Smart Energy March-April 2015

SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

Volume II, Issue II

Pages 60

`100

ISSN 2348-5027

Complete Renewable Energy Intelligence

MW GW TO

Budget 2015: Impact Analysis

Shaping the Future of Offshore Wind in India Performing as an EPC Contractor in India: Chances and Challenges Bearings With Brains Make Intelligent Machines Page No. 50

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SmartEnergy Complete Renewable Energy Intelligence

Editor Santosh Khadtare santosh@supersmartenergy.com

Associate Editor Anisha Ganguli EDITORIAL ADVISER Pragya Sharma Editorial Co-ordinator Varsha Graphic Designer D. Vaidya Advertising & Marketing Head- Marketing & Business Development Sapna K sapna@supersmartenergy.com

Chief Executive Officer Rahul Raj Chandra Support Team Sunil Pawar Bharti Shetty Disclaimer All efforts have been made to ensure the accuracy and information in this magazine, opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not neccessarily reflect the vies of the owner/ publisher and the editorial team. Genesis Info-Media shall not be liable for any consequences in the event such claims are found- not to be true

Editor's Note India’s first Renewable Energy Global Investors Meeting and Expo, Re-Invest 2015, was inaugurated by PM Narendra Modi. Speaking at the inauguration he said that his government is emphasizing renewable to light the homes of millions of India’s poor and change their lives for the better. Much to his content the three-day event concluded with 14 banks and financial institutions, eight public sector units and 15 private sector companies committing to a whopping 266 GW of green power in the next five years, entitling a total investment of US $200 billion.

Though this has invigorated and excited the industry, the naysayers and negative nancys feel that it is too much hype and unrealistic ambitions can only harm the industry. The argument put forward are that the commitments are too ambitions even only from financing perspective. And then there are other challenges of viability of distribution sector, project development, issues related to land and grid. Looking at the past records and the base we are at today, of around 30,000 MW of installed capacity, 266 GW in five years looks an uphill task.

It would be utmost pessimism to conclude that the obstacles are insurmountable and target impossible. Agreed that it will require a lot of capital. It would also require a great deal of co-operation between the states and the Federal government. A lot of decisionmaking in following through the ideas... but certainly, there is no reason to believe that it couldn't happen as long as all of those elements follow through.

We believe that RE-INVEST has ushered a new dawn in India’s renewable energy foresight and the country is all set to become a renewable energy leader in the world.

Santosh Editor Santosh@supersmartenergy.com

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Printed, published and edited by Santosh Khadtare on behalf of Genesis Info-Media, published at 509, pushp plaza, above snehanjali shworoom, manvelpada road, Virar Dist Thane and printed at M B Graphics, B 28, 3rd Floor Shri Ram Industrial Estate,Wadala West, Mumbai.

4 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

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Contents

View this issue online on www.supersmartenergy.com

30

38

New Ambitions in Renewable Energy Graduating from MW to GW

46

EXPERT SPEAK Sanjib Mitra Country Head Sales & Marketing, Electrotherm (India) Ltd.

IN CONVERSATION Abhijit Kulkarni Head of Sales - Renewable Energy Segment, SKF India

20

RE FINANCE RBI Moots Priority Sector Tag for Renewable Energy

22

RE FINANCE Budget 2015: Impact Analysis

26

SPOT LIGHT Performing as an EPC Contractor In India: Chances and Challenge Authored By: Reinhard Ling

50

IN FOCUS Bearings With Brains Make Intelligent Machines

08. News Update 54. Product Review 56. Company Profile: Firefly Batteries 57. Events Watch

40

SPECIAL FEATURE Shaping the Future of offshore Wind in India

6 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

 www.supersmartenergy.com

NEWS THIS MONTH

Re-Invest 2015: Renewable “Made in India”, Jobs and 266 GW Committed The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, described India's thrust towards renewable energy production as an effort to ensure universal energy access for India's poor. He was speaking at the inauguration of RE-INVEST 2015, India's first Renewable Energy Global Investors' Meet and Expo, in New Delhi.

Observing that India has now graduated from Megawatts to Gigawatts in terms of renewable energy production, the Prime Minister said that even today there are lakhs of families in the country that are deprived of energy connectivity. He said the fruits of development would not reach the common man until energy connectivity reaches every last household of the country. The Prime Minister asserted that in this age of globalization, we have no option but to make a quantum leap in energy production and connectivity.

The Prime Minister spoke of the "seven horses of energy." He said that so far, India has focused on thermal, gas, hydro and nuclear power. But now we need to add Solar Energy, Wind Energy and Biomass Energy.

The Prime Minister said India is also working towards evolving a consortium of about 50 countries that are blessed with abundant solar radiation. This will aim to pool research and technological advancements in the field of solar energy, to improve its accessibility to the poorest of the poor, and in the remotest of locations.

Shri Narendra Modi suggested the possibility of hybrid energy parks harnessing solar and wind energy together in an area to maximize benefit. He also encouraged the installation of solar panels over water bodies

8 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

Honourable Prime Minister Sh. Narendra Modi at Inaugural Session of RE-Invest 2015 to harness solar energy as well as minimize surface evaporation. He further spoke about the need for harnessing rooftop solar power. In the rural areas, he stressed on the need for solar pumps to reduce input costs for farmers. He further spoke about need for micro-irrigation to conserve water and enhance crop yield for farmers.

The Prime Minister has welcomed initiatives by many state governments in this direction.

This collective effort, he said, will truly take the country "from Megawatts to Gigawatts". He said that if any country has the potential to lead the world in the domain of renewable energy, it is India. The Prime Minister said that loving nature and living in harmony with nature is a part of India's DNA. At the same time, he said, we cannot merely rely on our culture and traditions to carry us through, but sustained efforts are needed to make a quantum leap in this direction.

He called for sustained technological research in renewable energy and a thrust on domestic equipment manufacturing for renewable energy as part of the

"Make in India" initiative.

In his welcome address, the Minister of State for Power, Coal and New and Renewable Energy Shri.

Piyush Goyal pointed out that India now has a historical opportunity to leverage the new paradigm in the global energy sector and define its own path of development and a national power system to achieve its energy security goal. Under the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s eminent leadership India has made an unprecedented thrust in the field of renewable energy.

He said the first renewable energy global conference would usher in a Cleaner, Brighter and Energy secure India.

The Minister said the RE-INVEST is organized with a triple aim. To showcase the renewable energy potential of India to the world and attracting investments, which may go up to 200 billion dollars with the enthusiastic support received from various parts of India and from all over the world. The government would like to repose the investors’ confidence once again to invest in the renewable energy sector, which will certainly play  www.supersmartenergy.com

Short Facts

HVA28TD The b2 electronic Gmbh high voltage testing and diagnostics device HVA28TD offers outstanding features in terms of size, weight, ruggedness, safety and ease of use. Testing and diagnostics of medium voltage cables, rotating machines and transformers was never that easy.

• VLF and DC Output • Tan Delta Diagnostics (TD) • Leakage Guard • Sheath Test • Sheath Fault Location • Vacuum Bottle Test

Features • Output voltage 28kVpeak 20kVrms • Pure sinusoidal output voltage (load-independent) • Out put current 20mA max.

• highest test capacity of 10μF. • Ultra light and compact weight (14kg) • Total Protection-unbreakable, watertight, dust proof, chemical resistant and corrosion proof case • Protection class IP67 (with closed lid) • Unlimited and continuous duty cycle

• Large Colour Display (4,3") • Internal TD Measurement with high accuracy (1x10-4) • Tan delta Measurement with various Frequency (0.01-0.1Hz) • Leakage Guard-leakage current correction • Cable testing according: CENELEC HD 620/621, IEEE 400.2-2004, IEEE 400-2001, etc • Programmable test sequences • USB and Bluetooth connections • Upgradable with partial discharge diagnostic system (optional)

• Integrated 12kV transient protection (50Hz) • Dual Discharge Device (DDD), both integrated and automatic discharge devices • Easy exchangeable HV cable • Intuitive menu operation Sheath Test • Sheath Fault Locating (in combination with Earth Fault Locator) • Vacuum Bottle Test

NEWS THIS MONTH an important role as we move towards energy security. We would like to establish India as the manufacturing hub for renewables and for research and innovation, which is pitched in the Make in India campaign that has become the core of the new government’s initiative to create jobs in India, to make manufacturing competitiveness in India and to make India a super power in terms of its own technology and manufacturing capabilities.

The government would like to signal to the world its commitment to combat climate change.

This is out of the government

and the Prime Minister’s own initiative and not under any pressure and not under any commitment. It is our own commitment to the world, to our people to leave behind a better future for the future generations of India.

At the function, the Prime Minister gave away the awards to 12 States for their outstanding contribution in the field of Renewable Energy. Besides, 27 companies including NTPC & SBI handed over to the Prime Minister their Green Energy Commitment Certificates.

Over 2000 delegates includ-

ing exhibitors from over 40 countries attended this event.

It included several sessions headed by senior representatives from the renewable energy industry, equipment manufacturers, global financial institutions, Public Sector Enterprises, regulatory authorities, Central and state governments, research institutions and academia. Secretaries from Government of India and Heads of International Agencies like International Energy Agency, International New & Renewable Energy Agency and also of MNCs participated in various sessions ■

Re-Invest 2015: high points SunEdison Inc And First Solar Inc Pledge 20,000 MW of Solar Capacity across India cashing in on India's efforts to scale up clean energy and address climate change. SunEdison Inc. and First Solar Inc. pledged to build more than 20,000 megawatts of solar energy capacity across India -- an amount greater than all the solar capacity in the United States.

Make in India: China, UK cos to invest billions in solar, wind energy Companies from China and Britain will invest billions of dollars in India’s solar and wind power industries under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative.

UK and Chinese companies would invest in the manufacturing of components, including solar cells. These facilities will supply to domestic user industries as well as export to markets around the world.

SBI commits Rs 75,000 crore for financing clean energy generation Country's largest lender State Bank of India committed Rs 75,000 crore for generation of 15,000 MW of renewable energy in the next 5 years.

Echoing similar views, HSBC country head Naina Lal Kidwai, Indian Bank Chairman and Managing Director T M Bhasin and Exim Bank Chairman and Managing Director Yaduvendra Mathur said that inclusion of renewable energy in the priority sector category would help in easy financing.

Welspun Renewables announces 8,660 MW solar PV and 2,341 MW wind projects in India Renewable energy generator Welspun Renewables has pledged to set up 11 gigawatts (GW) solar and wind projects across the country.

The 11,001 MW capacity will be developed as 8,660 MW of solar photovoltaic (PV) and 2,341 MW of wind power projects.

10 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

Gujarat awarded for outstanding performance in promotion of Renewable Energy Gujarat was awarded for outstanding performance in promotion of Renewable Energy during the period 1st April 2010 to 31st March 2014 in Gujarat.

The citation read Gujarat has added 2553 MW of renewable power capacity. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy recognizes Gujarat’s great efforts that promote energy security, energy equity, energy accessibility & sustainability in the country, the citation added.

Himachal awarded for promoting renewable energy Prime Minister Narendra Modi Sunday honoured Himachal Pradesh for its outstanding contribution in the field of renewable energy.

State Power Minister Sujan Singh Pathania received the award at the Renewable Energy Global Investors Meet and Expo (Re-Invest) here ■

 www.supersmartenergy.com

NEWS THIS MONTH

French Connection to power Punjab villages The people of Fazalika district, near India-Pakistan border in Punjab have a new reason to be feel proud. There district now has a 21 MW solar park, set up

by French solar power major Solairedirect. The solar park, spread across 40 hectares, has a capacity to generate 39 GWh per annum, or the consumption equivalent of 44,000 residents.

Virtual inauguration of the solar park was done by French Minister Segolene Royal and Punjab New and Renewable Energy Sources Minister Bikram Singh Majithia in New Delhi on 7th Febuary. Thr construction of the solar park was handled jointly by Indian and French teams.

“I am happy that they chose Punjab to set up this plant. We have tried to give them all the desired facilities. And a hassle free environment.” Said Majithia.

Punjab's solar mission is well

recognized and the state has formulated a policy to allot projects within 60 days by using the s i n g l e window project clearance system. The state is offering power purchase agreement for 25 years with the state power utility, which made solar projects a viable investment.

Mathijia also said that Punjab is now working to harness solar energy by setting up a number of canal top solar plants. He invited French companies to come to participate in this endeavour and bring their technical expertise

to India.

Punjab receives good solar radiation but has acute power shortage. The state is now looking at harnessing the solar energy to meet its demands.Solariedirect is present in India since 2011 and it has big ambitions for the country. Won tender for the construction of three photovoltaic power plants in the state of Telangana for a total installed capacity of 57.5 MW ■

Sterling Generators presents its Solar CSS Solutions The importance of solar power as a renewable energy source is rapidly growing globally. Solar power is generated at low voltage DC levels and transformed up to medium voltages for network distribution. The transformation of Power from less than 1000VDC to 11/33KV HVAC is being done at local substation comprising of Inverter, Transformer and HT Panel. Conventionally all these equipments are erected and integrated at site.

Sterling Generators, one of the largest manufacturers of HT / LT Panels & DG Sets in Asia, is proud to present its latest offering – SG Solar CSS. The SG Solar CSS completely eliminates the site work by offering a pre-connected integrated solution. The Solar CSS boasts of a compact enclosure that houses an inverter, transformer, and a

highly reliable RMU/HT Panel from ABB. The Solar CSS comes with a remote monitoring option which makes it a state of the art and safe to handle power generation machine.

Generators have partnered with ABB the market leader in Inverter technology to develop a very safe and reliable power generation instrument in the form of the Solar CSS.

Sterling Generators have always been pioneers and value engineers when it comes to building and implementing complicated projects for DG sets and Panels.

