ridiculous given TN’s leading renewable energy capacity of 10.6 GW & scope totreble renewable infra. in the coming decade at costs of Rs 2-4/kWh.TN has a total proposed coal-fired power plant pipeline of 22.5 GW, a staggering increase from the 13.4 GW of existing coal-fired capacity as of March 2017. IEEFA would highlight that collapsing utilisation rates are making even the existing coal plants less competitive with each passing year (the utilisation rate of TN’s coal fleet in 2016/17 was an estimated 61.7%, a 10-year low). Add in the high cost of transporting thermal coal to TN, plus falling renewable energy tariffs & TN’s coal-fired PPAs of Rs4.91-5.23/kWh are increasingly uncompetitive & unjustifiable. Building yet more expensive, non-pithead coal fired power capacity is entirely unviable & involves trying to get the already distressed financial & distribution sectors to fund stranded assets in the making, whilst expanding already problematic issues of water stress, flyash disposal & site rehabilitation. NLCIL’s decision in October 2017 to cancel its long proposed 3.96 GW coal-fired power plant at Sirkazhi village is a clear confirmation of these ongoing changes. NLCIL justified the cancellation by stating the import coal plant required a tariff of more than Rs5.50/kWh, significantly above both the prevailing renewables rate (Rs 2-4/ kWh) & that of pithead lignite power generation (Rs3-4/kWh). This is a sensible start to the rationalization process, but IEEFA forecasts many more cancellations will follow. This should start with cancelling the decade-long plan for the Cheyyur Ultra Mega Power Plant (UMPP), a clear stranded asset proposal &3.75 GW of end-of-life coal plant closures by 2026/27. Managing an increasing proportion of variable renewable energy capacity is an issue that must be addressed by stronger grid integration planning. TANGEDCO’s proposed 500 MW Kundah Pumped Storage Hydroelectric facility & the central government’s Interstate Green Power Corridor are key upgrades important to help facilitate this transition. TN Electricity Market As of March 2017, the total on-grid installed capacity of TN was 30.1 GW, 9% of the total installed in India. Just like the rest of India, the state is heavily dependent on coal-fired generation for its power needs (45% of capacity, 69% of generation in 2016/17). The installed thermal capacity in TN grew at average 10% annually since 2011. At the same time &a key reason for this report, TN is the leader in India in terms of overall installed renewable energy capacity & generation, especially wind energy. TN’s peak power supply deficit has constantly declined & FY2016/17 was the first year when it reported a zero peak power supply deficit. At 15.15 terawatt-hours (TWh) generated from 10.6 GW of capacity, TN represented almost one fifth (18.5%) of India’s total renewable energy generation in 2016/17. TN is also a leader in India with respect to house hold-level electrification, reported in the 2011census at 93%, materially above the Indian average at the time of 67%. Of TN’s 15.15 TWh of renewable energy production in 2016/17, 78.8% was generated by on shore wind, 12.5% from solar & 8.1% from biogas power. With ongoing production issues at the Kudan kulam nuclear facility & significant coal availability limits due to the distance from the northeast Indian coal fields, renewable & hydro have both provided important grid diversification & peak demand support in 2017. Structure of TN’s Electricity Board In 2010 the TN Electricity Board (TNEB) was restructured into the TNEB Ltd as a holding company, plus two wholly-owned subsidiaries; TN Generation & Distribution Corp.(TANGEDCO); & TN Transmission Corp. (TANTRANSCO), This was consistent with The Electricity Act 2003, which stipulated the unbundling of state electricity boards.6As of March 2017, TANGEDCO owns & operates 2.2 GW of hydroelectricity capacity, plus4.3 GW of coal-fired power&0.5 GW of gas power; it also has contracts for 6.0 GW of central government-owned thermal power generation & 5.6 GW of privately owned thermal power plants. As of March 2017, the distribution company has contracts for 10.6 GW of renewable energy capacities (7.9 GW wind, 1.7 GW solar, 0.2 GW of biomass & 0.7 GW from biomass co-generation plants). Interstate Green Power Corridor The development of India’s interstate green power corridor should prove beneficial to TANGEDCO &renewable energy developers in TN (where 2,000 MW is currently being built) & elsewhere across the country. Union Coal Minister Piyush Goyal told the LokSabha (India’s lower House of Parliament) that work on the Rs1, 369 Cr. corridor had started & that it should be operational by May 2019. In the light of many states falling short of meeting their renewable power obligation targets, TN's surplus renewable power generation could be in high demand in the national market, particularly if the central government is able to better enforce the country’s renewable purchase obligation (RPO). India’s RPO refers to the obligation of certain entities either to buy electricity generated by specified green sources, or in lieu of that, buy renewable energy certificates (RECs) from the market. In TN, the green corridor starts from Tuticor in district & ends in Kancheepuram district. The interstate transmission network scheme is being implemented by the Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL). About 30% (Rs3,410 Cr.) of the cost will be in the form of equity&70% will be concessional loans (Rs5,203 Cr. from German-based KfW&Rs2,756 Cr. from the Asian Development Bank).7 To incentivize optimal siting of renewable energy infra. Projects in areas with the best wind & solar resources, the central government in Dec’17 extended its waiver of interstate transmission system charges & losses for 25 years for all new renewable energy projects commissioned by Mar’19.This is a very positive policy support for renewables with a clear end-date. Along with investment in distributed battery storage, demand response management technologies, better diversification of electricity generation capacity across a range of fuel types, solar thermal power & pumped hydro storage (e.g. 500 MW at Kundah), interstate grid connectivity will each play a