With the Solar CSS, Sterling Generators have gone a step further in its quest for quality by manufacturing a solar compact substation that’s a plug and play kind of a device to suit your power generation needs. The Solar CSS is a modular device with max capacity of 2MW; however multiple units can be used to augment the capacity. Easy to set up and maintain, the Solar CSS is a one stop solution for your power generation needs. Sterling

Commenting on the Solar CSS from Sterling Generators, Mr. Sanjay Jadhav, President, Sterling and Wilson Powergen Pvt. Ltd. says, “The Solar CSS is a technologically superior and environmentally conscious compact substation. It’s an easy to maintain, plug to play kind of a device that comes in a thermally insulated high strength enclosure, thus ensuring the safety and convenience of use, suited to meet the highest requirements of our esteemed customers in a cost effective manner.” ■

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March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

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WAAREE Energies Ramps up Telangana govt to Solar PV Module Manufactur- call bids for 1,000-MW ing Capacity to 500MW solar PV projects WAAREE Energies Ltd., a leading solar PV module manufacturer and project developer, has completed installation of an additional 250MW of annual manufacturing capacity in PV modules, bringing the company's total annual manufacturing capacity of solar PV modules to 500MW. With this installation, WAAREE's manufacturing plant in Surat, Gujarat has become the largest single location solar PV module manufacturing facility in India.

Energies managed to secure approximately 40% of module supply contract in the DCR (Domestic Content Requirement) category, under National Solar Mission Phase II tenders. In view of the huge demand for our modules from Europe, UK, Japan and other African countries apart from the Indian markets, we are already working at expanding the production capacity to 1000MW which will be completed in the next four months."

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Hitesh Doshi, Chairman and Managing Director, WAAREE Group said, "This expansion is very much in line with our Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri. Narendra Modi's vision of 'Make in India'. Last year, WAAREE

The company has announced that they are using the latest technology in solar industry to produce world class quality modules with reliable performance over its lifetime ■

The Telangana government is in the process of inviting bids to set up 1,000 MW of solar photo-voltaic (PV) power generation farms through a reverse bidding process, according to a statement by Aravind Kumar, principal secretary, energy.

"During the last development of 505 MW solar projects, the price discovery has been Rs 645 per unit. Keeping this as a base price, we are planning to invite the tenders for the 1,000 MW, through a reverse bidding process, within a month.

These projects, with a cumulative capacity of 1,505 MW, will be commissioned

by March 2016," he further added. Stating that the state government was laying more emphasis on renewable energy resources, Kumar said his department was also considering encouraging development of wind energy projects.

"The net energy gains from wind power projects are very low. We, however, are receiving many proposals from companies evincing interest to set up wind energy projects in the state. We are currently evaluating these proposals," he further added ■

GE ‘Brilliant Factory’ unit at Pune to boost Indian exports In a significant endorsement of India as a major global manufacturing destination, GE officially unveiled its new ‘Brilliant Factory’ at Chakan II in Pune, Maharashtra. At a ceremony today the facility was inaugurated by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi in the presence of the Governor of Maharashtra, Shri Ch. Vidyasagar Rao and Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Shri Devendra Fadnavis. GE leadership was represented by John G. Rice, Vice Chairman, GE and Banmali Agrawala, President & CEO, GE South Asia who also announced plans for a Phase II expansion.

The ‘Brilliant Factory’ is one of

GE's most advanced facilities bringing together automation, the Industrial Internet and 3D printing. It is built on the concept of flexibility, allowing for the manufacturing of a diverse set of products and catering to GE’s broad range of businesses, including aviation, oil & gas and rail. It will also serve both domestic and export markets, working on the principle of a ‘Shared Centre of Excellence’ on process, capability and human capital aimed at driving economies of scale.

Speaking at the occasion, The Prime Minister said, “I congratulate GE for the state-of-the-

12 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

art manufacturing facility that has been set up, and welcome GE's announcement for further investment. It is a big boost to the 'Make in India' initiative.”

Sharing his comments, John G. Rice, Vice Chairman, GE said, “Today signifies a proud milestone for GE in India and the next step in our technology and innovation partnership, a journey that started over 110 years ago. Our operations here in Pune help us to compete locally and globally and play an important role in the resurgence of India’s manufacturing sector and in the country’s growth and development.” ■  www.supersmartenergy.com

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ABB India Achieves Cumulative Sales of 1 GW of Solar Inverters ABB India became the first company to reach sales of a cumulative capacity of 1GW solar inverters. This milestone was marked with the roll out of an order for Tata Power Solar’s project for Kiran Energy Solar Power. ABB India commenced local manufacturing of solar inverters in 2012 and has since grown in partnership with key industry customers.

Technology leadership complemented with competent indigenization and reliable service, helped ABB India to quickly achieve and maintain pole position in the market over the last three years. The cumulative installed base for central inverters in India reached 3GW in 2014.

“Despite having the fifth largest generation capacity in the world, a third of our population has no access to electricity. We hope to be a key component in India’s

solar powered future through our solutions spanning the entire solar value chain,” said Bazmi Husain, Managing Director, ABB India. “The ambitious target set for solar power generation capacity in the country – 100GW by 2022 – makes it imperative to leverage all avenues available, be it 300 days of sunshine or opting for efficient and quality components deployed across solar projects.”

Changes were made in ABB’s product design keeping in mind the local requirements like demanding environments of high temperatures, dust and humidity. Solar power has great potential to lead the charge of renewables and is rapidly approaching grid parity in many countries. It is emerging to be a key contributor in the energy mix and the government’s drive to provide access to electricity

for all. This positions ABB India well in an industry that is set for 10 percent plus annual growth in the country.

ABB is the leading global supplier of solar photovoltaic (PV) inverters. ABB solar inverters improve reliability, efficiency and ease of installations. The inverters range from 100 kW to 1,000 kW and are optimized for cost-efficient multi-megawatt power plants ■

Indosolar signs US$200 SunEdison Commissions million wafer supply deal 7.72 MW Solar System for with Korea’s Osung Brakes India Ltd. India’s solar manufacturing sector appears to have received a boost, with solar cell manufacturer Indosolar signing a wafer supply agreement worth US$200 million with Korean company Osung.

Indosolar made an announcement to the Indian Stock Exchange and the Bombay Stock Exchange to the effect that the two parties have signed a contract which extends to 2018. Osung specialises in semiconductors, solar cells and related technologies.

Osung will initially supply Indosolar with 48 million wafers, worth around US$45 million. Further details of the deal have not been disclosed, although the Indian company said Osung’s deliveries will help it meet a significant portion of demand for the coming fiscal year. Based in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, Indosolar previously made a US$600 million deal with Chinese supplier GCL in 2010 ■

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SunEdison, the world's largest renewable energy company, and Brakes India Limited (BIL), a leading manufacturer of Automotive and Non-Automotive Braking Systems and Ferrous Castings in India, announced that they have installed a solar power plant that will generate 7.72 megawatts of electricity at Brake India's facilities in Munanjipatti in the state of Tamil Nadu.

"We are proud to be working with the leading automotive supplier Brakes India to lower their carbon emissions and electricity costs," stated Pashupathy Gopalan, President of SunEdison Asia-Pacific. "Solar is a great way for commercial consumers in Tamil Nadu to generate reliable, low cost electricity." Mr. Gopalan added: "This system also happens to be the largest solar power plant built to date under the Group Captive Scheme in India."

The system is built in accordance with the Group Capture Scheme legislation that was introduced by the Electricity Act of 2003 ■  www.supersmartenergy.com

NEWS THIS MONTH

Suzlon commissions SKF achieves global energy man350 MW wind energy agement system certification projects in Brazil SKF has been awarded He continues, “This follows Suzlon Group has commissioned wind energy projects having a total capacity of 350 MW in Brazil. These projects are located in the high wind states of Rio Grande do Norte and Ceara in Brazil.

The installations include 150 wind turbine generators.

These projects will contribute to reducing Brazil’s carbon footprint by eliminating approximately 0.54 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions per annum. The 350 MW projects completed are expected to light up one lakh households in Brazil with clean energy.

Suzlon Group comprises of Suzlon Energy and its subsidiaries, including Repower Systems SE. Suzlon Energy is leader in wind energy in the India, which is world’s fifth largest wind energy market. Its business model has range of services that include development, manufacturing, marketing, EPC project delivery and operations and maintenance of wind turbine generators around the world ■

a global certification by Den Norska Veritas (DNV), in accordance with the requirements of ISO 50001.

The Group’s energy management system has been deployed across 38 manufacturing facilities around the world. In total, these facilities account for more than 90% of the Group’s total direct energy use.

“We recognize our responsibility to significantly improve energy performance, which is motivated both from an environmental and a cost perspective. The new ISO 50001 standard helps us to address this in a structured, systematic and consistent way,” says Rob Jenkinson, Director, Corporate Sustainability.

in a long tradition of early adoption when it comes to systems and tools that help improve environmental performance. We adopted the ISO 14001 environmental management standard in the 1990’s and, more recently, adopted the LEED standard for new buildings.

We are also promoting the wider adoption of ISO 50001 amongst our energy intensive suppliers.”

This forms an important part of the Group’s climate strategy, SKF BeyondZero, which aims to reduce energy use and greenhouse gas emissions across the value chain: in SKF’s operations, those of suppliers and, more importantly, for our customers ■

India Plans 100 GW Wind Energy Capacity By 2022 The Indian government is looking to set a target of 100 GW under its national wind energy mission. While the mission is being mulled for almost a year it could be launched within months, if not weeks.

During the first meeting of the Council on Climate Change, the impending national wind energy mission was discussed.

The mission would see annual capacity addition of 10 GW capacity every year to add 70-80 GW capacity by 2022 adding to the currently operational capacity of 22.5 GW. The Indian wind energy market has already achieved a significant amount of maturity and is home to some of the leading wind energy companies from around the world. The

the wind energy sector re-introduced. The accelerated depreciation was reintroduced during the current financial year, while the ministry plans to provide certainty to the generationbased incentive and plans to continue it for the next five years with a cost of Rs 15,000 crore (~$2.5 billion).

investors are happy to lend to wind energy projects, especially because the tariffs for wind energy projects have been increasing for the last 2-3 years.

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has also been able to get a significant incentive for

In addition to the increased support for onshore wind energy sector the government is also planning to promote offshore wind energy market.

It has already announced a 100 MW wind energy project in Gujarat. This has prompted private companies to enter the offshore wind energy market.

Suzlon Energy has announced a 300 MW project off the coast of Gujarat ■

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NEWS THIS MONTH

World-leading power event opens its doors with largest show to date His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai and the Minister of Finance and Industry of the UAE, officially opened the 40th Anniversary Edition of Middle East Electricity (MEE) which took place until 4 March, alongside partner event Solar Middle East, at Dubai World Trade Centre.

The increasing global appeal of the three-day event is underlined

by Saudi Arabia, Italy, Germany, Turkey and China all posting year on year floor space growth. Furthermore, three new national pavilions from Egypt, Morocco and Czech Republic have also been added to this year’s roster taking the total count of the national pavilions to 24.

The US Pavilion has welcomed a number of new exhibitors this year looking to showcase their products, technologies and innovations to the Middle East market, one that is of growing interest according to Peter McKenna, VP Strategic Planning at Kallman Worldwide – organisers of the US Pavilion.

“We are happy to report we have come in 20 per cent larger than last time. In addition to the US companies who have returned with us, we are excited to have 14 companies who are not only new to the show, they are new to the Middle East market. We are eager to introduce them to potential agents, distributors and local business partners at this week’s show,” said McKenna.

Meanwhile the third edition of Solar Middle East showed no signs of slowing down. Solar Middle East witnessed exponential growth as the exhibitor numbers have grown from 59 to 86 this year, a 45 per cent YoY increase. The inaugural edition of the show in 2013 received 4,700 visitors over

H.H Sheikh Hamdan Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Inaugurates 40th Edition of MEE

the three days compared to 5,800 in 2014, a 23 per cent increase in visitor attendance in the first year alone.

Anita Mathews, Director of Informa Energy Group, organisers of Middle East Electricity, said: “MENA power demand is booming with billions of dollars’ worth of investments being pumped into the region’s power sector. The substantial growth across the board in our country pavilions is an indication of the lucrative opportunities the region holds for the global energy industry.”

Day one of MEE witnessed a number of significant announcements. Caterpillar launched its largest range of electric power products ever – the Cat Compact International product line – for customers in the Middle East, Europe, Africa, Asia-Pacific, South America, and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

Powered by market-leading Cat diesel engines, Cat Compact International diesel generator sets offer a selection of weatherprotective and sound-attenuated enclosures. Each enclosure is manufactured with corrosion-

16 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

resistant galvanized steel components and finished with scratchand-rust-resistant powder-coated paint, along with high-grade thermoplastic components.

The day tow of the event dedicated to sustainability, the Green Energy Conference highlighted the urgency and vision in creating sustainable energy solutions, with a focus on combining traditional and alternative energy sources (creating hybrid systems) to minimise the risks inherent with both, and incorporate sustainable energy means.

The Solar Middle East Conference, which took place on day two of the show, provided a holistic view of the regional solar industry with a country focus on Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Jordan.

Middle East Electricity and Solar Middle East 2015 are held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai. Opening times are from 10:00am to 6:00pm daily ■

 www.supersmartenergy.com

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March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

NEWS THIS MONTH QUICK TAKES NATIONAL India Moves Into Top 5 Most Attractive Renewable Energy Markets The latest edition (PDF) of Ernst & Young Renewable Energy Market Attractiveness Index focuses on India as the government has not only substantially increased the capacity addition targets but also backed them with clear policy initiatives.

India has been ranked the 5th most attractive market overall. A quick glance through the archive of the Quarterly Market Attractiveness Index report shows that this is India’s best standing since at least May 2013..

Indian Solar Energy Installations Down 12% at 883 MW in 2014 Indian solar power installations in calendar year 2014 totalled 883 MW, down 12 percent compared to 1,004 MW installed in 2013.

India’s First Green Bond Issue Raises Twice the Target Amount Yes Bank, a private-sector bank in India, managed to raise about $150 million through India’s first green bond issue. The bank had announced the bond issue during the recently concluded RE-INVEST international renewable energy investor’s summit at New Delhi.

Yes bank had targeted to raise about $80 million, which would be used to provide debt financing to renewable energy projects with a total generation capacity of 5 GW. The additional capital raised by the bank may allow it to double its commitment towards financing renewable energy projects in India.