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key enabling role to accommodate progressively higher market share of variable renewable energy sources. Onshore Wind Power Generation Under current GoI’s energy market vision, in 2015 India set a target to reach 60 GW of wind by 2022, up from 32 GW in March 2017. This implies national installs of 6 GW annually, a more than doubling of average installation rates over 2010-2017. In November 2017 Power Minister R.K. Singh announced plans to accelerate India’s renewables investment program, with 20 GW of solar&10 GW of wind to be added annually.52 The record low renewable energy tariffs delivered over 2017 (down 50% since the start of 2016) set the economic framework to accelerate India’s electricity sector transformation toward a more diverse, lower emissions system. With renewable costs continuing to fall, investing US$200-300bn in new generation capacity this coming decade could deliver sustained electricity system deflation. December 2020 saw Gujarat award a 500 MW wind tender at a new record low of just Rs 2.43/kWh (US$38/MWh), 53 8% lower than the previous record low for wind set in May 2017, And 50% below the Rs4.50-5.00/kWh subsidized tariffs awarded pre-2017.Extreme electricity sector deflation has caused near-term turmoil in India’s wind sector, forcing a drive to introduce the latest technology & adopt the most-efficient corporate structures & procurement processes in order to restore sustainable profit margins. Industry leaders like Suzlon Energy are confident this adjustment process can be managed medium term & install activity is likely to treble to 10 GW p.a. in line with the GoI’s policy ambition. Overall, TN has 7.9 GW of installed wind capacity as of March 2017. The National Institute of Wind Energy (NIWE) estimates that TN’s wind power potential is 34 GW at 100meters, with significantly more available as 120-metre-tall turbines of Europe are introduced. Wind: TN is a Global Leader As of March 2020, TN has 7.85 GW of wind operational. This makes TN one of the largest states in the world in terms of operational wind farms. The province of Inner Mongolia in China is reported to have 25.57 GW at the start of 2017, with Xinjiang province second at 17.76 GW.55 In America, Texas has 21.45 GW as of September 2017.56 In Australia the smaller state of South Australia with a population of just 1.7 million has 1.78 GW of operational wind farms, representing almost 40% installed capacity, making it possibly the highest amount of installed capacity per capita in the world. SembCorp in April 2017 won a bid to build a 250 MW wind farm in TN, with PTC India taking the full off take under a 25-year PPA. Commissioning is required by March 2019 & the full investment is Rs19bn. 57 Adding in potentially 900 MW from the August 2017 tender puts the state on track to reach at least 9 GW by the end 2018/19.August 2017 saw the finalization of a 500 MW wind tender by TANGEDCO at a near TN state record low tariff of Rs3.42/kWh, 1% lower than the central government’s then record low tariff award of Rs3.46/kWh in May 2017. ReGen Power Tech Company bid for 200 MW, Leap Energy250 MW&NLC 500 MW of capacity, such that TANGEDCO is seeking TNERC permission to expand the auction from 500 MW to 900 MW to leverage these record low price offers. IEEFA models a near doubling, to 15.0 GW, of operational wind by 2026/27 across TN. New Australian onshore wind farms being planned in 2020 have capacity utilization rates of 45-50%, more than double that of the average Indian wind farm. With much of the Indian wind farm fleet approaching 20 years of age, the scope over the coming decade for repowering is significant. Replacing near end-of-life 200-500 kW turbines with higher towers & new models incorporating the latest 2-3 MW technology provides a scope for up to a tenfold increase in wind capacity & potentially twentyfold increase in generation (raising capacity utilization rates from 15-20% to internationally comparable 30-35% rates) from existing projects whilst halving the number of towers required. A 2015 report by the Indo-German Energy Forum estimated that by 2025 TN would have 4 GW of wind capacity due for repowering, suggesting 40 GW of potential new capacity (36 GW net of closure & replacements).59 The "Policy for Repowering of the Wind Power Projects" announced in August 2016 provides financial & taxation benefits for repowering of any wind turbine of 1MW or below. Offshore Wind – A Decade Away Offshore wind costs are plummeting in Europe & this new technology is extremely promising, albeit roughly a decade behind the development curves of solar & onshore wind. IEEFA expects offshore wind to emerge as a cost-competitive source of electricity generation system diversification for TN by 2025. Providing grid diversification is a key advantage of offshore wind, as are its absence of land requirements & its proximity to heavily populated coastal cities, particularly in TN given its prohibitive distance from India’s thermal coal deposits. Northern Europe accounts for 90% of global offshore wind developments to date, but with Taiwan, 62 South Korea, 63 China, Japan & the U.S. all investing now in the next phase of growth, further technology & scale advantages are expected to combine with significant “learning by doing”

effects to drive cost deflation, 64 a trend that will be assisted by utilization rates of more than 50%, double Indian onshore wind rates. In the first half of 2017, China completed 2,066 MW of offshore wind projects, on track to meet its target of 10 GW of offshore wind under construction by 2020. IEEFA expects India’s 3,100 km coastline will provide significant opportunity for further domestic electricity generation diversification as this technology becomes more cost competitive &the long coastline of TN has some ideal sites.66 While trial deployments are being studied, commercial scale remains some time off.67While it is uncertain as to when Indian deployments might begin, costs continue to fall much faster than markets forecast. In September 2017, the U.K. government awarded three offshore wind projects totaling 3.2 GW through contracts for difference (CfD) with strike prices going as low as £57.50/MWh for projects scheduled for commissioning in 2022/23.Following approval by the Union cabinet in October 2015, development planning for India’s offshore wind industry has been coordinated by the FOWIND consortium, a collaboration & knowledge-sharing initiative with the EU, led by the Global Wind Energy Council.69 An October 2017 report provided a grid integration study for offshore wind farm development in TN & Gujarat, with a target of connecting 500 MW in each by 2025.In our TN state electricity model (refer Section 10), IEEFA assumes “just” 1 GW (US$3-4bn) of investment in offshore wind will be successfully commissioned by 2026/27, providing gleaning by doing to facilitate a tenfold expansion in offshore wind across India in the following decade likely to cost half the price of the first 1 GW. India Power Minister R.K. Singh surprised the market in December 2017 with the announced intention to tender for 5 GW of offshore wind as early as 2018.70 This statement was in the context of accelerating deployments of renewable energy to raise India’s zero-emissions generation capacity target of 175 GW by 2022 to in-excess of 200 GW. While we applaud this clear & ambitious policy signal, IEEFA would caution against undue haste in the implementation timetable. Clearly TN & Gujarat have been identified as the two key coastal markets with the best offshore wind resources. The very low price of onshore wind & solar are immediately cost competitive alternative. Secondly, a pre requisite for offshore wind is the need to build a whole new supplies chain& infra. system. Calling for a tender in 2018 with a 6-8 year progressive delivery timeframe (backed by cash deposits by winning proponents to ensure delivery) would provide the long-term security to achieve aggressive international bidding interest (particularly if a US$ financial hedge of the tariff can be facilitated). This should provide the necessary incentives to kick-start a major new industry in TN, one with excellent long-term growth opportunities. Solar Infra. India has set an ambitious target of 100 GW of solar energy by 2022, & while installations to date are behind schedule, IEEFA forecasts 2017/18 could almost reach 10 GW of new solar additions, marking the third consecutive year of near doubling in installs, showing momentum continues to build rapidly, underpinning the Indian electricity sector transformation. November 2017 saw Power Minister R.K. Singh announce an ambitious target to accelerate solar installs to 20 GW annually through a reoccurring tendering program aiming for 30 GW in both 2018/19 & 2019/20. If achieved, this would provide the planning & procurement framework to build investor certainty & expand manufacturing & EPC capacity to take advantage of record low, deflationary solar tariffs.71As of June 2017 TN is no longer the top state in terms of installed solar capacity. Government data shows that TN, with an installed capacity of 1,697 MW, has fallen into third position behind Andhra Pradesh (2,010 MW) & Rajasthan (1,961 MW).72Only 630 MW of solar power were installed in TN in 2016-17 against 919 MW in 2015-16. In the same period, Andhra Pradesh added 1,294 MW, Karnataka 882 MW & Telangana759 MW. Across the country, 5,525 MW of solar energy were added in 2016-17, an increase of 66% over 2015-16.A key constraint holding back the development of solar in TN has been TNERC’s rejection of the tender process used in other states in recent years in favor of retaining the power purchase agreement (PPA) model. This has seen TN signing PPAs at well above rates evident in other states in the last 2-3 years. In 2015 TN signed PPAs at Rs7.01/kWh, 35-40% above the price struck on similar deals at similar times in Rajasthan & Madhya Pradesh.73 Tariffs for solar projects in 2016 were struck at Rs5/kWh, but with TN’s move to reverse auctions, July2017 saw a record low (for TN) tariff of Rs3.47/kWh struck on 1.5 GW of new solar. This should see TN’s total installed solar base double by end 2018/19. Given the zero pollution & zero emissions nature of solar, plus the availability of large scale, immediately low cost tariffs with baked-in long term deflationary benefits, IEEFA forecasts that TN will see total solar installs increase six fold by 2027 to 12 GW of utility scale plus 1.5GW across the residential & C&I sectors. This is lower than reported targets for TN to set up 25 solar parks, each with a capacity of 500 MW & above, & reach more 20 GW of solar power installed capacity. However, TANGEDCO needs to