Solar Mission being scaled up five-fold to 100,000 megawatts

The country's National solar Mission is being scaled up five-fold to 1,00,000 megawatts by 2022, says the Economic Survey for 20142015. "In the next five years proposals are likely to generate business opportunities of the order of $160 billion in the renewable energy sector," the survey says.

Essel Group Commits 12 GW Renewable Energy Capacity Essel Group, a leading conglomerate in India, has announced that it will set up 12 GW of renewable energy capacity over the next 5 years across several states. The entire exercise will require a total investment of about $12 billion.

NTPC's to set up 15,000 MW solar power projects The union cabinet approved staterun power producer NTPC Ltd's plans to set up 15,000 megawatt of grid-connected solar projects to be completed in three tranches

Inox Wind to invest $750 Million in Gujarat One of the fast-emerging wind energy solutions providers, Inox Wind, is looking to invest $750 million in the state of Gujarat to set up 700 MW capacity across 3 districts.

Inox Wind has also announced that it will invest about $80 million to set up a wind turbine manufacturing unit in the neighboring state of Madhya Pradesh. The company currently has so far supplied wind energy equipment equivalent to 15 GW and has an order pipeline of more than 1 GW.

Madhya Pradesh to get world's largest solar power plant

rated in Rewa district of Madhya Pradesh, next year on Independence Day. This Rs 4000 crore project will be set up by the state government in a joint venture with Solar Energy Corporation of India. Acquisition of 1,500 hectares of land is close to completion and government agencies will start inviting tenders from developers by April.

Triton Solar Forays into Indian Market The US based nanotechnology company, Triton Solar, has announced it’s manufacturing and distribution plans for India.

Himanshu B. Patel, Founder & CEO of Triton Solar, unleashed his plans for expansion to include conducting all manufacturing within the country, along with dedicated sales teams strategically located throughout India.

Adani signs MoU for a 10,000 MW solar park in Rajasthan In what could be the largest in the country, Adani Enterprises Ltd. (AEL), the flagship company of the $9.4 billion (Rs 58,300 crore roughly) Adani Group has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Government of Rajasthan for a 10000 Mw solar park in Rajasthan.

Mahindra to expand renewable energy business amid India’s clean energy push Indian conglomerate Mahindra Group plans to expand its renewable energy business and invest Rs.4,500 crore ($732.5 million) over the next three to four years, its chairman said, amid a government-led push to increase the use of clean energy ■

With the belief that India has the potential to lead the world in this domain, world's largest 750MW solar power plant will be inaugu-

18 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

 www.supersmartenergy.com

SPOT RE FINANCE LIGHT

RBI

Moots Priority Sector Tag for

renewable energy

H

igh interest rates continue to be one of the biggest challenges in achieving India’s solar energy objectives. The high up-front capital costs of solar energy mean that projects are burdened with high interest rates during initial development and construction. For example, India’s commercial banks typically offer shorter-term loans (about 7 to 10 years) to renewable developers at high interest rates (about 12 percent), raising the cost of debt substantially.

Solar financing policies alone cannot resolve the solar market’s financing issues. The lower-cost debt offered by both self-financing and international funding sources during the first phase of the NSM proved to be attractive to many solar developers to get projects off the ground. Many of the multilat-

eral financing groups that played a major role in Phase 1 are shifting their focus to other clean energy financing opportunities in developing economies and may play less of a role in Phase 2. The selffinancing among larger industry players that was prevalent in NSM Phase 1 is now looking less realistic as projects scale up.

One of the key demands of the industry in order to access easy and low cost funding for projects in the initial phase was that of according the priority sector lending status to the renewable industry. The internal working group constituted by RBI for revisiting the priority status guidelines has come up with its suggestions.

The group while revisiting the guidelines on priority sector has given a focus on giving thrust to areas of national priority as well as

interest rate can come down for the sector, provided RBI classifies the renewal energy in priority sector lending category. It would provide incentives to banks for lending to this segment @RE-INVEST2015

Arundhati Bhattacharya Chairperson, State Bank of India

20 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

inclusive growth. In this backdrop, the Working Group has recommended agriculture, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), exports, social infrastructure, renewable energy, educational loans and housing sectors for priority sector lending.

In granting priority sector status, the Working Group has recommended retaining the lending target at 40 per cent of ANBC or Credit Equivalent of Off-Balance Sheet Exposure (CEOBE), whichever is higher, for all scheduled commercial banks uniformly. All foreign banks (irrespective of number of branches they have) may be brought on par with domestic banks and the same target/ sub-targets may be made applicable to them. Foreign banks with 20 and above branches may be given time up to March 2018 in terms of extant guidelines and submit their revised action plans.

Other foreign banks i.e. with less than 20 branches, may be given time up to March 2020 to comply with the revised targets as per action plans submitted by them and approved by Reserve Bank.

The working group has also recommended introduction of Priority Sector Lending Certificates (PSLCs), a mechanism for banks to specialize in certain segments

 www.supersmartenergy.com

of priority sector and leverage on their comparative advantage.

While the Working Group recommends retaining the agriculture target of 18 per cent, the approach and thrust has been re-defined to include farm Credit, agriculture Infrastructure and ancillary activities. The group also recommended that the agriculture lending target of 18% be reset every three years, keeping in mind the contribution of farm sector to the gross domestic product, employment in the sector and number of credit accounts.

The Working Group has also recommends that bank loans up to Rs. 10 crore to borrowers other than households, for purposes like solar-based power generators, biomass-based power generators, wind mills and micro-hide plants and for purposes like non-conventional energy-based public utilities viz., street lighting systems, remote village electrification, etc. be included under priority sector.

Inclusion of renewable energy in the priority sector category would help in easy financing

@RE-INVEST2015

Naina Lal Kidwai

Country Head , HSBC India

For household sector, the loan limit is set at Rs. 5 lakh.

The priority given to off-grid solar by the RBI and to solar water heaters by several major bank-loan programs are a working example of this mechanism’s deployment to increase clean energy access. Including largerscale, grid-connected solar projects as a qualifying priority sector could allow banks to lend with lower interest rates and prevent funds for renewable energy from being crowded out due to power sector caps. As recommended by

financial institutions, even a 2 to 5 percent quota allocated for renewables could substantially increase the amount of funding available for solar power projects Although priority sector lending has its limitations, a quota for renewable energy separate from the existing power sector quota can act as a catalyst to boost lowcost financing for the solar sector in India. Similarly, priority sector lending can further increase the renewable energy market’s access to lower cost capital ■

SOLAR DRYER The performance of the dryers are getting acceptance in both industrial and domestic area

SALIENT FEATURES OF SOLAR DRYER • Hygeinic Drying • No Color De-gradation due to UV rays • Low running cost hence higher savings • Low cost • Easy to Operate • Long Life Drying Periods • Limited Control of Air and Temprature • Air Flow Provided by Solar Fan • Most Widely ised Solar Drier • More Efficient and Fastest Drying Rates Due to High Air Flow Rates • Better Temperature Control 1st Floor, Deol Market, Rajesh Nagar, Haibowal Kalan, Ludhiana- 141001 (Punjab) India Phone: +91 1616572248/ 2302179, +91 9888897248/ 9815097248 E: pur@radhasolar.com / mkt@solarexporterindia.com W: www.radhasolar.com

RE FINANCE

Budget 2015

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley display a briefcase before presenting Union Budget 2015

Thodi Kushi...

Thoda Disappointment When Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley walked with his briefcase to the Parliament, he was carrying more than just the documents of the eagerlyawaited Budget. In his briefcase were hopes and expectations of the common man as much as the businessman – concerns regarding subsidies, tax relaxations, new schemes and policies regarding food security to employment generation and more. The budget speech that followed reinforced the government’s commitment towards growth, transparency, stability, ease of doing business and support for Make and Innovate in India. Some of the announcements like decreasing corporate tax to 25% in the next four years, implementation of GST from April 1,2016, introduction of new public private partnership (PPP) in which the government took over the bulk of project risk, differing GAAR by two years will go a long way in boosting confidence, initiate flow of new investment and attract for-

eign business.

What was lacking though was Modi’s imprint on the budget in terms of impetus towards promotion and adoption of green energy.

Except for increase in renewable energy capacity, doubling of clean energy cess, and excise duty cut Budget 2015 failed to provide any concrete road map for the government's ambitious green energy targets. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley shared no details on the implementation and financing of solar, wind, biomass and hydro energy projects in the country.

"The Ministry of New Renewable Energy has revised its target of renewable energy capacity to 1,75,000 MW till 2022, comprising 100,000 MW Solar, 60,000 MW Wind, 10,000 MW Biomass and 5000 MW Small Hydro," said Jaitley in his speech. However, these targets had already been announced over the past few months.

22 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

Going further in order to

achieve the ambitious target of generating 100 GW from Solar energy the need is to attract private sector investment. The budget however, did not incentivize investment or manufacturing in the solar sector.

The government to further push renewable energy adoption at the household level has reduced the excise duty on solar water heaters and systems to nil from 12% without CENVAT credit or 12.5% with CENVAT credit. Furthermore, the customs duty on evacuated tubes with three layers of solar selective coating for use in solar water heaters and systems has been reduced to nil from 10%. Customs duty on active energy controllers used in the manufacture of renewable power system inverters has been reduced to 5%, subject to certification by the Ministry of New Renewable Energy. Excise duty on the manufacture of cast components (Pig iron SG grade and ferro-silicon-magnesium) of wind operated

 www.supersmartenergy.com

generators has also been reduced to nil from 12%.

The excise duty cut on round copper wire and tin alloys for use in the manufacture of Solar PV ribbon (used in solar PV cells), subject to certification by the Department of Electronics and Information Technology is definitely a good move but the impact of it on projects is not going to be more than 0.5%.

In order to give impetus to the infrastructure sector the government has allowed tax-free infrastructure bonds for railways and road projects, similar bond specifically proposed for renewable energy would have gone a long way in easing the financing difficulty for renewable projects. Given this, any funds for renewable projects from tax-free bonds will now have to come out of the general pool of infrastructure bonds.

The proposal to increase the increase the clean energy cess from Rs.100/- to Rs.200/- per metric tonnes of coal to finance clean environment initiatives will definitely restrain use of coal, lignite and peat encouraging investment in renewable energy. However, there is little clarity on how this money will be utilized.

Every year since 2011 the government has managed to collect around Rs 3000-3500 crores for the clean energy fund. Currently, amount Rs 14000 crores are there in the National Clean Energy Fund, but not much is spent. The fact is that so far only Rs 1500 Crores have been allocated from the fund which is roughly 10% of the fund.

And even of the money which is allocated, very little has been spent by the ministry. With increased cess on coal , the Clean Energy fund will receive around Rs 12,000 Crores per year, a good sum which can jumpstart a number of ambitious projects. But this would require the government to release the funds from the exchequer and support clean energy projects. It would have been better to propose specific allocations

and measures for renewable energy, especially on availability of low cost funds for the renewable energy sector.

While the FM has proposed reduction in corporate tax to 25% in next four years, there is no reduction in MAT (Minimum Applicable Tax) leaving renewable energy companies continue to pay 18% MAT even though there are said to be exempted from income tax.

In addition, with an aim to minimize environmental pollution and promote greener traffic, minister has earmarked Rs 75 crore for faster adoption and manufacturing of electric vehicles in 2015-16.

HIGHLIGHTS OF UNION BUDGET 2015 RENEWABLE ENERGY Rs. 75 crore for electric cars production.

Renewable energy target for 2022: 100K MW in solar; 60K MW in wind; 10K MW in biomass and 5K MW in small hydro INFRASTRUCTURE Rs. 70,000 crores to Infrastructure sector Tax-free bonds for projects in rail road and irrigation PPP model for infrastructure development to be revitalised and govt. to bear majority of the risk.

Atal Innovation Mission to be established to draw on expertise of entrepreneurs, and researchers to foster scientific innovations; allocation of Rs. 150 crore.

Govt. proposes to set up 5 ultra mega power projects, each of 4000MW. TAXATION Rate of corporate tax to be reduced to 25% over next four years.

No change in tax slabs.

100% exemption for contribution to Swachch Bharat, apart from CSR. Service tax increased to14 per cent

“Government is launching a scheme for faster adoption and manufacturing of electric vehicles (FAME), with an initial outlay of Rs 75 crore,” FM said while presenting the Budget for 2015-16 in the Lok Sabha.

The Budget in order to stimulate investments in the sector and to rationalize approval process proposes an Expert Committee to be appointed to aid in the preparation of a pre-existing regulatory mechanism which will do away with the need for multiple prior permissions. This along with the introduction of the Public

Contract (Dispute Resolution) Bill would leave investors in high spirits and streamline the resolution of disputes process.

Though the budget is positive on many aspects it lacks specifics and road map achieving the ambitious target for power generation from renewable resources.

We look forward towards future announcements in this regards to address the concerns of the industry and to make 24x7 power to all a reality ■

23

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

NEWS RE FINANCE THIS MONTH Budget 2015 : comments

Anil Chaudhry

Tulsi Tanti

Prabhu Ramachandran

Country President & Managing Director, Schneider Electric India

Chairman, Suzlon Group

Director, WebNMS

Anil Chaudhry

offers an excellent opportunity for businesses to scale up their solar offerings in rural areas.

• Long term sustainable economy & sustainable jobs

“The Union Budget 2015-16 has created a sustainable growth momentum by focussing on allocations for infrastructure and subsequently a higher emphasis on the fiscal deficit. The measures and allocations announced in the Budget should accelerate largescale infrastructure development in the country. The Government’s decision to allocate Rs70,000 crores augurs well for the infrastructure sector.

We welcome all these moves by the Government and particularly applaud the decision to set up the national infrastructure fund with an annual outlay of Rs20,000 crores as it will boost the planning and development of upcoming infrastructure projects. The Budget looks pragmatic and the increased outlays on infrastructure will see the creation of job opportunities in the country.

The Government’s impetus to prioritize renewable energy is also clearly highlighted in the Budget with the target for renewable energy capacity revised to 175,000 MW till 2022, with adequate focus on solar power. The decision to electrify 20,000 villages with the help of solar off-grid solutions

An announcement of direct or indirect tax benefits for the adoption of energy efficiency measures would have been welcome as it would have served to bridge the gap between energy supply and demand.”