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continue to resolve its financial distress (refer Section 9) & provide stronger regulatory credibility & discipline if it is to continue to benefit from the accelerating energy sector transformation that low cost renewable provide. The latest two auctions treble solar projects under development across TN to 2.3 GW. In July 2017 TANGEDCO announced the results of a second 1.5 GW solar tender at a new record low tariff for TN of Rs3.47/kWh after receiving bids totaling 3.7 GW. All bidders were required to accept the lowest bid outcome of the tender, but in contrast to the previous tender, the project completion deadline was doubled to 24 months. In August 2017TANGEDCO was reported as ready to issue the 16 successful solar bidder’s letters of allocation such that the project developers can start land acquisition & arrange finance. The first February 2017 tender for a 500 MW solar auction received a tepid response due to stringent conditions such as a project completion deadline of 12 months. Bids were received for 292 MW from 20 entities. The biggest bidder was Rays Power Infra Pvt, which sought & won 100 MW at Rs 4.40 per unit. The project size eventually went down to 224 MW with 16bidders. In June, TANGEDCO obtained regulatory approval for a uniform rate of Rs 4.40/kWh for 25 years. However, in August 2017 TANGEDCO announced it wanted to reduce the PPA pricing from the agreed Rs4.40 to just Rs3.47/kWh to match the excellent result of the 1.5 GW tender, refusing to sign the award documents & alternatively offering to cancel the agreements. This was reported to be in direct contradiction of the TN Electricity Regulatory Commission’s (TNERC) order of 13 June 2017 directing it to sign all PPAs within the month. Poor Discom Discipline has Lowered Investor Interest in TN Regulatory risk in TN is clear. In August 2017 TANGEDCO notified the winners of the February2017 tender auction that it would not sign the PPAs & was seeking a retrospective tariff reduction from the winning bid of Rs4.40/kWh to just Rs3.47/kWh, the rate tendered in the subsequent solar auction. In this instance, the distribution company is directly flouting the TN Electricity Regulatory Commission’s order of June 2017 directing it to sign all PPAs related to the first auction & submit them within a month. Risks of payment delays by TANGEDCO also increase the cost of solar in TN. Unlike Andhra Pradesh, which acquires land for solar parks, TN leaves developers the land acquisition responsibility, which takes time & increases capital risks for developers. The solar radiation in TN is lower than in the best locations of Rajasthan. The lack of contractual protection from curtailment risks by TANGEDCO also increases the cost of solar in TN, particularly for higher priced PPAs (be they solar or coal related).In July 2017 TNERC rejected petitions from three Adani subsidiaries regarding implementation of must-run status of solar projects in TN. Adani Green Energy (TN) had petitioned against TANGEDCO, TN State Load Dispatch Centre (TNSLDC), TN Transmission Corporation Limited (TANTRANSCO)&the MNRE in relation to curtailment of power from Adani solar projects. TNERC rejected the petition as it found that the issue of “MUST RUN” status requires formal adjudication & not exercise of regulatory jurisdiction. TNERC has directed the petitioners to file the petition as a dispute resolution petition (DRP) to take the matter forward. The Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL) directed the TNERC chair person to hear Adani Group's plea regarding the solar power curtailment issues. Rooftop Solar Given the forecast doubling of electricity demand in India over the coming decade, plus significant land use constraints/conflicts & unsustainably high AT&C grid losses, distributed rooftop solar is a rapidly deployable, cost-effective solution that will play an increasingly material role in India’s electricity sector transformation. India’s national rooftop solar installation rate grew 81% year-on-year in 2016/17 to 678 MW, taking the total cumulative installed base to 1.4 GW.80 The development of cost-effective net metering government policies & an easing of approval processes are both key to maintaining strong growth. The rapid development of ever-lower cost, behind-the-meter integrated lithium-ion battery storage systems will also accelerate rooftop solar deployments. With a national rooftop solar target of 40 GW by 2022, installation rates need to double in both 2017/18&again in subsequent years. The current installation rate& policy short comings suggest India is not on target for rooftop solar, with more conservative forecasts of 10-15 GW, 60-75% short of the target. But putting this in the positive, it still would represent up to a tenfold increase on current capacity in just five years. Heavy Discom subsidies of residential & agricultural tariffs (Rs2-4&Rs0-2/kWh respectively) across India limit the cost-effectiveness of rooftop solar & solar irrigation pumps in these subsectors, absent the politically difficult task of tariff reform. However, the reverse also applies. The cross-subsidies of retail electricity prices make rooftop solar applications immediately cost effective in the C&I subsector (given tariffs of Rs6-8/kWh). With the excellent 1 GW Indian Railways solar target providing an immediate uplift in activity to encourage capacity & skills building, IEEFA expects rapid growth to be maintained.TN is the leading state in India with respect to rooftop solar. As of March 2017, installs totaled 163 MW, 12% of India’s total. If TN can maintain its sector leadership, this would imply 1-2 GW of rooftop solar is a conservative target by 2026/27, requiring 100-200 MW annually over the coming decade. While a significant step-up on current deployments, it is worth putting this forecast in an international context. Australia’s population is one-third of TN’s 72 million, but Australian rooftop solar installations have run at an average of 1 GW annually over the last six years. One third of the population & ten times the installation rate. China installed some 36 GW of mostly C&I rooftop solar in 2017 alone. India’s ambitious plan of 40 GW of rooftop solar currently has issues of quality deficits in terms of operations & maintenance of the program as admitted by MNRE secretary Anand Kumar. He has recently mentioned that a new scheme is in development—SRISTI (Sustainable Rooftop Implementation for Solar Transfiguration of India), which will aim to address the clashes between the interests of Discoms & high-end consumers. As mentioned above, consumer tariff subsidies are a major impediment to rooftop solar growth. A second impediment appears to be TANGEDCO, which in July 2017 proposed to buy surplus rooftop solar generation at just 50% of the retail tariff, while also proposing new solar