Tulsi Tanti We welcome this budget as it is positive, growth oriented and puts forth realistic roadmap to attain sustainable economic growth.

The government’s thrust on renewable energy is clearly visible in the target of achieving 175 GW by 2022. India in the last 25 years India has done 34 GW and in the next 7 years we now have a target of 175 GW, comprising of 60GW wind energy which is an ambitious target for the industry and we welcome the move since it is in the right direction. The budget reiterates mission and vision of the government to achieve the following: • Affordable sustainable energy for all • Low carbon economy • Achieve energy security

24 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

The government’s commitment to green India manifests in some of the additional measures such as increasing the coal cess from Rs. 100 to Rs 200 thereby providing impetus to clean energy We appreciate the focus on providing impetus to the Make in India vision by giving clarity on taxes, definitive measures to ease of doing business in India and encouraging domestic and foreign direct investment. However, in our view to provide further stimulus for investment in captive renewable power by the manufacturing units, interest rebate should be given, which will also ensure success of Make In India. Further, innovative financing measures such as infrastructure bond, creation of mudra bank for MSME sector also augurs well for Make in India. So overall we see the budget has provided several initiatives to boost manufacturing in India.

Prabhu Ramachandran The Union Budget 2015 reiterates the Government’s Digital India programme, with a balance of strong focus on strengthening  www.supersmartenergy.com

NEWS THIS MONTH

V.P. Mahendru

Shishir Joshipura

Pramod Chaudhari

Chairman and MD , EON Electric

Managing Director and Country Head, SKF India

Executive Chairman,Praj Industries

the infrastructure sector along with measures to promote entrepreneurship. The emphasis on infrastructure –roadways, railway, power, and housing will in turn boost investments in technology infrastructure and speed up IoT adoption. On the industry front, we are excited that the articulation of the Digital India vision will bring together diversified stakeholders of the Internet of Things (IoT) value chain and regulate the highly fragmented IoT ecosystem in India.

also enthused by the reduction in corporate tax and MAT as it will encourage corporate operations.

Clarity and re-assurance in effective implementation of GST by the beginning of 2016 is indeed very encouraging and reassuring step.

lot of pragmatism for a long haul.

The budget gives 'long term' direction by way of reducing Corporate Tax from 30% to 25% which is definitely welcome.

Shishir Joshipura

Clean Ganga initiative has been given budgetary support and tax exemption, thereby putting investments behind the intent. Companies that have the technology to clean Ganga will now be able to avail tax exemptions.

V.P. Mahendru This is an excellent growth budget for raising internal financial resources without burden on the lower income group citizens of the country, and for creating jobs for young educated people of India and thus creating millions of jobs for the lower income groups too.

It can be termed as a visionary budget which lays the road map for achieving long-term goals of raising funds for Infrastructure and Industrial growth. The exception from SAD and reduction in the excise duty of LED drivers and MCPCB for LED lights, fixtures and LED lamps is a clarion call to boost domestic LED Lighting and Electronics Industry. We are

With this ’high on governance’ budget, the government has moved away from sectoral SOPs completely and has focused on critical macro points such as transparency, ease of doing business and social welfare. Steps taken towards creating a transparent model of governance and project clearances, setting a direction for GAAR is a clear and positive message to the investors towards ease of doing business. The roadmap for reducing corporate tax gradually is a welcome move that will drive investments. Infrastructure, an important sector has got a positive impetus . This budget has got something for everyone, focusing on issues which aim to drive sustainable and inclusive growth in a true sense.

The Make in India initiative is also well supported including by way of infrastructure growth.

Benefits owing to rationalization of taxes through GST are expected to kick start in 2016..

Higher investment allowances would have certainly helped further ■

Pramod Chaudhari The Union Budget 2015-16 shows

25

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

SPOT LIGHT the federal government of Rajasthan. IBC SOLAR successfully finished its project by connecting the plant to the public grid in August – in fact, IBC SOLAR’s PV power plant has been the second project within the whole PV construction area that has been grid-connected successfully.

India: Topographically challenging

Authored by : Reinhard Ling

Performing as an EPC contractor in India: chances and challenges

I

BC SOLAR AG, a global leader in photovoltaic systems, has finished the construction of a 5.5 MWp photovoltaic (PV) plant in Bhadla, in the Indian state of Rajasthan. Bhadla marks the first megawatt plant in India that the company realized as a full-service EPC contractor (engineering, procurement, construction) in cooperation with its Indian subsidiary.

Being responsible for the overall project management, IBC SOLAR successfully managed the challenging topographic conditions and ensured continuous quality control.

Pakistanian border in the middle of the desert. The installation area has its own high-voltage grid substation constituted on behalf of

The arid landscape made project execution a logistically and topographically demanding task.

The next available connection to public train transportation is more than one hour’s drive away, the next airport almost a four hour’s drive. Due to bad road conditions and thus a high risk of damages, IBC SOLAR decided to transport the modules in containers from the harbour in Mumbai to the construction site near Bhadla.

Another challenge was related to civil works and construction requirements. The soil on the construction site consisted of a 3 meter top layer of loose sand, which at first had to be levelled and freed from vegetation by local farmers. Secondly, IBC SOLAR implemented a detailed analysis of the soil conditions and executed a series of on-site tests

»

Rajasthan is one of the federal states with the highest installed solar capacity in India and pursues a dedicated construction policy.

The 5.5 MWp plant in Bhadla is part of a huge PV installation area with several PV power plants currently under construction near the

26 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

 www.supersmartenergy.com

27

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

NEWS THIS MONTH tor consciously opted for branded IBC PolySol modules. Thanks to in-house stringent quality assurance IBC SOLAR is able to provide long-term product and plant performance guarantees.

tions. We guarantee NSM-conform planning and construction following the highest German engineering and product standards.”

“The EPC project in Bhadla was a huge success for IBC SOLAR and its subsidiary”, concludes Reinhard Ling, Business Manager at IBC SOLAR Projects Private Ltd. in Mumbai. “We worked closely together with local workers and specialists realizing a tailor-made PV construction and thereby meeting all special and price requirements. Our goal was not only to deliver high quality components and German engineering standards, but also to ensure an effective transfer of knowledge, which is especially important in emerging markets like India.

In the end, we can guarantee a maximum performance ratio and a quick return on investment for the investor.”

Rheinland certificated the plant according to the international standard IEC62446. IBC SOLAR also commissioned an independent yield assessment and further evaluations of international norms concerning low voltage, electrical security and the safety of the PV modules. Thereby, the company sustainably ensures the plant’s best possible outcome and maximum security: The independent report offers additional security for both the investor and the EPC contractor.

Securing the investment: Operation and Success through local maintenance based subsidiary The Bangalore branch of TUV

with different foundations, such as ramming or piling. In a third step, IBC SOLAR decided to use special, so called under-reamed foundations to fit the needs of the loose soil and to create more stability against wind loads. To counter the increased costs caused by the special foundations, modules have been mounted four-row horizontally so that fewer rows are needed which reduces the necessary foundation.

Next to special foundations the engineering team decided to use decentralised string inverters.

Main reason for preferring string inverters to centralised inverters was the fact, that they can be easily repaired or replaced in case of damages. This makes operation and maintenance services much easier on the one hand and on the other hand minimize the time and costs of downtimes in energy production. Furthermore, the special design of the string inverters allows making use of the installation’s shade and protecting components from sand and heat.

To meet highest quality standards with regards to the components and the demanding pricing requirements, the Indian inves-

Successfully performing as a full-service EPC contractor has been the outcome of IBC SOLAR’s former activities in India. Reinhard Ling. “In India, we have already overcome a steep learning curve, especially as far as the business culture is concerned. It is particularly important to develop a relationship based on mutual trust with partners in this country which allows you to understand their mentality and also involves having a great deal of patience.

India always makes its presence felt upon entering the PV market.

We have discovered that the process of exchanging knowledge and expertise also plays an important role in this country, especially when it comes to the part of system construction. As a result of our experience in India since 2008, we know all too well about the special climatic requirements of PV power plants in India. With the foundation of our Indian subsidiary, we achieve high flexibility and control over local content regula-

28 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

To gain high profits in the longterm over the entire service life of the plant of 20 years or longer, it is absolutely vital to ensure that the PV plant continues to deliver a high performance. Therefore it is advisable for investors not only to focus on short-term profits, but instead to look at generating longterm IRR. This also involves ensuring the long-term performance of the plant under the extreme climatic conditions – only plants that are kept running at all times offer the investor the desired profitability. This can only be guaranteed with operation and maintenance (O&M) agreements. IBC SOLAR, for example, offers continuous plant supervision and evaluations.

Reinhard Ling: “This enables us to identify problems at any time and to quickly recognise and eliminate errors. We also rely on staff that are directly on-site and are able to repair or replace faulty components quickly. O&M is not yet widespread in India, but should definitely be taken into consideration by investors!” ■ (Reinhard Ling is Business Manager at IBC SOLAR Projects Private Ltd.)  www.supersmartenergy.com

NEWS THIS MONTH

MW GW TO

30 SmartEnergy Jan/ Feb 2015

 www.supersmartenergy.com

Authored By ROHAN SINGH

I

ndia’s energy security scenario represents a giant paradox, where millions live in darkness even though the county is blessed with abundant energy resources. A large chuck of rural India doesn’t know what electricity means. After so many years of Independence only a few enjoy the fruits of development. Faulty policies and lack of political will have led us to a stage where 360 million people in India lack access to electricity and another 20 million households receive less than four hours of electricity per day.

To come at par with other countries in energy access, especially with neighbours like China, we have no option but to make a quantum leap in energy

NEWS THIS MONTH the last one year the government has done well to shore up expectations in renewable energy and bring it back on course to reaching its full potential. Through many policy initiatives, the government is trying to showcase that investments in the sector will be protected and encouraged. It is promising to make Renewable energy an attractive investment destination by providing a favourable atmosphere and predictable policies.

The government recently upgraded its target of renewable power generation capacity addition to 100,000 Mw (100 GW) in solar and 60,000 Mw 60 GW) in wind-based power. Solar power capacity is currently 3,000 Mw and wind-based power is 21,000 Mw.

The renewable energy sector in the country is in for a major revamp with RE-Invest 2015, Renewable Energy Global Investors’ Meet and Expo, receiving green energy commitments worth 2,66,000 MW. RE-Invest 2015, a follow-up to the ‘Make in India’ program announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, showcased India’s intentions to pursue the eco-friendly path to meeting the country’s vast energy needs. The proposals on renewable energy would lead to job generation, competitiveness and improvements in the manufacturing sector, all without hurting the environment.

production and improving connectivity. Some recent developments have once again raised the hope of a future where we can provide energy access to the last man. Much of it has to come from the renewed commitments in the clean energy sector. Growing population and fast paced development have presented a situation where we now need to leap from “Megawatts to Gigawatts” scenario.

Flip-flops in government policymaking and gloomy investment climate have so far discouraged many domestic and international investors to take more ambitious targets in renewable energy. The initial hype in the sector turned out to be a mere bubble inducing more panic to the investors. But in

Presently, renewable energy accounts just 6.5 per cent in the power mix of the country. The new targets are pretty ambitious considering that currently the total installed energy in India from all sources is still just 250 GW. In a power thirsty country, clean energy markets offer sustainable solutions to the energy crisis. At the same time they address the pressing challenge of climate change create more jobs and supports local economies.

A t t r a c t i n g Investments

» 31

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

COVER STORY It’s a well established fact that for the long term energy security, low carbon sources cost less than fossil fuels. But at the same time they require more capital for the initial infrastructure set up. India’s alone can’t finance the infrastructure needs for driving the future of clean energy. It needs to attract investors from outside by providing them with attractive incentives.

The scale of these commitment raise many questions regarding the finances needed to reach the targets. The question is whether India’s financial system is prepared to sustain the scale of investments promised in the renewable energy sector? The recent optimism in the sector may prove to be a mere bubble if the financial viability aspect is not taken care of well. Developers for long have complained that the current financial regime makes it difficult to develop projects.

In the recently concluded RE INVEST 2015 summit in New Delhi, as many as 293 firms committed to build 266 GW or 2,66,000 MW renewable energy capacity in the next five years. Bankers committed to finance projects of 78,000 MW power generation capacities and help meet the USD 250 billion investment target for the sector. Country’s biggest lender SBI vowed to finance 15,000 mw of renewable energy over the next five years.

Fixing issues

The challenges of the renewable energy sector cannot be completely separated from India’s overall infrastructure financing challenges. The single biggest challenge to scaling up renewable energy is the cost of finance - in particular to debt. High interest rates and relatively short term loans for renewable energy projects in India increase the cost by 24-32% compared to similar projects in the U.S and Europe.

Adding to the woes of the sector

financial

14

12.3

USD Billion

12 10 8

7.6

6

5.6

4.7

4

4.7

7.9

6.85

2.9

2 0

2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Investors in RE Space

150

Total registered in India

100

Activa in RE Sector

su ra

ta l In

ur

Ms. Naina Lal Kidwai, Chief Executive Officer & Country Head, HSBC India, believes that capital markets will have more responsibilities to play . “Particularly, we need to create a domestic green bond market which did trading worldwide worth $34 billion last year. India needs to participate and I also believe that priority sector lending should include

»

Indian clean energy market is largely driven by asset-based finance to the extend of 94% of the total investement in the sector

Developed Banks- IREDA, continue to represent a key source of funds for RE investments, particularly in project finance, over the medium term Institutional investors arte either state-owned or bilateral and multilateral institutions The estimated investment in Indian market will be about 100 billion USD in coming 4 years as per government esti-

nt Ve

te iv a Pr

e

Eq

Ca pi

ui

ty

nk Ba n

32 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

24 11

nc e

21

16

ig

te iv a Pr

51

37

Se

Se ct ic bl Pu

180

6

ct o

or

0

30

9

r

26

re

50

Fo

Number

200

Public sector financing will play a pivotal role if India is to meets its increased renewable energy targets over the next decade. The sector will require some financial support in the medium term, until its costs come at parity with the conventional power.

A Variety of investor finance renewable energy projects in India, including institutions, bank and registered companies

5.6

4.2

is the expensive domestic debt due to hostile macroeconomic conditions as well as weak capital markets.The government should make a policy shift for facilitating low-cost and long-term debt from domestic capital markets as well as foreign sources.

Source: Bloomberg Finance Report, 2014

 www.supersmartenergy.com

COVER STORY

NEWS THIS MONTH RE-INVEST 2015

I

t was India’s biggest renewable energy business meet ever organised. The first Renewable Energy Global Investors Meet & Expo (RE-Invest) was held on 15-17 February 2015 in New Delhi, to attract large scale investments for the renewable energy sector in India. Inaugurated by Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, RE-Invest was a mix of both conference and exhibition of manufacturers, project developers, investors and other players in the renewable energy space. 2800 delegates from 42 countries participated in the three day RE-INVEST 2015 . 202 speakers addressed various sessions, out of which the 40 international speakers were from 29 countries. There were a total of 118 exhibitors who showcased India’s strength and potential . 200 global investors providing financing and investment solutions also participated. 9 states showcased their policy initiatives in the renewable energy sector. Germany which has shown the way for the renewable energy development in the world was the partner country at the meet.

The summit managed to deliver to the buzz created around it. 14 banks and financial institutions, 8 PSUs and private manufacturers, 15 private sector companies declared their commitments to scale up the renewable energy generation. On total, Green Energy Commitments worth 2, 66, 000 MW were received during the conference.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi

24 PSUs Commit 19 GW

described India’s thrust towards renewable energy production as an effort to ensure universal energy access for India’s poor. He also called for collaboration of 50 countries with ample solar radiation in the field of solar power.

“We want a consortium of these 50 countries. And these countries shuld pool research and technological advancements to improve its accessibility to the poor and in the remote areas.” Said Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy Piyush Goyal said India has the potential to become the renewable energy capital of the world.

The objective of RE-INVEST was to showcase the renewable energy potential of India to the world and attracting investments. The meet was successful to a great extent in reposing the investors’ confidence once again to invest in the renewable energy sector in India. It lifted

319 Pvt. Ltd. Companies Commit 252 GW

17 Pvt. Manufacturing Companies Commit 62 GW

a new confidence to establish India as the manufacturing hub for renewables and for research and innovation.

And the result was evident as the meet wrapped up. Both government and private companies made commitments totalling a whopping 266 GW of renewable energy in the next 5 years.

Union Finance Arun Jaitley was optimistic that the commitments made during the meet would lead to enormous jobs generation, investments resulting in profitability, competitiveness between various sectors, filling up the gaps in power supply, enhancement of manufacturing sector.

RE-INVEST provided a multi stakeholder platform engaging bankers, developers and policymakers to innovate new models for the future development of renewable energy sector ■

NTPC Commits 10,000 MW

27 Banks Commit to Financing 69 GW RE Projects

RE-INVEST 2015 Concludes with 2,70,329 MW Green Energy Commitments

33

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

COVER STORY Pledging a brighter future

Honourable PM Narendra Modi

Shri Piyush Goyal

Michael Bloomberg

Union Minister of State ( IC) for

UN Secretary General’s Special Envoy for Cities and Climate Change

Coal, Power and New & Renewable Energy



Our stress on renewable energy India now has a historical is not aimed at impressing the opportunity to leverage this world, but to meet the energy new paradigm and define its requirements of our people own path of development of the national power system to India’s renewable energy achieve its energy security goals ambitions in numbers



US$100b

investment in renewable energy over the next five years .....................

100GW

solar capacity by 2022 (end of 2014 = 3.3G W) .....................

60GW

wind capacity by 2022 (end of 2014 = 22G W) .....................

US$50b

investment in transmission and distribution

renewables and better credit enhancement techniques,”.

To further support the sector MNRE is soon going to introduce the concept of renewable generation obligation (RGO) in the new renewable energy policy. Union Minister of State ( IC) for Coal, Power and New & Renewable Energy says, “ There is a need to socialise the cost of renewable energy (RE) through participation of all states, because currently only the states pushing for RE are bearing the burden.”

One Million Green Jobs If the new targets are achieved and commitments lived , it will have

34 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015



India's private sector and foreign investors [should] continue developing and investing in the clean energy market which create[s] knowledgeintensive jobs and support[s] the nation's goals socio economic huge benefits for India. India’s 100 GW Solar Target is projected to create 1 Million Jobs by 2022. Of these Approximately 183,500 jobs would be generated in the wind energy sector.The government is looking at all possibilities to cease the opportunity. The sector will see large investments in solar parks and grid-connected projects. But a significant focus will on rooftop solar solutions and off grid solutions where large number of youth can be trained and engaged. With a little impetus on skill development green energy can also generate jobs for India’s rapidly growing workforce.

Make ‘Renewable Energy’ in India  www.supersmartenergy.com

Renewable energy has been listed as one of the key sectors under government’s flagship ‘Make in India’initiative. India has vast renewable energy resources and if utilised well can make India a manufacturing hub for renewable. A great advantage India has is being strategically located thereby having access to the emerging renewable energy markets. It also has a very large land mass and therefore raw material required for renewable energy is available.

Shri Arvind Panagariya Vice Chairman, NITI Aayog



Though after years of promoting renewable energy, India has attained a certain level of manufacturing capabilities, it still lacks an exciting manufacturing ecosystem. It needs integrated manufacturing along the complete value-chain. For renewable manufacturing to be truly competitive, the market needs more innovative pathways. It could look at the possibility of hybrid energy parks harnessing solar and wind energy together in an area to maximize benefit. The country needs to move on from likes of ‘domestic content requirement’ to policies that help industry to acquire new technologies.

There is a vast potential of wind and solar energy in the country which are complementary to each other which needs massive investments. In the coming years, challenges in cost effective renewable energy appli“Fortunately, the Indian manuances have also to be taken into facturers supported our endeavconsideration. our be withdrawing the anti-

dumping duty request. We see a renewed enthusiasm in both Indian corporate and international investors.” Said a hopeful Piyush Goyal.

sector could only succeed if sufficient focus is made on research and innovation in the renewable energy sector rather than simply adding more capacity. Energy companies would need to invest more in R&D , while the government will have to come up with proactive policies. Banks and other financial institutions also need to get involved in supporting R&D in the sector. The government will have to invest heavily in creating enough testing and certification facilities of global standards that can cater to sharply increased demand arising out of this campaign.

Crossing the bridge What would it take to achieve the target by the year 2022? A strong will from the government to put enough support behind it. Recent efforts have succeeded to a great extent to change the mood. There is a clear sense of optimism in the market. One good change seen in the RE INVEST summit was that this time there were a new set of players around: large Indian business houses and international investors who now see a chance for projects big enough to warrant their time and efforts. Government’s interest in renewable definitely signals hope for manufacturers and they can expect adequate and continues orders

»

‘Make in India’ in renewable

CLEAN ENERGY CREATES JOBS FOR INDIA CLEAN ENERGY= FULL-TIME EMPLOYMENT TENS OF THOUSANDS OF INDIAN CITIZENS ARE EMPLOYED BY CLEAN ENERGY DIRECTLY AND INDIRECTLY. THIS IS GREAT NEWS FOR INDIA’S GROWING POPULATION AND WORKFORCE Between 2011- 2014

24,000

full-time jobs were generated through solar photovoltaic projects alone

If India achieved its target of

100 gigawatts (GW) of installed solar energy by 2022 as many as

1,000,000

full time jobs would be created

35

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

COVER STORY Chinese and Indian RE Investment (2004- 2013)

74,000 59,200 China

61,121

60,321

2011

2012

2013

41,768

44,400

37,323

India 29,600

23,512 15,050

14,800 0

60,532

2,296

3,631

2004

2005

6,331

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

Source: (Bloomberg New Energy Finance)

from public sector companies in the coming years. The best news however is that the RE INVEST 2015 brought financial institutions back to the table.

India’s power demands are huge and ever increasing. Rapid industrial growth would only be sustained if it gets continues power supply. Fossil fuels, like coal, are finite and cannot be

depended in long run. They also come up with significant damage to the environment. In such scenario , renewable energy particularly solar has the potential to become the base of India’s energy security in a decade’s time. But for that it would require an even more ambitious target and improved grid management and storage facilities. India gets 70% more solar radiation than European countries and just by ending the energy paradox it can bring light in the lives of every individual in the country.

ii Significant focus will also be on rooftop solar and off grid solutions.

Roadmap to achieve the targets

ii Net Metering: All the rooftops solar plant will be connected to net metering facility. The owner can consume electricity whenever they require it and the surplus will be fed back in the grid.

The MNRE is drawing on a long term roadmap to achieve the renewable energy targets. The Minsitry will work actively in identifying the infrastructure requirements and de-bottling them, so that the manufacturers in India can successfully take their plans forward. ii Ease in setting up plant: The government is looking at all possibilities to cease the buoyant mood in the industry. It is looking at large investments in solar and wind parks. Government will help industry in getting the land and create evacuation facility through green energy corridors.

Effectively making it s plug and play programme

36 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

ii Government trying to bring small hydro plants back on stream. ii Expecting 100 Billion US dollars in next 5 years. ii Renewable Generation Obligation (RGO): Government will introduce a new concept called Renewable Generation Obligation (RGO). Companies which set up a fossil fuels based power plants will compulsorily have to co-invest in renewable energy.

ii New wind energy technology has larger wind turbines. Some of the existing smaller turbines will either be replaces or supplemented with larger turbines. ii States to have a uniform policy on renewable energy. ii Regional grids to make scheduling and forecasting of wind easier. ii Incentives on ‘renewable purchase obligation’ in the Electricity Act of 2014 ■

 www.supersmartenergy.com

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37

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

COVER STORY INTERVIEW EXPERT SPEAK

Sanjib Mitra Country Head Sales & Marketing (Transformers & Solar Solutions) Electrotherm (India) Ltd.

"Solar Power House is a container solution for smart power conversion from DC to AC and step up to the Grid"

Q

.Electrotherm (India) ltd.

(ET) is essentially an engineering company with diversified business interest, could you shed some light on the transformer manufacturing business of ET. The different types of solar transformers you manufacture and market in India?

We have always been very innovative in our product offerings.

Regarding Solar Inverter Transformer, market was looking for a matured player who understand Inverter behavior pattern. In that context, we have taken extra care in designing Transformers to combat Inverter surges and high impedance path to block short circuiting through LV circuits and thus blocking cascade effect of inverter failures

of smart substation solution for solar power generation industry, what necessitate the design and development of this product?

Look, conventional substation building at a remote distance is a challenge plus after erection of all items, you need to terminate each as per it’s specification and then connect the complete system in a seamless manner to produce electricity and power flow up to the grid. This is a time consuming and tedious task. So we have offered a smart , compact solution to address all under one roof and easily can be shipped to site. More so, it involves zero civil works, zero installation work and zero commissioning work as everything is prefabricated and factory tested.

Q

Q

.Electrotherm has extended its presence in the solar market through the launch

.Shed some light on “Solar Power House”, its advantages and special features?

38 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

It combines DC circuits and AC circuits both at a time under one roof which is a unique advantage leading to most minimum work left for site plus substantial cost advantage as cabling work is minimized and civil work goes off completely. Also headache of gathering several agencies for the complex commissioning task is also relieved.

Q

.Substations are heart of solar power plant, how does the Solar Power House address the issues of safety, reliability and monitoring?

It is a more safe technology as sensitive instruments and panels are placed in a container which is designed to take care of hazardous atmosphere and all weather related issues. So instruments life expectancy doubles in this technology because the sheet metal container covers the complete  www.supersmartenergy.com

substation. It’s integral SCADA connection helps it to monitor various parameters from a remote distance

Q

.Could you elaborate on the cost competitiveness of Electrotherms smart substation “Solar Power House” compared to the alternatives that are in use today?

Cost of implementation is highly economical as multiple units get fabricated at a time at manufacturing facilities and can be shipped together to site for multi MW power output by just inter connecting them at site to combine the power to pump to the grid.

Cable cost and civil cost becomes almost negligible in such container solution

Q

.Tell us more about the “ET Advantage” and your experience advantage in EPC and solar transformer manufacturing that has helped transform this product?

Timely delivery of quality product & services have been biggest advantage for ET customers. In Solar Power House, we offer 100 % solution fit to customer need and fit for site variants so that our customer can get a single window channel to deal up to commissioning and of course we offer routine health check up during post commissioning period as an option.

Right from design, engineering up to commissioning , ET Team always provide full support to customer even when the requirement becomes non standard and complex so that each solar project can be completed well within target schedule.

Q

.What do you think is the potential for smart substation solutions like that of “Solar Power House” for solar industry as the new industry standard?

How do you think this could impact the market landscape?

We have already observed an

Solar Power House container solution from Electrotherm (India) Ltd.

upswing in the market and are pretty sure that market will accept more and more solar power house solution because of it’s seamless integration feature which helps customer and promoters to commission large power stations in challenging time. In advance countries people have already adopted this technology in a full-fledged manner and India is not too far.

Q

.What are some of the key growth challenges that Electrotherm is facing as you start to scale up the “Solar Power House” product? How are you addressing those issues?

Inverters are yet to stabilize in Indian Market which is the heart of Solar Power House. Most of the time customers are occupied in Inverter make and model finalization. The day is not far off that customer will have multiple solution available for a defined output which then will help ET to accelerate solar power house deliveries to site

Q

.Can you talk a little about Electrotherms market strategy for “Solar Power House” product? The growth and market share that you are looking at?

Customer First – is the tagline for us. We wish to deliver our best

to meet customers time line and all efforts are towards the same.

As of now there are few manufacturers in the country who can address complete solution. We see and substantial growth in Solar Power House Market.

Q

.What are the geographies that you are targeting? Can we see the “Solar Power House” exported to other countries in the future?

We have already commissioned 25 MW in Maharashtra, 50 MW is under installation in Punjab. 100 MW is the target set for Rajasthan and Gujarat for coming year.