capacity limits. The company clearly needs to give consideration of social equality & grid investment cost recovery. However, with the need to also encourage rapid investment in new generation capacity to match forecasted electricity demand growth, this policy proposal will prove counter-productive; stalling residential rooftop installations (a heavily subsidized sector)&encouraging rooftop solar + storage in the most profitable C&I sector. TANGEDCO should learn from international experiences; Discoms can play a key role in facilitating cost-effective electricity sector transformation, but they can’t stop an in evitable technology change. New technology applied systematically & in the most logical sizes & locations can best manage & enhance system development & stability. Conclusion State Energy Principal Secretary DP Yadav emphasised the need for phasing out coal based energy by transitioning to renewables. “Tamil Nadu has to move towards a green energy transition by retiring old thermal plants and re-looking at the energy mix and by generating and absorbing more renewable energy,” he said. Currently, Tamil Nadu contributes 16 per cent to India’s total installed grid capacity connected to renewables. Overall, the state has 42 per cent renewable energy installed capacity of its total energy mix. While coal remains the primary source of energy with 53 per cent of total energy generation for Tamil Nadu, the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) projections showed that a conservative estimate of 32 GW of renewable energy capacity could be added and it could absorb the entire incremental demand in the coming decade. IEEFA’s Kashish Shah, present at the webinar, also noted that the state is prepared to retire 4.2 GW of coal capacity which is now more than 25 years old. Another report points out that state-run distribution utility TANGEDCO, which has been running financial losses due to the increased cost of power purchase, can save up to Rs 35,000 crores by retiring 3.1 GW of old coal power plants, freezing expenditure on 3.5 GW of coal plants at the early stages of construction and availing cheaper power to meet future demand. Talking about the state's leadership role in green transition, Kashish Shah, an energy economist, said: “Tamil Nadu is a leader in wind energy by far and has a huge potential in wind repowering to modernise its older wind turbines. Tamil Nadu needs to take a lead on this and set an example for other states like Gujarat, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Andhra to follow in its footsteps.” On working out the net zero emission strategy between states, Yadav suggested, “Since Tamil Nadu has a huge renewable potential, the excess power can be supplied to states like Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand which are nearer to coal resources and tie up with them to export the energy to meet their daytime demand through our renewable sources. This can be adopted at the pan India level within states and can lead to states working towards their net-zero carbon emission strategy.” On analysing the cost-effectiveness of coal versus renewable energy, Yadav said that even if we discount the cost of storage to be cheaper, there is another clear case for renewables. “If we add the costs of health impacts and environmental hazards due to emissions from energy produced from fossil fuel sources, renewables will definitely be cheaper because we don’t calculate those costs while calculating the costs of the power, so coal-powered energy only seems to be cheaper.” The state’s solar and electric vehicle policies have created an enabling environment, which needs to be strengthened. Convergence exists between the solar and EV policies on the promotion of solar-powered charging stations. TRB Raaja, DMK MLA and member, State Planning Commission, Tamil Nadu said that EV will be the “biggest disruptor” given the number of e-vehicles that have doubled in just the last few months. It is driving the need for ramping of production and charging infrastructure from green energy which is solar-powered. Regardless of whether India makes a formal net-zero announcement or not, states have aligned their climate goals to achieve net-zero. Gujarat, Maharashtra, Bihar and the Union territory of Ladakh are focusing on a sector-wise approach to achieve net-zero. State actions can contribute to achieving India's clean energy mission of 450 GW by 2030. States like Gujarat, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Karnataka have already announced no new coal power plants and are transitioning towards clean energy to meet their electricity demands. RM

Renewable Energy

development of india'S renewaBle energy induStry in tHe laSt year and tHe road aHead

The fundamental goal of renewable energy deployment in India is to promote economic development, improve energy security, increase energy access, and reduce climate change. Sustainable development can be achieved through the use of renewable energy and assuring citizens' access to inexpensive, reliable, sustainable, and contemporary energy. India has risen to become one of the world's most attractive renewable energy markets, thanks to strong government support and an improving economic position. The government has created regulations, programmes, and a welcoming atmosphere in order to attract international investment and rapidly expand the country's renewable energy market. Coal, oil, and natural gas, which are used to generate power, account for one-third of worldwide greenhouse gas emissions. It is critical to improve people's living standards by providing cleaner and more reliable electricity. India's energy demand is rising in order to meet the country's current economic development ambitions. The provision of growing amounts of energy is a necessary condition for a country's economic growth. The Ministry of Power's National Energy Plan [NEP] has produced a 10-year detailed action plan with the goal of providing electricity across the country, as well as a second plan to ensure that power is delivered to citizens effectively and at a reasonable cost. The growth of renewable energy technology should be aided by a combination of push policies and pull mechanisms, as well as specific initiatives. Technology advancements, appropriate regulatory policies, tax deductions, and efforts to improve efficiency through research and development (R&D) are some of the pathways to energy and environmental conservation that should ensure that renewable resource bases are used in a cost-effective and timely manner. After a year of cloudy skies, the country's renewable energy sector is set to blossom in 2022, with an estimated investment of over $15 billion as the government focuses on electric vehicles, green hydrogen, solar equipment manufacturing, and meeting the ambitious 175GW renewable capacity target. India's renewable energy capacity was at 1.49 GW as of October 2021, accounting for 38.27 percent of the country's total installed power capacity and creating a significant opportunity for the construction of green data

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centres. India's renewable energy capacity increased by 1,522.35 MW in October 2021. (megawatt). India had 101.53 GW of renewable energy capacity as of September 2021, accounting for 38% of total installed power capacity. By 2030, the country hopes to have installed renewable energy capacity of around 450 gigawatts (GW), with solar accounting for roughly 280 GW (almost 60%). India had 101.53 GW of renewable energy capacity as of September 2021, accounting for 38% of total installed power capacity. Different Sources of Renewable Energy

Hydro Power: Hydro power is one of the most commercially developed renewable energy sources. A big reservoir can be utilised to create a regulated flow of water that will drive a turbine and generate power by erecting a dam or barrier. This energy source is frequently more reliable than solar or wind power (especially if it is tidal rather than river-based), and it also allows electricity to be stored for use when demand peaks. Hydro, like wind energy, can be more practical as a commercial energy source in some instances (depending on kind and compared to other sources of energy), but it can also be utilised for domestic, 'off-grid' generating depending on the type of property.

Solar Power: One of our planet's most abundant and readily available energy sources is sunlight. The quantity of solar energy that reaches the earth's surface in one hour is enough to meet the planet's whole annual energy needs. Solar power is altering energy markets all around the world, from home rooftops to utility-scale farms. Concentrating solar power (CSP) plants, in addition to solar panels that convert the sun's light to electricity, utilise mirrors to concentrate the sun's heat, resulting in thermal energy instead. The solar transformation is being led by China, Japan, and the United States, but solar still has a long way to go. Solar thermal energy is also used for hot water, heating, and cooling all over the world. A push for more powerful solar technology emphasises the importance of future cost reductions in moving away from fossil fuels. While grid-scale solar farms are already often less expensive than even the most advanced coal or gas-fired plants, more savings will be necessary to combine clean energy sources with the costly storage technology required for 24/7 carbon-free power.

Wind Energy: Wind is a plentiful source of environmentally friendly electricity. Wind farms are becoming more common in the United Kingdom, as wind power contributes more and more to the National Grid. Turbines are used to drive generators, which subsequently feed electricity into the National Grid, allowing wind energy to be harnessed. Despite the availability of household or "off-grid" generation solutions, not every property is appropriate for a domestic wind turbine.

Biomass: Biomass energy includes biofuels like ethanol and biodiesel, as well as wood and wood waste, landfill methane, and municipal solid waste. Biomass, like solar power, is a versatile energy source that may be used to power cars, heat buildings, and generate electricity. Biomass, on the other hand, can bring up a slew of concerns. Maize-based ethanol, for example, is criticised by some for competing with the food market for corn and for supporting the same bad farming techniques that have resulted in toxic algae blooms and other environmental hazards. Meanwhile, scientists and businesses are attempting to improve the efficiency with which corn stover, wastewater sludge, and other biomass sources are converted into energy, with the goal of extracting value

from materials that would otherwise be discarded.

Geothermal: Geothermal energy is obtained from the Earth's internal heat and has been used for cooking and heating in various countries for thousands of years. Underground reservoirs of steam and hot water can be tapped to create power on a huge scale through wells that can go a mile deep or more. On a lesser scale, geothermal heat pumps employ temperature differences several feet below ground to heat and cool some structures. Geothermal energy, unlike solar and wind energy, is constantly available, but it has drawbacks that must be addressed, such as the rotten egg odour that can accompany discharged hydrogen sulphide. Trends in Renewable Industry Technological Advancement: Interest in next-generation sustainable energy solutions is growing. Next-generation technologies are becoming increasingly popular. Stakeholders in the renewable energy industry are considering investing in them, which could eventually aid in the confident integration of variable renewables like wind and solar into the electric grid. Private investment and pilot projects, paired with federal research backing, might help accelerate the commercialization of developing technologies such as green hydrogen, enhanced batteries, and other types of long-duration storage in an industry that has traditionally focused on solar and wind. These technologies can deliver zero-carbon electricity and longer-term seasonal electricity storage, as well as relieve system congestion, reduce renewable curtailment, improve grid dependability, and make solar and wind energy integration easier, all while supporting 100 percent clean energy targets. The falling prices of renewable energy—a vital input in the production process—have been a major driving force behind the emergence of green hydrogen. Green hydrogen development is predicted to grow in 2022 as renewable energy penetration on the grid improves, owing to its ability to operate as long-duration and seasonal storage of fuel available on demand to generate power. States and energy businesses are also responding to this potential and building up renewable hydrogen production. A variety of emerging mechanical and battery storage technologies that offer long-duration energy storage and grid support are also attracting attention. New Business Models: Solar photovoltaic (PV) systems are now among the most cost-competitive energy alternatives on the market, with costs down by 85% in the last decade. The solar sector will certainly increase its attempts to explore novel configurations and business models as it exercises its competitive muscle. In 2022, the sector could see a surge in solar-plus-storage installations, as well as the exploration of floating solar PV modules and the expansion of community solar projects into new markets. Cost synergies, operational savings, and the ability to minimise storage capital costs with the solar investment tax credit are all advantages of combining storage and solar. Infrastructure Development: Transmission development, which is critical for connecting new, sometimes remote renewable energy generation to electricity consuming cities, is predicted to be a high priority for the renewable energy industry in 2022. Support from policymakers and regulators, as well as investments and innovation, are likely to assist unlock progress that has been stalled by permitting and siting delays. Transmission projects, particularly interregional ones, have posed a significant barrier to renewable growth in the past, due to the difficulties in obtaining regulatory permission from every state they cross, as well as opposition from landowners and environmental groups. Some Previous Investments and Developments in India’s Renewable Energy Sector Between April 2000 and June 2021, FDI inflow into India's non-conventional energy sector totaled US$ 10.28 billion, according to data released by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). Since 2014, more than 42 billion dollars has been invested in India's renewable energy sector. In 2018, the country's new renewable energy investment totaled $11.1 billion. India ranks third in the world in terms of renewable energy investments and intentions in 2020, according to the analytics firm British Business Energy. • Reliance New Energy Solar Ltd. (RNESL) announced two acquisitions in October 2021 to expand its capabilities. • Both acquisitions – REC Solar Holdings AS (REC Group) of Norway and Sterling & Wilson Solar of India – totaled more than $1 billion and are expected to help Reliance achieve its goal of 100 GW of solar energy capacity in Jamnagar by 2030. • Adani Green Energy Ltd. (AGEL) purchased SB Energy India for US$ 3.5 billion in October 2021 to improve its position in India's renewable energy market. • Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) and Amp Energy India Private Limited inked an investment agreement in August 2021 to facilitate combined equity investments of more than US$ 200 million in Indian renewable energy projects. • In July 2021, NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd. (NTPC REL), a wholly owned subsidiary of NTPC, issued a tender to domestic manufacturers for the construction of India's

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first green hydrogen fuelling station in Leh, Ladakh. • Reliance Industries said in June 2021 that it would invest Rs. 750,00 crore (US$ 10.07 billion) in the green energy sector. • Suzlon was awarded a contract by CLP India for a 252 MW wind power project in June 2021. In 2022, the project is projected to be completed. • The NTPC awarded Tata Power Solar a contract worth Rs. 686 crore (US$ 93.58 million) to build 210 MW projects in Gujarat in June 2021. • Adani Green Energy Ltd. (AGEL) inked share purchase agreements with SoftBank Group (SBG) and Bharti Group in May 2021 to acquire a 100 percent stake in SB Energy India. The overall renewable portfolio in India is 4,954 MW, distributed among four states. • In May 2021, Virescent Infrastructure, a renewable energy platform, purchased 76 percent of Sindicatum Renewable Energy Company Pte Ltd's solar asset portfolio in India. • The Central Electricity Authority approved the JSW Energy Karcham Wangtoo hydro power plant's uprating to 1,091 megawatts (MW) from 1,000 MW in April 2021. • GE Power India authorised the purchase of a 50% stake in NTPC GE Power Services Pvt. Ltd. for Rs 7.2 crore (US$ 0.96 million) in April 2021. Some Previous Government Initiatives in Renewable Sector • In October 2021, the Ministry of Power announced a new set of rules aimed at reducing financial stress for stakeholders and safeguarding timely cost recovery in electricity generation. • The Indian government suggested new guidelines for green energy acquisition and usage in August 2021. The new requirements are part of a government initiative to encourage large-scale energy users, such as businesses, to use renewable energy sources in their daily operations. • To stimulate rooftop solar (RTS) throughout the country, particularly in rural areas, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy plans to launch Rooftop Solar Programme Phase II in July 2021, with a goal of installing 4,000 MW of RTS capacity in the residential sector by 2022 and a subsidy. • In July 2021, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) approved the construction of a 4,750 MW renewable energy park at the Rann of Kutch in Khavada, Gujarat, by NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd., a 100 percent subsidiary of NTPC. This will be India's largest solar park, and it will be built by the country's largest power company. • The Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd. (IREDA) has invited bids from solar module manufacturers for the establishment of solar manufacturing units under the central government's Rs. 4,500 crore (US$ 616.76 million) Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, which will be implemented in June 2021. As of March 2021, the State Bank of India had sponsored 752 renewable energy projects in India, with a total installed capacity of 13.8 GW, for a total of Rs. 319.18 billion (US$ 4.28 billion). • The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved ReNew Power's request to exchange existing equity shareholdings for ReNew Global shares in June 2021. A reverse triangular merger of ReNew Global's subsidiary with RMG II was also allowed by the CCI. • In April 2021, the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) and CEEW’s Centre for Energy Finance (CEEW-CEF) jointly released the India Renewables Dashboard that provides extensive operational information on renewable energy (RE) projects in India. The Ministry of Power (MoP) released the draught National Electricity Policy (NEP) 2021 in April 2021 and invited input from all stakeholders, including Central Public Sector Undertakings, the Solar Energy Corporation of India, power transmission companies, financial institutions such as the Reserve Bank of India, the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, industrial, solar, and wind associations, and state governments. • The Union Cabinet adopted a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and the French Republic in the field of renewable energy cooperation in March 2021. Development of Renewable Energy Industry in India The government is committed to increasing the usage of clean energy sources and is now working on a number of large-scale sustainable power projects as well as extensively promoting green energy. Furthermore, renewable energy has the potential to provide a large number of jobs at all levels, particularly in rural areas. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has set a lofty goal of building 227 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2022, with around 114 GW planned for solar, 67 GW for wind, and the rest for hydro and bio, among other things. In the next four years, India's renewable energy sector is predicted to receive $80 billion in investment. By 2023, India will have around 5,000 compressed biogas plants. By 2040, it is predicted that renewable energy would generate roughly 49% of total electricity, thanks to the use of more effective batteries to store electricity, which will reduce the cost of solar energy by 66 percent compared to today's cost. * Renewable energy instead of coal will save India Rs 54,000 crore (US$ 8.43 billion) per year. 3. By 2030, renewable