Q

.What are the new launches from Electrotherm for solar market that we can look forward towards in the future?

Where do you look “Solar Power House” to be in 5 years time?

Solar Power House will open a new avenue in the country. We expect lot of standardization in this product in coming years which will help market to quickly finalize the rating and thus accelerate growth of the nation building in terms of solar power ■

39

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

SPECIAL FEATURE

Shaping the future of Offshore Wind in India

A

s a rapidly developing nation, India increasingly requires secure access to modern sources of energy: this is essential for reducing poverty and improving health, increasing productivity and competitiveness, and promoting economic growth. Even today about 300 million people in the country lack access to electricity. In addition, rising concerns about climate change, combined with the desire to improve energy independence, is prompting policymakers to consider new energy generation options.

India already has a strong track record in onshore wind. To date onshore wind has been the major contributor of renewable

40 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

power in India, constituting 66% of installed renewable capacity.

However, onshore wind resources in India are concentrated mainly in the five western and southern states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat. The rate of capacity addition has fallen in the past couple of years due in part to policy instability, but also state-specific issues linked to land acquisition for projects. As a result, offshore wind may now have a role to play, holding the potential for alleviating the land acquisition challenge. Although the costs are greater than its onshore cousin, offshore wind has some inherent advantages such as a large wind resource, higher wind speeds and more clarity over land tenure. Offshore wind can also play a role in meeting the demand from load centres closer to the coastline – for example, Greater Mumbai, Chennai and Surat, as well as other big cities such as Vishakhapatnam and Vadodara, subject to technical and economic feasibility.

Looking globally, offshore wind has come of age. It is well over ten years since the first commercial-scale offshore wind farm, Horns Rev, was completed in the Danish North Sea. Although the path to roll-out has not always been smooth, over 7 GW had been installed in Europe and Asia by the end of 2013 – and counting. Policymakers across the world are increasingly recognizing the benefits of generating power from a clean and indigenous energy source, which not only brings industrial development possibilities, but is also starting to demonstrate cost reduction.

OFFSHORE WIND STATUS IN INDIA There are not yet any offshore wind turbines installed in India – but the seeds of activity are underway. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) is developing a draft offshore policy3, and preliminary efforts are being taken to  www.supersmartenergy.com

assess the offshore wind resource by the National Institute for Wind Energy.

Sound policy design is crucial to offshore wind’s success Deploying wind turbines in the hostile marine environment remains complex and the risks associated with these capex-heavy investments should not be underestimated. A huge amount of regulatory change is required, involving coordination across departments and stakeholders. Experience shows that policymakers have a crucial role to play in creating the right incentive, grid connection and consenting regime that secures industry confidence and catalyzes investment, helping to lower project risk and push technologies towards maturity.

The design of India’s offshore wind policy is critical to creating the necessary conditions for long-term growth and to lower investment risk in the offshore wind sector. Policy choices will be made not just for the financial mechanism, but also regulatory and permitting issues and grid integration. Ensuring that all of these issues are coordinated is vital to the long-term success of the sector.

Careful examination of what has worked and not worked in Europe can help the coastal states of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu, plus central Government, to avoid repeating costly mistakes and maximise the impact of public investment. The lessons can help strengthen policy design to give clarity and consistency to an emerging industry that could in time create jobs and contribute to the nation’s energy independence.

I. Set a clear offshore wind target and roadmap to convey the vision to industry Experience shows that a clear, time-bound, quantitative target for offshore wind development, and a roadmap of how to achieve it, is an effective tool to focus minds

on the offshore wind opportunity.

Europe provides evidence of the importance of targets and roadmaps. The EU 2020 National Renewable Energy Action Plans played a crucial role in catalysing industry activity, raising public awareness and attracting investors. In fact, nearly all offshore wind markets today have either national or state-level targets and specific plans for renewable energy. The signals are strongest where these targets are offshore wind-specific, rather than pertaining to renewable in general.

tance of affordability has sparked concerted industry effort on cost reduction.

A simple and strong message from industry and investors is always the need for dependable, long term policy signals to be present. Results have been delivered where this has been the case: for example Germany and Denmark have had stable policies to promote offshore wind for many years, and both have successfully created a robust local offshore wind sector.

It may be premature for India to set long term targets given the current uncertainty associated with both the resource and local offshore wind levelised costs. However, as understanding increases, then a clear long term target and roadmap is likely to provide a significant stimulus to offshore wind deployment.

India already articulates its policy objectives to some extent.

For instance, India has had a climate change action plan since 2008, and the need to address power shortages is regularly communicated. However, the integration of mitigation and adaptation efforts is yet to be initiated at the broader economic and resource planning levels.

II. Clearly articulate and affirm energy policy objectives to maintain industry confidence

There is scope for even better integration of climate, decarbonisation and economic growth signals.

Whilst targets are hugely beneficial, in real life roadmaps do not always go to plan; unforeseen issues, such as changes to the financing climate, mean that the future may turn out differently from expectations. For instance, the history of European offshore wind shows that deployment has tended to fall short of targets.

For this reason, it is best practice for targets to be backed up by a clear articulation of wider policy objectives. Common energy policy objectives are decarbonisation, energy security, affordability and job creation.

A clear understanding of these wider policy objectives helps to provide industry with confidence that the drivers for offshore wind will persist even if the exact milestones do not always go to plan.

Clear policy objectives also provide focus for industry activity; for instance, the UK Government’s repeated articulation of the impor-

III. Ensure managed progression from demonstration to commercial projects Offshore wind projects pose a significant technical, commercial and regulatory challenge that should best be approached step-wise, beginning with demonstration projects. Most of the markets studied have undertaken demonstration projects, usually more than one, to assess local appetite and environmental conditions, identify regulatory issues, create learning opportunities for domestic developers and suppliers, gauge the gaps in auxiliary infrastructure (ports, vessels, grid connections etc.) and to test new technology. Such demonstration projects in India could provide invaluable first-hand experience and tease out any India specific issues. They can help transfer knowledge through collaboration between local Indian stakeholders

» March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy 41

SPECIAL FEATURE and more experienced partners.

The challenges of bringing forward a demonstration site can help both developers and regulators understand whether offshore wind is a sector worth pursuing and in turn help shape any future commercial scale projects. It therefore encouraging that MNRE and a consortium of industry partners have committed to the first 100 MW demo site in India.

Yet, it is not just about demonstration sites. A demonstration site will almost certainly be expensive, given that it will be doing something new. For the industry to make the necessary investment in infrastructure, a clear plan for progression to the next level of project is required. For instance this could be a large number of smaller projects, driving competition amongst developers and mitigating the risk if any one project was to fail, or it could be the identification of larger zones that could provide a clear pipeline for one developer and in turn drive industrialisation. These are important choices that will shape how

the sector develops.

IV. Provide strong initial public investment and utilise PublicPrivate partnerships where possible Public investment is critical for this emerging sector. This is needed not just to reduce project risk and to provide soft loans but also to ensure that the preliminary assessments and necessary supporting infrastructure is developed. For example The Crown Estate in the UK have undertaken work to de-risk the environmental and consenting process through targeted research, with industry and non-profit organizations, on issues such as birds, collision risk for vessels and helped managed the interaction between the offshore wind and telecoms sectors.

In Germany, the Bremen region invested heavily in the Port of Bremerhaven, which is now the offshore wind hub for the German sector.

In terms of financing, the high cost of offshore wind has meant that a mix of public and private

finance has been required. For instance, KfW, the UK’s Green Investment Bank and the European Investment Bank have all invested heavily in offshore wind, aiding developers’ constrained balance sheets and bringing in new investors. The financing, technical and regulatory challenges of offshore wind are such that private and public sector partnerships are vital to the overall success of the sector. In India, the demonstration site announced by MNRE is an encouraging first step.

Going forward, the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) within MNRE will be critical to establishing such partnerships.

V. Ensure sufficient volume, delivered in a smooth pipeline, and design risk informed support mechanisms to drive cost reduction The expected higher costs of offshore wind development are one of the key concerns of decision makers in India. The levelised costs of offshore wind are still high in Europe in comparison to other renewable technologies such as onshore wind and even solar.

There are various policy initiatives, particularly in the UK and Germany, which are focused on driving down cost. India will benefit indirectly from these initiatives, but equally Indian policymakers can also directly have an impact on local costs themselves.

A key message coming from leading markets is that confidence in sufficient market volume helps industry to maximise local ‘learning by doing’ and benefit from economies of scale – thus pushing down costs. In particular, it is important to ensure a smooth pipeline, as rapid increases or decreases in deployment are challenging for the supply chain to manage. A further aid to cost reduction can be designing ‘risk informed’ financial support mechanisms, which are structured such as to minimise upfront developer risk, to minimise cost of financing.

42 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

»

 www.supersmartenergy.com

NEWS THIS MONTH

43

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

SPECIAL FEATURE

It is also important for policymakers to keep their eye on the bigger, longer term picture.

Initially at the demonstration phase, offshore wind costs can be expected to be high. However, as more and more parts of the puzzle of offshore wind farm design, development and operations become more familiar to local actors, cost efficiencies will be found.

Long term the focus should be on cost reduction in those areas that India can influence. Localization and learning from other markets could result in lowering the costs for the technology for India. However this will require long term political, policy and regulatory investment and guidance to be available to the sector.

VI. Carefully consider the costs and benefits of promoting a local supply chain A crucial motivation is often the overt desire to create local economic value, in terms of jobs, additional income and manufac-

turing. Those benefits vary significantly from market to market, and include localised installation and maintenance capacity, component supply or large-scale wind turbine manufacturing and local skills development.

Policymakers can influence local content through both proactive supply chain support programmes, and through attaching conditions to financial support mechanisms. However, the excessive promotion of local content may bring the risk of reduced market competition (and thus higher prices) and prevent opportunities for knowledge transfer if international players are deterred from market entry.

A diversity of approaches has been taken by leading offshore wind markets to date, steered by a mix of policy and culture. The UK has been notable for its relatively open door policy, whereas offshore wind development in China has been delivered largely domestically. Meanwhile, some Japanese players have taken

44 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

the strategy of partnering with European companies, as well as making direct investments in the European market, to aid knowledge transfer.

The decision on the extent to which local content is emphasised ultimately lies with Indian decision makers, and depends partly on the business culture. It could be beneficial for India to promote investment in this sector with a view towards creating a robust supply chain as part of the country’s industrial development strategy. However the decision to develop a supply chain must be based on whether the potential market is big enough to warrant a local supply chain that is commercially viable and able to win export opportunities in the wider global market.

The key point is to be aware of the benefits and trade-offS ■ (Excerpts and edited from the original report titled FOWIND (2014), Offshore Wind Policy and Market Assessment – a global outlook report)

 www.supersmartenergy.com

45

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

INTERVIEW IN CONVERSATION

Abhijit Kulkarni Head of Sales - Renewable Energy Segment SKF India

"SKF has emerged as the leading solution provider for renewable energy segment"

Q

.To begin with, brief our readers about SKF’s renewable energy business, the different solutions you offer and the renewable segments you cater to in India?

Renewable Energy is one of the eight business units in SKF’s business area of Industrial Market, Strategic Industries. Within Renewable Energy different industries like Wind, Solar, Hydro, Bio-mass and Ocean Energy exist. For Wind energy, SKF products are used in all applications such as the wind turbine itself, the gearbox and the generator as well in many other applications & sub assembly parts in the turbine. SKF products are also widely used in the aftermarket during wind turbine maintenance.

SKF solutions for the wind industry include bearings, seals, greases, lubrication systems, condition monitoring as well as services such as engineering consultancy & bearing remanufacturing. Most leading turbine manufacturers

all around the world are relying on products from SKF. For solar panels SKF produces actuators required for tracking systems that swivel to follow the sun through the sky during the day along with different types of bearings and seals.

Today, SKF offers a wide range of products and solutions to the solar, wind, hydro, biomass and ocean energy generation. Mentioned below are some of the key solutions offered by SKF across the three sectors: 1. SKF Nautilus advanced bearing arrangement for main shaft bearings 2. WindCon: SKF Condition Monitoring system for Wind Turbines 3. WindLub: SKF Lubrication systems for Wind Turbines 4. SKF High Capacity Cylindrical Roller Bearing for Gear box application 5. INSOCOAT® bearings for Generator solutions 6. SKF Slewing Bearings for blade

46 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

and yaw application 7. SKF Explorer Spherical Roller Bearings for main shaft application 8. SKF Housings & accessories products 9. Solar Hub 10. Solar Linear Actuators for tracking systems.

11. SKF Maintenance products for Wind Energy after market 12. Different types of Seals for all renewable energy applications including Wind, Solar, Hydro.

13. SKF specialized greases for different applications 14. Engineering consultancy services for technology solutions 15. Bearings remanufacturing and refurbishing services.

Q

.What are the factors that can limit wind turbine performance and reliability, how can SKF Life Cycle Management Solutions help boost wind turbine ROI and reduce its LCOE? One of the key concerns of the wind energy segment is mainte-

 www.supersmartenergy.com

nance. Wind turbines are generally installed in remote areas and due to their physical height, it becomes difficult to monitor performance and offer timely maintenance.

High winds, harsh environments and remote locations can limit turbine performance and reliability.

When turbines go down due to maintenance issues or equipment failure, the high cost of repair with crane costs and & sometimes waiting times for spare parts can send the costs higher.

For wind Turbines, Onshore and offshore, anything that can prevent a service trip will help boost wind turbine ROI and reduce its levelized cost of energy (LCOE). As turbines grow increasingly large and move into more remote locations, finding the most reliable components and applying the smartest operations and maintenance processes will be even more critical to the bottom line.

SKF’s Life Cycle Management (LCM) portfolio helps manufacturers to manage their assets better throughout the lifecycle of machinery. SKF has been working with leading OEMs to optimize turbine performance, reliability and energy output since the industry began. Today, we’re helping wind farm owners, operators and maintenance providers do the same with a range of wind maintenance solutions that can help drive uptime, add value and increase performance at every turbine life cycle stage. SKF can help to predict the remaining service life of your components with vibration measurement and analysis via remote monitoring, enabling greater machine uptime and much more cost-effective planned maintenance.