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energy will account for 55% of total installed power capacity. According to the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), renewable energy generation will climb from 18 percent to 44 percent by 2029-30, while thermal generation would decrease from 78 percent to 52 percent. According to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy's year-end evaluation (2020), another 49.59 GW of renewable energy capacity is being installed, with another 27.41 GW being tendered. This brings the total capacity of renewable energy projects (completed or under construction) to 167 GW. The Indian government plans to create a "green city" in each state that is powered by renewable energy. Solar rooftop systems on all of the city's houses, solar parks on the outskirts, waste to energy facilities, and electric mobility-enabled public transportation systems will all be used to mainstream environmentally friendly power in the 'green metropolis.' According to Icra, India's renewable energy generation capacity addition in FY23 is expected to be 16 gigawatts (GW). "With India's commitment to decreasing emissions and reaching 50% of its energy needs from renewable sources by 2030, growth prospects are bright," Icra said, adding that "investment requirements remain significant, ranging from $450 billion to $500 billion to meet the RE capacity targets by 2030." This environmental campaign is expected to assist India in fulfilling its climate promises stated at the COP-26 session in Glasgow. Prime Minister Narendra Modi committed at the November summit to boost the country's non-fossil fuel power generation capacity to 500GW and cover half of the country's energy needs with renewables by the end of the decade. India's electricity demand is expected to climb to 817 GW by 2030, according to the Central Electricity Authority. With a total non-fossil-based installed energy capacity of 157.32GW, or 40.1 percent of total installed electrical capacity, India has met its nationally decided contributions target. Solar, wind, and hydropower each account for 48.55 GW, 40.03 GW, and 51.34 GW of this total. India's installed nuclear energy-based electrical capacity is 6.78 GW. Hon’ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi also pledged at the Glasgow summit to reduce India's total projected carbon emissions by 1 billion tonnes and the nation's carbon intensity by less than 45 percent by 2030, and to attain net-zero carbon emissions by 2070. From 2014-15 to June 2021, India's green energy projects got $7.27 billion in foreign direct investment. During the 2020-21 fiscal year, $797.21 million was received. Despite this, and despite the recent increase in the GST rate for solar generating equipment, solar bid tariffs remain extremely competitive, as seen by the quoted bid pricing of 2.17 per unit in December 2021. To make these projects sustainable, the developers must be able to procure modules within their planned expenses and keep the cost of loan funding below 8.5 percent. On the other hand, due to execution issues, funding challenges for a few developers, and a weak financial profile of some of the OEMs, the wind industry continues to see sluggish capacity increase, resulting in supply side restrictions. The government has approved a $12,031 crore plan to build infrastructure to transfer electricity generated by renewable energy projects, with the goal of increasing green energy output and meeting 50% of the country's energy needs by 2030. RM

GeoThermal Energy

tHe geotHermal projectS currently under development

Increasing demand of energy leads India to switch from fossil fuel to renewable energy sources. Geothermal energy is one such source of energy which is getting explored with time. Literature survey shows that geothermal energy is nascent stage in India. Exploration of geothermal survey started long back but exploitation of the same is limited. However, with at the preliminary stage Geological Survey of India has found around 340 hot springs across India. These hot springs are categorised into five major classes based on their tectonic features. This paper reviews a complete review of the works carried out in India for geothermal energy by various organizations. It highlights the different geothermal potential zones in India. It also talks about the temperature conditions of these potential zones along with geochemistry. The government organisation like GSI, NGRI and MNRE are the leading bodies for exploration and exploitation of geothermal in India. The aim of this paper is to promote geothermal energy in India for societal benefits. The paper discusses about the local development and use of geothermal water in various regions of India. It also narrates that how the geothermal water can be used for balneology, power generation, space cooling and heating, crop drying, honey processing etc. for societal development. From the energy point of view India requires huge thrust in exploration and exploitation in field of geothermal resources. Among all the surveys known, Geophysical survey is the most important survey for understanding subsurface sweet spots. It is found that most of the methods for geothermal exploration were based on the parameters which are directly influenced by the activities like self-potential, geophysical well logs, geochemistry and electrical methods. The physical parameters of the host rock are explored by the various geophysical techniques like Gravity, Magnetic, Seismic, Magneto telluric and Electrical Resistivity surveys etc. The interpretation of the survey data provides structural size of the geothermal bodies as well as the hot fluid content. In many regions of the world the geothermal energy is present in forms of steam and hot water which is used for the purpose of electricity generation, space heating and cooling etc.. Increase in the conventional fuel prices has increased the interest in other forms of renewable energy sources in India. The reservoirs of geothermal energy can be suspected in areas where there is a presence of geysers, bubbling muds and hot pools.

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In this paper authors have investigated potential geothermal fields in India. The objective of this paper is to investigate and document the experience and models pertaining to geothermal energy development in India and its societal uses. On the basis of geothermal enthalpy the water is used for various direct and indirect applications in different regions of India such as drying timber, refrigeration, drying cotton, honey processing, crop drying etc. India has planned to satiate the country’s growing energy demand by the year 2040. For sustainable growth, the country must optimize the use of available energy sources (conventional and renewable) in an environment-friendly manner. Since India is the third largest country in the world emitting greenhouse gases, it is very important to increase the share of renewable and green energy sources like geothermal energy, solar power, wind energy, etc. in the energy portfolio. While there has been a significant increase in solar and wind energy production, geothermal energy is yet to be exploited. India has several potential geothermal fields predominantly controlled by the high heat-producing granites are located in different parts of the country. Planned production of electricity from these fields is 850 GWh/year by the year 2020. A wet geothermal system, as well as enhanced geothermal system, can be utilized to generate electricity at low production cost. Moreover, some of these fields are also rich in helium content which can be extracted to be utilized for domestic purposes. ‘Geothermal’ literally means ‘Earth’s heat, which is estimated to be 5,500 degrees centigrade at the Earth’s core – about as hot as the surface of the sun. Geothermal energy is a clean, renewable resource that can be tapped by many countries around the world located in geologically favorable places. Geothermal energy can be harnessed from underground reservoirs, containing hot rocks saturated with water and/or steam. Boreholes of typically two kilometers depth or more are drilled into the reservoirs. The hot water and steam are then piped up to a geothermal power plant, where they are used to drive electric generators to create power for businesses and homes. Geothermal energy is considered a renewable resource because it exploits the Earth’s interior heat, which is considered abundant, and water, once used and cooled, is then piped back to the reservoir. Utilization of geothermal resources Geothermal energy can be utilized for electricity generation and for various other types of heat direct use applications, e.g. heating purposes, fish farming, bathing etc. Compared to other renewable energy technologies, geothermal is unique as it provides a base-load alternative to fossil fuels based electricity generation, but can also replace those used for heating purposes. High temperature geothermal resources are most important for electricity generation (temperatures greater than 150 degrees Celsium), while medium-to-low temperature resources (below 150 degrees Celsium) are suited for many different types of applications utilizing heat. The classical Lindal diagram provides a good overview of the typical utilization forms of geothermal energy by temperature ranges. Characteristics and Applications of heat energy Geothermal energy is a colossal, underused heat and power resource that's clean (emits very little or no greenhouse gases), reliable (average system accessibility of 95%), and native