Furthermore, the idea of LCM is about adding value at every stage.

SKF Life Cycle Management is our proven approach for maximizing productivity while minimizing the total cost of machine ownership over every life cycle stage, from specification, design and manufacturing to operation, maintenance

and repairs. With SKF Life Cycle Management, we can add value throughout the turbine life cycle: • Maximize productivity and profitability • Reduce total cost of ownership • Minimize maintenance • Improve reliability and safety • Improve energy and resource efficiency • Reduce the cost of energy produced • Extend turbine service life A very significant offering from the LCM portfolio for the wind energy segment would be the remote monitoring systems which help wind farms assess the machine condition from anywhere and plan timely maintenance. Together, these SKF Life Cycle Management solutions will help you optimize turbine power output and improve LCOE.

Q

.Could you elaborate more on SKF’s product development process? The concept of Design for Six Sigma and how the process helps in developing a reliable product and increase wind farm profitability?

SKF’s continued commitment to technology development is important for maintaining and strengthening the company’s technological leadership. One of the ways SKF maintains its technological leadership is by innovating new products. SKF has its R&D centres around the world called the Global Technical Centers who help in design and innovation of new products and solutions. SKF‘s Global Technical Center in India drives innovation by developing products and solutions for local and global customers in a faster and in an effective way. The centre located in Bangalore focuses on testing and on providing advanced technical knowledge for design, process and supplier validation.

In addition, the centre conducts bearing analysis and has a fully equipped laboratory

tegic initiative for the improvement of process performance with the core objective to gain competitive advantage through a focus on customers. It often results in reduced costs and increased revenue, suitable in both manufacturing and service organizations. At the core of Six Sigma is a formalized, systematic, heavily results oriented, process improvement methodology, tailormade to achieve improvements on variation first of all, but also in cycle time (production speed) and yield (total production) and other wastes.

SKF Six Sigma is a continuous improvement program that targets waste and defects in all business processes, at SKF, its suppliers and its customers. SKF Six Sigma projects are run by extensively trained Black Belts and Green Belts, where Black Belts are required to run two projects a year and Green Belts one project a year. White Belts exist to quickly solve basic issues, by systematically adopting a simplified DMAIC model.

SKF Six Sigma consists of two major methodologies: Traditional Six Sigma (DMAIC and Lean) and Design for Six Sigma (IDDOV).

The foundations for SKF Six Sigma improvements are that they are fact-based, sustainable and directly contribute to the business objectives’ achievements.

Traditional Six Sigma DMAIC (Define Measure Analyze Improve Control): A methodology which uses analytical tools in the DMAIC phases and focuses on the reduction of variation.

Lean: A methodology which combines tools from both Lean and Six Sigma. Lean focuses on speed and waste, Six Sigma on variation and quality – the result is better quality more quickly.

Design for Six Sigma – IDDOV (Initiate Define Develop Optimize

»

Six Sigma is a company-wide stra-

47

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

INTERVIEW IN CONVERSATION Validate) A methodology, which focuses on, developing reliable products, processes and services, while embracing customer satisfaction and robustness. It allows production at a predictable level of costs and risks.

Hence not only for wind farms but also across segments, SixSigma assures a customer of reliable and quality products and services.

Each product we produce goes through intensive benchmarking procedures. In case of wind farms, we supply zero defect products which results in reduced downtime due to component failure.

This in return helps wind farms reduce costs related to maintenance and increase profitability.

Q

.Could you elaborate on the concept of Beyond Zero and what does it means to SKF? How does this concept affect the renewable industry? What affect have you seen on the customer and the supply chain?

Sustainability has been a focus of SKF for more than 100 years – long before it became a concern for today’s businesses. We live in times of extreme environmental challenges and SKF has a firm commitment to contribute to environmentally sustainable development in every way possible. With this commitment in mind SKF has launched its BeyondZero concept to achieve the following: 1. Reduce the negative environmental impact deriving from SKF operations.

2. Increase the positive environmental impact delivered by SKF solutions by innovating and offering new technologies, products and services with enhanced environmental performance characteristics.

The first goal of SKF BeyondZero relates to reducing the environmental impact derived from SKF’s operations, such as the carbon dioxide emissions from SKF manufacturing or other emissions from our suppliers. The second goal

recognizes that our customers in all segments and industries are increasingly driven to reduce environmental impact from their products, services and processes.

Because of the broad industrial and geographical scope of SKF, together with our unique engineering knowledge, we can add value by helping our customers improve their environmental performance.

By combining these goals, SKF BeyondZero is SKF’s attempt to make an overall positive contribution towards addressing the environmental challenges faced by the planet. We consider the environmental consequences of our products and services no matter where in the value chain these consequences occur. In the process of reducing the effect on environment, the BeyondZero concept helps in increasing energy efficiency which leads to cost reduction. Hence even the customers benefit from it in the long term and reduce their total cost of ownership.

Q

.Could you shed some light on SKF’s Ahmedabad plant, its manufacturing capacities and capabilities and the future CAPEX plan?

SKF Ahmedabad Large Size Industrial bearing factory was established in the year 2009 and is a LEED certified building. It caters products to various industries such as Traditional power generation, Renewable energy, Construction, Mining & material handling industry, Railways, Heavy Industry, Defense Segment & export to other countries. The factory produces a wide range of medium and large size bearings across segments. The Ahmedabad factory, like all the other SKF factories around the world, adheres to the concept of “World Class, World Wide”. This concept ensures that SKF products around the world maintain the same standard quality and offers complete customer satisfaction. Looking at the

48 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

emerging growing Indian market, SKF has already made provision in terms of space for future expansion of this set-up, which will be done when the need arises in the future.

Q

.With the new government in India embarking on ambitious plans of generating electricity from renewable resources, what are the opportunities for growth that SKF is looking at? Which are the segments that are likely to drive growth in the future?

We are looking forward to India generating more power from renewable resources and reducing dependency on expensive imports to generate power. The government’s recognition of the fact that India should start producing power from renewable resources is a big step towards the renewable energy future.

As a component manufacturer, SKF will play a significant role in the growth of the renewable energy segment. The focus now should be at efficient manufacturing of Wind Energy. There are various component manufacturers who are developing innovative technology to aid this process.

Cost effectiveness is crucial to production of wind energy. We at SKF are trying to work together with original equipment manufacturers and wind farm operators to provide dedicated solutions that can optimize the reliability and performance of new and existing wind turbine designs.

Renewable Energy is one of the key segments, which will see significant growth in the near future.

SKF is well positioned with the government vision of “Make in India” with footprint of manufacturing, engineering & technology and services set-ups in India to serve renewable energy market in India.

Q

.At SKF the majority of the group’s sales comes from auto industry and the rest from  www.supersmartenergy.com

other industries, how important has renewable business been for India recently and for SKF? Renewable Energy is a global industry. With its global footprint SKF Renewable Energy Business unit is able to serve customer’s needs in all major regions in the world, which are Asia (China, India and Japan), Europe, USA as well as emerging markets such as Korea and Latin America.

Within the wind industry SKF is one of the leading suppliers and in the past SKF has been growing quicker than the industry itself.

With factories in all major country for renewable industry SKF is able to actively support further development and growth.

Business with renewable energy customers is growing significantly in recent years for SKF and it is also in line with SKF Group’s vision of sustainability and beyond zero concept.

Q

.SKF is known and recognized as a bearing company, in the renewable business would you say that SKF is perceived as a solutions provider to the extent that you wish? How challenging is it to brand yourself and change the perception?

SKF around the world has evolved from being a bearing manufacturer to a company, which provides solutions across 5 platforms- Bearings, & units, Sealing Solutions, Lubrication Systems, Mechatronics and Services. In the renewable business as well we provide solutions, which go beyond bearings.

SKF teams across the world are constantly working with customers to understand their current issues and future plans of development. Innovation is the foundation pillar of SKF organization and we continuously work with our customers so that we can develop innovative solutions, which can make industry more competitive & improve reliability and performance of the customer

applications.

There is a constant feedback and communication from customer needs to SKF design centers and new products and solutions are developed which are tested in the real field and feedback is again collected which goes to SKF design centers.

With more than 100 years of experience of various industries and applications across the world, SKF has emerged as the leading solution provider for renewable energy segment.

Q

.What are the major trends that are driving and likely to drive growth in the wind industry in India and around the globe? How is SKF preparing for this challenge?

With the clear focus of governments across the world to address issues of global warming and clean air, renewable energy is in clear focus like never before.

It was highest MW installations record in 2014 for wind Energy Installations for worldwide.

However, the key focus of the industry, both in India and globally is to reach grid parity with traditional sources of energy, hedging for time when renewable support system will vanish. Improving LCOE is also vital for long-term market volumes. Also, there is increasing focus on Operation and maintenance of the wind farms. Wind turbine sizes across the world are increasing and offshore wind installations are growing as well. There are many new rotor concepts and components are being designed to drive LCOE improvements. Focus has been increasing on preventive & predictive O&M aftermarket services.

As industry looks towards these challenges, SKF with its “Knowledge Engineering” approach is working closely with design consultants, wind OEMs, Service providers and Wind farm owners in every stage of turbine life cycle to help and develop solutions which

is making the industry more competitive and improving reliability and availability of the wind turbines to make LCOE improvement continuously.

Q

.Shed light on product quality at SKF and the steps you take to ensure that utmost quality product reaches the customer?

At SKF quality is of paramount importance. As mentioned earlier each manufacturing facility of SKF adheres to the concept of “world class, worldwide”. We adopt stringent quality checks for each product that is produced in our factory. No SKF product can reach the customer without going through multiple verification process. We ensure that our products offer 100% customer satisfaction from the quality aspect.

For Wind Industry Globally, SKF has recently launched “SKF Wind Industry Quality Standard” which ensures that all SKF factories, people and processes follow this quality standard which ensures uniform and high quality products are delivered to renewable energy segment from SKF.

Q

.What are your personal ambitions to grow SKF’s renewable business in the Indian market?

SKF is already a major & significant player for renewable energy market in India and we are preferred partners for the design consultants, leading manufacturers of renewable energy OEMs, service providers and wind farm developers across the value chain of the industry. We would like to continue our value leadership position in the market with continuous innovation, developing new products and solutions for our customers, which will make this industry more competitive to reach grid parity and further more reliable ■

49

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

IN FOCUS

BEARINGS WITH BRAINS MAKE INTELLIGENT MACHINES

Authored by: Filippo Zingariello

D

efining an intelligent machine is no easy task. In the early days of computing, it was thought to be a computer whose answers to questions were indistinguishable from those of a human being. In this sense, the word ‘machine’ was taken to mean ‘computer’. If you search for ‘intelligent machine’ on Google, you’ll still find lots of futuristic work in this vein.

The McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical terms defines it like this: ‘A machine that uses sensors to monitor the environment and adjust its actions to accomplish specific tasks in the face of uncertainty and variability’.

Cited examples include industrial robots equipped with sensors and self-guiding vehicles that rely on vision rather than painted lines.

Within engineering, we think of an intelligent machine as a mechanical system that can take care of itself: a machine capable of accurate self-diagnosis that can quickly communicate its condition to an operator so that the problem can be resolved as soon as possible. It could be anything

from a high-end car to a complex machine on a factory floor. This is the subtext to ‘uncertainty and variability’: as well as reacting to changes in its environment, an intelligent machine must look after itself, so that it can continue to work at maximum efficiency.

This is not to suggest that an intelligent machine is maintenance-free – that really is a futuristic dream – but it uses its in-built intelligence to detect potential problems and streamline maintenance intervals and procedures.

All mechanical parts are prone to failure, of course. The trick is to detect this proactively, as part of a planned condition monitoring regime, and take action in advance, rather than waiting for the machine to fail and then spending time and money repairing it.

long way, is information. Without data, there can be no intelligence or diagnosis. This data needs to be gathered, transmitted for analysis, and processed, which, in turn, requires sensors, data transmission and computing power. At SKF, we already have extensive experience in all these areas, and are ready to take it to the next level.

SKF Insight introduction The immediate answer might at first simply appear to be enhanced condition monitoring, adding an array of sensors to a

»

Intelligent machines will rely on several critical factors. The most important, by a

50 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

 www.supersmartenergy.com

IN FOCUS machine in order to read its vital signs, then transmit them over WiFi to a central point. But a far more effective solution now exists in the shape of SKF Insight: it collects and transmits process data independently from inside the very heart of a machine using a fundamental engineering component: the bearing.

SKF Insight turns a simple bearing into a diagnostic powerhouse, by embedding into it a tiny, selfpowered wireless sensor that transmits real-time information about process conditions. It takes condition monitoring far beyond what was previously possible. The technology, launched at Hanover in 2013, required three years of intensive research, including making the sensors smaller, overcoming power generation challenges and developing unique packaging for the sensors and electronics.

Conventional condition monitoring detects the early signs of failure by measuring vibrations caused by changes on the bearing’s surface. But this means that damage has already begun to occur. Rather than identifying this deterioration, SKF Insight detects the conditions that cause bearing failure before they can have an effect, and makes this information instantly available to operators.

Miniature electronic circuits, powered by the motion of the bearing itself, transmit this process data via a wireless link.

There is no need to supply external power. This makes the technology supremely unobtrusive, because there are no wires ‘in’ to provide power, or wires ‘out’ to deliver the signal. This means it will work in places that would previously have been impossible. Just imagine trying to take signals out of a rotating gearbox, for example: it would be a complete mess, with entangled wires everywhere.

With SKF Insight, signals can be taken from anywhere, and we are already developing solutions in challenging applications in wind

turbines and steel manufacturing.

We developed SKF Insight because we know that bearings rarely fail in service under normal operating conditions due factors such as subsurface fatigue.

Instead, the cause of failure is usually misuse or neglect: insufficient lubrication, for example, or running the bearing under conditions outside those originally specified.

Insight’s embedded sensor measures the critical parameters that cause early bearing failure, such as lubricant contamination, or temperature, allowing operators to take corrective action while the machinery is still operating. The direct result is that expensive, disruptive failures are avoided, which reduces the total cost of asset ownership and extends machine operating life. It also makes it simpler for engineers to gain a far more detailed appreciation of the varied causes that can affect the calculation of bearing life.