(making US less addicted to foreign oil). Energy resources vary from shallow ground to plight and rock many miles below the Earth's surface, and even farther right down to the very hot liquefied rock known as rock. Mile-or-more-deep wells are often trained into underground reservoirs to faucet steam and really plight that may be dropped at the surface to be used during a form of applications. The general characteristics of heat that build it of great importance for each electricity production and direct use include: 1. In depth world distribution; it's accessible to each developed and developing countries. 2. Environmentally friendly nature; its low emission of sulphur, greenhouse emission and different greenhouse gases. 3. Indigenous nature; it's freelance of external provide and demand effects and fluctuations in exchange rates. 4. Independence of weather and season. 5. Contribution to the event of heterogeneous power sources. Geothermal energy will be used terribly effectively in each on- and off-grid developments, and is very helpful in rural electrification schemes. Its use spans an oversized vary from power generation to direct heat uses, the latter potential mistreatment each vasoconstrictor resources and “cascade” strategies. Cascade strategies use the recent water remaining from higher temperature applications (e.g., electricity generation) in in turn lower temperature processes, which can embrace binary systems to get additional power and direct heat uses (bathing and swimming; house heating, as well as district heating; greenhouse and open ground heating; process heat; cultivation pool and raceway heating; agricultural drying; etc.) Geothermal Energy Scenario: India and therefore the world Geothermal power plants operated in a minimum of twenty four countries in 2010, and heat was used directly for warmth in a minimum of seventy eight countries. These countries presently have energy power plants with a complete capability of 10.7 GW, however half of 1 mile of its generated in barely seven countries: the us, the Philippines, Indonesia, Mexico, Italy, New island, and Iceland. The foremost vital capability will increase since 2004 were seen in Iceland and Turkey. Each country doubled their capability. Iceland has the biggest share of energy power conducive to electricity provide (25%), followed by the Philippines (18%). The quantity of nations utilizing heat to get electricity has over doubled since 1975, increasing from ten in 1975 to twenty four in 2004. In 2003, total heat provide was twenty MToE (metric weight unit Oil Equivalent), accounting for zero.4% of total primary energy provide in IEA member countries. The share of energy in total renewable energy provides was seven.1%. Over the last twenty years, capital prices for energy power systems shrunken by a big five hundredth. Such giant price reductions area unit typically the results of resolution the “easier” issues related to science and technology improvement within the early years of development. Although energy power development slowed in 2010, with world capability reaching simply over eleven GW, a big acceleration within the rate of readying is anticipated as advanced technologies leave development in new countries. Heat output from energy sources increased by a median rate of just about 9/11 annually over the past decade, due in the main to ascent within the use of ground-source heat pumps. Use of heat for combined heat and power is additionally on the increase. India has moderately sensible potential for energy; the potential geothermal provinces will turn out 10,600 MW of power (but consultant’s area unit assured solely to the extent of a hundred MW). However energy power comes has not been exploited in the least, thanks to a spread of reasons, the chief being the provision of plentiful coal at low-cost prices. However, with increasing environmental issues with coal primarily based comes, Asian country can ought to begin betting on clean and eco-friendly energy sources in future; one amongst that may be energy. Technology Mile-or-more-deep wells will be trained into underground reservoirs to faucet steam and really plight that drive turbines that drive electricity generators. Four sorts of power plants area unit in operation today: Flashed steam plant The extraordinarily plight from drill holes once discharged from the deep reservoirs high steam (termed as flashed steam) is discharged. This force of steam is employed to rotate turbines. The steam gets condensed and is born-again into water once

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more that is come to the reservoir. Flashed steam plants area unit cosmopolitan throughout the planet. Dry steam plant Usually geysers area unit the most supply of dry steam. Those energy reservoirs that largely turn out steam and small water area unit utilized in electricity production systems. As steam from the reservoir shoots out, it's wont to rotate a rotary engine, when causing the steam through a rock-catcher. The rock-catcher protects the rotary engine from rocks that return alongside the steam. Binary station In this style of station, the energy water is gone through a device wherever its heat is transferred to a secondary liquid, specifically isobutene, iso-pentane or ammonia–water mixture gift in associate adjacent, separate pipe. Because of this doubleliquid device system, it's known as a binary station. The secondary liquid that is additionally known as operating fluid ought to have lower boiling purpose than water. It turns into vapor on obtaining needed heat from the recent water. The vapor from the operating fluid is employed to rotate turbines. The positional notation is thus helpful in energy reservoirs that area unit comparatively low in gradient. Since the system could be a utterly closed one, there's minimum likelihood of warmth loss. Plight is straight away recycled into the reservoir. The operating fluid is additionally condensed back to the liquid and used over and yet again. Hybrid station Some energy fields turn out boiling water moreover as steam, that are utilized in power generation. During this system of power generation, the flashed and binary systems area unit combined to form use of each steam and plight. Potency of hybrid power plants is but that of the dry steam plants. Enhanced energy system The term increased energy systems (EGS), additionally called built energy systems (formerly hot dry rock geothermal), refers to a spread of engineering techniques wont to by artificial means produce hydrothermal resources (underground steam and hot water) which will be wont to generate electricity. Ancient energy plants exploit present hydrothermal reservoirs and area unit restricted by the scale and site of such natural reservoirs. EGS reduces these constraints by providing the creation of hydrothermal reservoirs in deep, hot however naturally dry earth science formations.EGS techniques can even extend the lifetime of present hydrothermal resources. Given the prices and restricted complete system analysis to this point, EGS remains in its infancy, with solely some analysis and pilot comes existing round the world and no commercial-scale EGS plants to this point. The technology is therefore promising, however, that variety of studies have found that EGS may quickly become widespread. Potential It has been calculable from earth science, geochemical, shallow geology and shallow drilling information it's calculable that Asian country has regarding ten,000 MWe of geothermic power potential which will be controlled for varied functions. Rocks coated on the surface of Asian country move in age from quite 4500 million years to this day and distributed in several geographical units. The rocks comprise of Archean, Proterozoic, the marine and continental Palaeozoic, Mesozoic, Teritary, Quaternary etc., quite three hundred thermal spring locations are known by earth science survey of Asian country (Thussu, 2000). The surface temperature of the new springs ranges from thirty five C to the maximum amount as ninety eight C. These hot springs are sorted along and termed as completely different geothermic provinces supported their incidence in specific geotectonic regions, earth science and strutural regions like incidence in orogenic belt regions, structural grabens, deep fault zones, active volcanic regions etc., completely different orogenic regions square measure – chain of mountains geothermic province, Naga-Lushai geothermic province, Andaman-Nicobar Islands geothermic province and non-orogenic regions square measure – Cambay graben, Son-Narmada-Tapigraben, west coast, Damodar vale, Mahanadi vale, Godavari vale etc. Geothermal Energy Scenario: India and the world Geothermal power plants operated in at least 24 countries in 2010, and geothermal energy was used directly for heat in at least 78 countries. These countries currently have geothermal power plants with a total capacity of 10.7 GW, but 88% of it is generated in just seven countries: the United States, the Philippines, Indonesia, Mexico, Italy, New Zealand, and Iceland. The most significant capacity increases since 2004 were seen in Iceland and Turkey. Both countries doubled their capacity. Iceland has the largest share of geothermal power contributing to electricity supply (25%), followed by the Philippines (18%). The number of countries utilizing geothermal energy to generate electricity has more than doubled since 1975, increasing from 10 in 1975 to 24 in 2004. In 2003, total geothermal energy supply was 20 MToE (metric Tonne Oil Equivalent), accounting for 0.4% of total primary energy supply in IEA member countries. The share of geothermal in total renewable energy supply was 7.1%. Over the last 20 years, capital costs for geothermal power systems decreased by a significant 50%. Such large cost reductions are often the result of solving the “easier” problems associated with science and technology improvement in the early years of development. Although geothermal power development slowed in 2010, with global capacity reaching just over 11 GW, a significant acceleration in the rate of deployment is expected as advanced technologies allow for development in new countries. Heat output from geothermal sources increased by an average rate of almost 9% annually over the past decade, due mainly to rapid growth in the use of ground-source heat pumps. Use of geothermal energy for combined heat and power is also on the rise. India has reasonably good potential for geothermal; the

potential geothermal provinces can produce 10,600 MW of power (but experts are confident only to the extent of 100 MW). But yet geothermal power projects has not been exploited at all, owing to a variety of reasons, the chief being the availability of plentiful coal at cheap costs. However, with increasing environmental problems with coal based projects, India will need to start depending on clean and eco-friendly energy sources in future; one of which could be geothermal. Case Studies Geothermal energy is obtained from heated water, steam, or soil which is derived from deep in certain land masses. There are two main uses for this energy: (1) hot water is used to create electricity or to provide hot water heating or warming; (2) the thermal mass of the soil or groundwater is used to drive heat pumps which provide either heating or cooling. The first use is more widely known and used and is obtained from geothermal geysers that find their way to the earth's crust. The above uses are not really from renewable resources, however, with properly calculated use they can almost approach the “renewable” classification. The heated water, steam, or soil will gradually be depleted if overdrawn from the ground. This valuable ground resource will slowly regenerate itself over time so that if the withdrawal at the surface is timed to match that regeneration rate, the resource will be considered renewable. In any event, it will not deplete itself as fast as fossil or oil fuels are depleted by normal mining techniques. In addition, heat reservoirs are considered immense in magnitude compared to its current or even projected use, thus rendering it practically renewable. In the United States the production of electricity from the geothermal energy of the earth's interior heat is centered in northern California. Here these geothermal sources provided just over 7% of California's electricity in the 15-year period ending the 20th century. However, the geyser production has decreased from supplying about 2,000 megawatts in 1989 to 1,100 megawatts near the turn of the century. Unfortunately, because of the specific location of these geothermal fields most individual households cannot make use of this energy. However, direct use of the heated water can save establishments as much as 80% in their fuel bills. Geothermal Ground Source Heat Pumps for Residential Use Heat pumps can reduce both air conditioning peak loads as well as winter heating loads, In addition, they are normally used to heat water (or as hot water) in households and buildings. Economics of Geothermal Energy Geothermal electricity can be produced practically and economically for about 5 cents per kilowatt-hour—slightly higher than wind or solar energy. This higher cost is largely due to the fact that it is necessary to drill deeper today to produce a given amount of power than in earlier years. It has been suggested (and even used) that the economics of geothermal power can be improved through co-production of other goods from high-temperature brine extracted from the depths of the ground. While geothermal power applications require more advances in exploration and drilling, heat pump, direct uses require that the engineer and the consumer understand the technology. It may be more expensive to install geothermal energysystems at the start, but over the long term the benefits may make it economically and environmentally worthwhile. Effects on the Environment Air pollution relative to conventional fossil fuel energy production will be minimized when selecting geothermal energy instead. It produces only about one-sixth of the CO2 and none of the NOxs or sulfur gases that fossil fuel plants emit. For these reasons alone this method of energy production can be a very environmentally friendly alternative to fossil fuel energy. Amount of This Energy Already Being Produced In 1998 geothermal energy provided 0.4% of the electricity generated in the United States. This amounted to 14.3 billion kilowatts of electricity to over 1,400,000 homes. At that time

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it was growing at a rate of slightly less than 3% over an 8-year period. Worldwide, geothermal energy was slightly more than 8 million kilowatts or about 3% of the 3,180 kilowatts used. Some Examples of Geothermal Energy Uses The Oregon Institute of Technology has been heated by the direct geothermal energy since 1964. In Iceland geothermal energy is used to provide the majority of households with residential heat. Tax neutrality, continued and increased federal funding, continued and expanded production tax credits, resource identification, renewable portfolio standards, contractor education, and the issuing of air emission standards have been and are being used to encourage the continued use of geothermal energy. The reader of this section of the chapter is urged to consult the U.S. Department of Energy's Web site for more information of geothermal energy. In addition, the Renewable Energy Policy Project maintains a rather detailed bibliography of the uses of this form of energy. Advantages & Disadvantages of Geothermal Energy Geothermal energy does not cause any pollution. It is a clean source of energy and it has no harmful by- products. It is inexpensive, as no fuel is required to produce energy and hence, running cost of power plant is less. Further, it can be used to produce electricity 24 hours a day (comparatively other renewable sources of energy such as solar and wind energy have limitations). Geothermal power plants are generally small and have little effect on the natural landscape or the nearby environment. Though geothermal energy has several advantages, it also has some disadvantages and limitations. If harnessed incorrectly, it can sometimes produce pollutants. Improper drilling into the earth can release hazardous minerals and gases deep inside the earth. Status of Geothermal Energy in India Geological Survey of India has identified about 340 geothermal hot springs in the country. Most of them are in the low surface temperature range from 370C to 900C, which is suitable for direct heat applications. Only some are suited for power generation. The potential for power generation at these sites is about 10,000 MW. Though, India has been one of the earliest countries to begin geothermal projects way back in the 1970s, but at present there are no operational geothermal plants in India. The hot springs in the country are grouped into seven geothermal provinces, i.e., Himalayan, Sahara Valley, Cambay Basin, San-Narmada –Topi lineament belt, West Coast, Godavari Basin and Mahanadi Basin. An experimental geothermal power plant of 5 kW capacity has been set up at Manikaran in HP. A cold storage plant has also been constructed there to utilise the geothermal energy at 900C for preserving vegetables and fruits grown in that area. Some of the prominent places where a power plant can be established based on geothermal energy are Puga Valley and Chhumathang in Jammu and Kashmir, Manikaran in HP, Jalgaon in Maharashtra, Tapovan in Uttarakhand, Bakreshwar in WB, Tuwa in Gujarat and Tattapani in Chhatisgarh. MNRE is giving thrust on exploration and harnessing of India’s geothermal energy resources. International Status The worldwide use of geothermal energy is increasing. Today 11,772 MW of power is being generated in at least 24 countries from geothermal energy and in 2010; it generated 67,246 GWh of electricity. This is a rise of about 20% since 2005. By 2015, figure is expected to grow even more to 18,500 MW. The largest producer of this energy is USA that generates about 3,086 MW of electricity. The largest group of geothermal power plants in the world is located at The Geysers, a geothermal field in California of USA. The Philippines is the second highest producer, with1,904 MW of capacity online. Geothermal power makes up approximately 18% of the country’s electricity generation. Also in Indonesia 5% of overall electricity generation is from geothermal energy. Geothermal energy is the energy that is stored inside the earth and which may be used by man either directly (with no transformation) or to generate electricity by means of a geothermal power plant. This article estimates the participation of geothermal energy in Colombia’s electricity market by the year 2025, based on a review of current installed capacity in the country; potential sources of geothermal energy for electric power generation; the existing regulatory framework for projects involving renewable sources, and the geothermal projects currently under development in the national territory. Demand for electricity in Colombia will continue to increase, which implies that new electric power generation projects must be undertaken in order to meet the country’s demand. The conclusion is that geothermal energy is a good alternative to help achieve this objective. By 2025, geothermal sources are expected to generate at least 1400 GWh of electric power per year, equivalent to 1.65% of total electricity estimate demand in Colombia. If the full potential that has been assessed were exploited, generation capacity could reach up to 17,400 GWh/year (equivalent to close to 20% of the country’s demand) by 2025. RM

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