By applying sensors directly within the bearing, SKF Insight identifies the risk of failure before even microscopic damage occurs.

SKF algorithms and diagnostics can identify duty excursions, lubricant contamination and lubrication problems, allowing operating conditions to be modified, and so avoid damage before it occurs.

By integrating SKF Insight with asset diagnostic and bearing health services, we can send information on actual operating conditions to cloud servers for remote diagnostics, enabling a better understanding of the risk of future damage and failure.

Rethinking maintenance SKF Insight gives maintenance engineers a powerful new tool to keep machinery in prime condition, giving them capabilities way beyond traditional condition monitoring. It means that maintenance can be carried out at exactly the right time (we can even call it “adaptive maintenance”), rather than being guided by a strict

52 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

schedule that is unrelated to the actual condition of the machinery or its components.

The intelligent wireless technology inside the bearing allows bearings to be configured in smart networks, which communicate via wireless gateways. The gateway can be local to the machine or to the plant.

System information is provided to the customer for analysis using SKF @ptitude Analyst, or sent via the SKF cloud to a remote diagnostic centre. From here, dashboards and reports can be supplied to the plant operator, machine manufacturer, SKF or any other authorised person with internet access. The inclusion of SKF in the list of ‘recipients’ is an important one, as its assistance in gathering and interpreting the data will be vital thanks to the deep bearing and machine knowledge existing in SKF. Because the bearings are selfcontained they can be used right in the heart of a machine, where it was previously impossible to embed sensors. This is a huge step forward in real time condition based maintenance, and provides a vastly improved understanding of the operating environment.

Having such a deep knowledge of operating conditions – in real time – could even make it possible to upgrade a machine, extending its life or power rating beyond its initial specification.

The sensors communicate through each other, and the wireless gateway, to create a ‘mesh network’, providing both machinewide and plant-wide information.

SKF Insight makes condition monitoring more widely applicable, especially where it might previously have been considered impossible. Because of this, it is being tested in industries including wind power, rail and steel manufacture.

Tough conditions SKF Insight also offers huge

 www.supersmartenergy.com

potential benefits to industries like wind energy, where the cost of maintenance is astronomical.

In some offshore wind applications, changing the main bearing on a wind turbine is so expensive that it undermines the business case for building the turbine in the first place. Used here, intelligent bearings could monitor loads and lubrication conditions in service, giving plenty of time to prevent the development of damaging process conditions.

We are already working with customers to develop SKF Insight for wind turbine monitoring. It measures dynamic bearing information in the true operating state, then wirelessly communicates it to remote monitoring centres or local maintenance crews. The solution being considered will monitor bearing speed, vibration, temperature and lubrication. Most importantly, it can be retro-fitted, so could enhance the operational potential of both new turbines

and the many thousands that are already in operation worldwide.

A similar solution, further in the future, is being developed for wheel end bearings in the rail segment. These critical components are normally changed at set intervals, regardless of their condition.

SKF Insight creates a cost effective way of collecting condition monitoring data so that service bearing life, and change-out intervals, are determined based on actual, rather than predicted, operating conditions.

The ability to monitor and transmit information on operating conditions will bring about a revolution in bearings, in terms of maintenance planning, total cost of ownership and maximising machine efficiency. Bearings have long been considered the heart of rotating machinery. Now, by imbuing them with intelligence, SKF Insight makes them the brain as well. It goes beyond traditional condition monitoring, into what

might be called ‘future reliability’ – identifying potential problems before they occur, and taking immediate corrective action.

SKF Insight is already being put to work in high-end applications such as wind turbines. But consider the machine that we spend most of our time with: the car.

Think about all the problems that could be avoided with this kind of advance intelligence, and you can see why the technology embodied within SKF Insight is truly a revolution – joining both bearings and condition monitoring ■

Filippo Zingariello is Director of Global Strategic Development at SKF.

SmartEnergy Complete Renewable Energy Intelligence

For more information on advertising and editorial opportunities call +91 8149 0307 89

53 SmartEnergy Jan/ Feb 2015

53

March/  www.supersmartenergy.com April 2015 SmartEnergy

PRODUCT REVIEW

Architectural Lighting from K- LITE

K

-LITE INDUSTRIES an ISO company, manufacturing indoor and outdoor luminaires have launched a new series of LED Architectural Lighting. Being the trend setters in outdoor lighting and inspired by the “Make in India” vision, K-LITE, through their innovative outlook, have showcased an all new product portfolio under Architectural Lighting. The application includes Facade Lighting, Pathway Lighting, In-ground Luminaire, Uplighter, Up-down Lighting, Billboard Lighting, Vertical Light Bars, Wall Washers, Area Lighting poles and above all popular sleek Facade Lighting polar lighting solutions.

The solutions offered are backed by extensive understanding of

illumination in urban spaces and the expertise gained over a period of three decades. The fixtures are designed to provide value technology, ideally suited to Indian Conditions. The LEDs used comply to LM 80 testing requirements and from Internationally reputed makes such as Nichia / CREE. The luminaires are RoHS, LM 79 and CE certification compliant. The luminaire efficacy (lumens/ per watt) is much above 100 for all luminaires.

Varied optical options for lighting distribution and correlated colour temperature (CCT) for cool white, neutral white or warm white are available to suit specific requirements.

The outstanding item of the series viz., the Sleek Polar Lighting Solutions is a contemporary design that is both timeless and unique in its impression.

Compact without visible mounting equipment and optimised integration, Polar Lighting is in perfect continuity with the geometric lines of the square column. These assemblies are ideal for surroundings of contemporary architectural constructions ■ For more details visit our website : www.klite.in For all enquiries, Contact sales@ klite.in Phone +91-9500079797 / 044 26257710

Area Lighting Pole

TE Connectivity Launches Helicase Solar Junction Box

T

E Connectivity (TE), a world leader in connectivity, announced the launch of its Helicase TM solar junction box. The junction box has been tested and certified by TUV Rheinland for the highest degree of safety as per EN 50548:2011+A1 and appropriate IEC Standards. TE’s industrial engineering team in India used significant research and customer feedback to innovate the Helicase, which was specifically developed for India to tap opportunities such as solar rooftop systems, water pump-

ing, street lighting, traffic/railway signalling, etc. The product is efficient, long lasting, compact and safe.

Helicase is a compact miniaturized solution which is attractively priced and addresses a wide variety of customer challenges. For example, faulty design of solar junction boxes can put solar panels at fire risk, and cheaper and substandard materials could be easily affected by ultraviolet (UV) rays leading to light absorbance reduction that significantly lowers the energy yield thus delivering lower return on investment.

The box size in Helicase is minimized using UV-resistant material to maximize thermal performance

54 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

and reduce the adhesive usage up to 50 percent at assembly stage.

The result is a quality product that is cost-efficient to produce and effective and reliable in the field.

Helicase provides the following benefits for customers: • TUV certified, global standard quality • Reliability and extended life • Thermal and electrical efficiency leading to increased ROI TE is a global leader with more than 20 years of experience in the solar market with strong manufacturing presence in India. This gives the company a competitive advantage to make quality products for customers at low cost ■

 www.supersmartenergy.com

NEWS THIS MONTH

55

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

PRODUCT REVIEW

DuPont PV Solutions and TSEC Engineering Enable New High-Efficiency Solar Panel DuPont Photovoltaic Solutions (DuPont) and TSEC Corporation (TSEC), showcased TSEC’s newest “V-Series” high-efficiency solar panels for the first time during PV EXPO 2015 in Tokyo, Japan, from Feb. 25 – 27. The solar cells in the V-Series panels are made using new DuPont™ Solamet® photovoltaic metallization pastes that have been customized and optimized to help achieve more efficient conversion of sunlight to electri-

cal energy, significantly improving the panel’s power output.

The panels also are protected by DuPont™ Tedlar® polyvinyl fluoride film-based backsheets that are proven to deliver long-term reliability for 25 years or longer, under all-weather conditions.

The collaboration has brought together a compelling combination of materials and manufacturing that further differentiates both companies’ offerings from the rest

of the field. With Solamet® pastes optimized for TSEC’s V-Cell manufacturing process, the duo have hit a conversion efficiency target of over 21 percent – not just in the lab, but in production. And the use of Tedlar® film-based back sheets has helped extend the power production advantage reliably for 25 years or more ■

COMPANY PROFILE

Firefly Batteries: Revolutionizing Energy Storage Products We are a new startup battery manufacturing company based Ahmedabad-Gujarat.

We are Licensee of Patented Microcell Carbon Foam technology of U.S.A in India. The company has invested in acquiring technology and has set up a manufacturing facility on 40000 sq m state of art facility near BAVLA-Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India, with a capacity to produce around 450000 KWH of batteries per annum.

FBPL’s manufacturing plant is geared to produce Carbon Foam Batteries for Energy storage (Solar/ Telecom/UPS/Inv/Gen Starting and oil and gas, Intermittent-startstop (ISS), and electric vehicle (EV) applications. These will be manufactured using patented Microcell Carbon Foam Technology.

Microcell Carbon Foam (MCF) technology was invented in the R & D laboratory of Caterpillar.

Sulfation and Grid corrosion is an inherent deficiency in Lead Acid Battery Chemistry. Kurtis C Kelly who invented this technology erst-

while R&D head of Caterpillar Inc., took up the challenge of overcoming these two biggest limiters of battery performance. Through a dedicated and lengthy research Kelly made a breakthrough by producing Microcell carbon foam which could replace much of the lead in traditional battery, reduce Grid Corrosion and Sulfation to insignificant level and could also harness battery’s energy producing chemistry in more efficient manner.

Since this invention Microcell carbon foam technology, it has taken the world by storm and has set new performance standard for power backup solutions. MCF technology batteries can meet performance level of Li Ion & Ni Cad batteries at almost the cost of lead acid batteries.

In India FFBPL is committed to share this invention with companies harnessing solar energy.

These batteries can provide : a) Longer life of battery- as compared to conventional tubular batteries. These MCF batteries can

56 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

provide more than twice life cycles of conventional tubular. b) Better charge discharge efficiency- can be charged up to 3C rate. c) No effect of Partial State of Charge- carbon foam prevents sulfation and keeps grid corrosion at bay even for prolonged SOC. d) Longer shelf life of our MCF battery, because of its technological advantage of withstanding higher SOC. This can withstand long layoffs unlike other tubular batteries. e) Same capacity MCF battery can give more autonomy than other tubular batteries because of its higher DOD capability.

We look forward to hear from you and would like to explore the possibility of enhancing MCF technology with your systems for optimizing your economies of scale by reducing cost per cycle of your back up power.

Should you need more information please get in touch with us.

You can also visit our Web site: http://www.fireflybattery.in/ ■  www.supersmartenergy.com

EVENTS WATCH Event: North India Solar Summit Date: 24- 26 April 2015 Venue: IIA Grounds, Lucknow, UP, India.

Contact: Mr. Pankaj/ +91 7498-168-107

Event: PV Guangzhou 2015 Date: 18- 20 August, 2015 Venue: China Import & Export Complex, China Contact: Eve Cheng/ grand.ev@ grahw.com

Date: 19-21 June 2015

Date: 22-23 April 2015

Venue: Chennai Trade Centre, Chennai, TN

Venue: Hotel Le Meridien, Janpath, New Delhi, India.

Contact: +91 44 2250 1985 / 86 / 87 / 88

Contact: anil.mehta@ieema.org

Date: April 23-24, 2015 Venue: Maniram Dewan Trade Centre, Guwahati, India Contact: Anupam Banerjee/ anupam.banerjee@ieema.org

Venue: India Habitat Centre, New Delhi, India

Event: Enerasia 2015 Date: 18-20 Dec 2015 Venue: GMDC Ahmedabad

Event: GulfSol 2015 Event: Konnect North East and Beyond

Date: 08-09 Dec 2015

Contact: Shraddha Malik, +91 (0) 11 2690 1659, MalikS@mdindia.com

Event: Solar South 2015 Event: Metering India 2015

Event: 3rd International Conference & Exhibition on Energy Storage & Microgrids in India

Date: 14-16 Sept 2015 Venue: Dubai World Trade Centre, Dubai, UAE

Ground,

Contact: Enerasia Marketing Office, +91 79 27496737, 27494266, booking@enerasia.in

Contact: David Jones, + 44 (0) 208 638 0619, David@bowheadmedia.com

Event: 9th REI 2015 Event: Saudi Power

Date: 23-25 Sept 2015

Date: 11- 13 May 2015

Venue: India Expo Centre, Noida, India

Venue: Riyadh International Convention & Exhibition Centre Contact: alexis.sworder@ informa.com/ Tel: +971 (0) 4 407 2763

Contact: Rajneesh Khattar, +91 98717 26762, rajneesh.khattar@ ubm.com

Event: Intersolar India 2015 Event: Smart Cities India 2015 Date: 20- 22 May 2015 Venue: Pragati Maidan, New Delhi Contact: sanjayb@eigroup. inmedia.com/ Tel: +91 11 4279 5000

Date: 18-20 Nov 2015 Venue: Bombay Exhibition Centre, Mumbai, India Contact: Swapna Kulkarni, +91 22 4255 4729, swapna.kulkarni@ mmi-india.in

57

March/ April 2015 SmartEnergy

ADVERTISERS INDEX Electrotherm (India) Ltd.

5

Electrotherm Solar Ltd.

3

Enerasia 2015

51

Exide Industries Ltd.

IFC

Gangadan Energy Pvt.Ltd.

BC

Gulfsol 2015

37

K-Lite Industries

7

Konnect North-East and Beyond 2015

43

Metering India 2015

27

MTekpro Technologies Pvt.Ltd.

9

MTekpro Technologies Pvt.Ltd.

13

North India Solar Summit 2015

45

PV Gaungzhou 2015

29

Radha Solar

21

REI Expo 2015

17

Saudi Power 2015

55

Smart Cities India 2015 Solar South 2015

58 SmartEnergy March/ April 2015

IBC 19

 www.supersmartenergy.com

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