The renewable energy sector has witnessed a number of innovative policy initiatives to promote uptake. A key initiative to resolve the issue of intermittency in renewable energy and promote grid stability has been to shift […]

The concept of round-the-clock (RTC) supply has received much-needed policy attention in light of the issues of intermittency of renewable energy generation and low capacity utilisation of the existing transmission systems. Power utilities are obligated […]

There is a strong emphasis on scaling up solar power in India. With an increasing number of projects being installed across the country, there is more demand for quality equipment. Cables and connectors form a […]

Although not extensively talked about, junction boxes are a crucial component of solar panels. These devices are pre-installed on the back of solar modules with silicon adhesives and are designed to protect the electrical systems […]

India, along with the rest of the world, is rapidly moving towards renewable en­ergy integration. Owing to India’s ambitious 2030 targets, enabling the integration of renewables on a large scale would require grid stability, which […]

The world is rapidly moving towards decarbonisation of industries as well as greening of the power grid. While the ongoing energy transition presents several opportunities for governments, in­dustries, the environment and mankind, it also creates […]

The global solar manufacturing industry is undoubtedly dominated by China, which accounts for about 71 per cent of the world’s solar manufacturing capacity. Moreover, solar photovoltaic (PV) manufacturing involves both pre-cell and post-cell processes, and […]

The manufacturing of solar modules can be classified into two stages – pre-cell or silicon-to-wafer stage and post wafer, that is, wafers-to-cells-and-modules. In India, however, there is very little incentive for domestic players to move […]

Wind power deployment began in India more than three decades back to cross 40 GW of installed capacity today. A significant chunk of this capacity is based on old wind turbine te­ch­nology of low capacity. […]

The COP26 conference held in November 2021 saw India extending its ambitious target of achieving 175 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2022 to 500 GW of non-fossil fuel energy capacity by 2030. India also […]

Operations and maintenance (O&M) activities are a crucial process in the solar industry. These activities augment the safety and efficiency of solar modules, thereby, ensuring long-term sustainability of projects. External vulnerabilities to a module include […]

In the dry cleaning method of cleaning solar modules, no water is used and solar panels are cleaned using air pressure and dry brushes. Dry cleaning solutions are gaining traction owing to water availability issues […]

To enable proper evacuation of renewable energy, India started planning for green energy corridors (GEC) almost a decade back. Ambitious targets have been set over the years in different pha­ses. The implementation of GECs has […]

As India moves towards deployment of 500 GW of non-fossil fuel power by 2030, deploying adequate transmission infrastructure is becoming a critical part of the journey. Historically, large solar and wind power projects have fac­ed […]

If a 1 MW solar power project requires 4-5 acres of land for development, vast land banks will be needed for meeting India’s 100 GW solar power target. Moreover, solar power projects are location dependent […]

The development of floating solar systems has witnessed a surge globally and in India as well. The key drivers have been land constraints, the availability of large waterbodies, and increased power generation due to the […]

Solar module mounting structures and tracking solutions make the foundation of solar power plants. These are crucial across all types of solar projects as they determine how firmly the system is set up and how […]

As India continues to tap into its massive solar potential in order to reduce its carbon emissions, it has become clear that the country needs a lot more than solar panels and modules. In addition […]

The global wind turbine operations and maintenance (O&M) market is ex­pected to reach $27.6 billion by 2027 from $17.9 billion in 2020, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.4 per cent over […]

The wind energy sector is at a crossroads. It can incorporate learnings fr­om other energy sectors with respect to the deployment and utilisation of digital technologies such as drones, robots and artificial intelligence (AI) systems […]

The Indian power sector has evolved greatly over the past decade with the influx of renewables in the form of mega projects and small distributed set-ups, and the emergence of the electric vehicle (EVs) market. […]

The transmission and distribution sector has been a key focus area for the government. With a move towards providing round-the-clock power, high voltage transmission lines are being developed. Technologies such as flexible alternating current transmission […]

Green hydrogen is often termed as the fuel of the future. Given the rising co­ncerns for energy security globally, and the emerging issues on the gas pri­cing front, economies the world over are pushing the […]

With the growing uptake of electric vehicles (EVs) and EV charging infrastructure in India, there is a need for standardisation. The country has an emerging opportunity to strengthen its charging ecosystem through roaming agreements, by […]

Six weeks of the nationwide lockdown necessitated by the coronavirus pandemic, and India’s economy is set to take a hit that could have significant ramifications for the country’s growth prospects. The World Bank expects India […]

As the world grapples with the coronavirus pandemic, industries worldwide are shutting down operations due to lockdowns announced to contain the virus. Solar power plants, although classified under essential services, are also bearing the brunt […]

The floating offshore wind (FOW) segment holds the key to an inexhaustible wind resource waiting to be tapped across the globe. In Europe alone, about 80 per cent of the entire offshore wind resource is […]

In June 2018, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) announced its offshore wind energy targets of 5 GW by 2022 and 30 GW by 2030. This announcement was made after the first-ever invite […]

At the beginning of 2018, the government indicated that it may set up 10 GW of floating solar capacity by 2021. While considered far too ambitious by industry experts, the initiative was a step in […]

The world market for floating photovoltaic (FPV) has witnessed increasing growth over the past few years, with the installed capacities of individual projects rising year on year. The two largest FPV systems of 150 MWp […]

Talesun Solar, a PV module manufacturer, has signed a 250 MW PV module supply agreement with Clean Solar Power (Bhainsada) Private Limited, an Indian renewable energy company. As per the tender guidelines, Talesun Solar will […]

The operations and maintenance (O&M) of solar plants is a key market area where technologies are continuously evolving. With the rapidly increasing size and scale of solar projects, there is now a greater focus on […]

The emerging electric vehicle (EV) market is expected to significantly impact both the road transportation and the power sector. On the one hand, the increasing penetration of EVs will reduce the dependence of the transport […]

Governments across the world are deploying a carrot-and-stick strategy to drive auto sales towards electric vehicles (EVs) and India is not far behind. With a target to integrate 30 per cent electric vehicles (EVs) in […]

By Khushboo Goyal Rapid urbanisation and changing lifestyles are increasing the electricity demand in Indian towns and cities. Many utilities are facing difficulties in keeping up with the rising power requirements, especially in summer months […]

Solar cities are being developed across the country, including eight in the north–eastern region in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Mizoram and Tripura. While the cities of Guwahati and Jorhat in Assam are to be developed […]

Running parallel to the evolution of the renewable energy sector is the innovation in energy storage technologies, which has caught the attention of the industry as well as policymakers across countries. The importance of efficient […]

In a bid to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, meet climate change targets and reduce pollution in urban areas, the government has announced ambitious plans to introduce electric vehicles (EVs) and thus also change the face […]

Renewable Watch recently organised a workshop, “Offtake Risks for Re-newable Energy”, to examine the financial health of discoms, discuss the risks and challenges pertaining to power offtake, study the alternatives and propose solutions. The workshop […]

As part of its efforts to meet the 175 GW renewable energy target by 2022, the government has released a series of central- and state-level tenders over the past few years. However, the actual capacity […]

The cost of solar energy has changed dramatically over the years, with module prices plummeting from $4 per watt in 2008 to $0.34 per watt in October 2017. Similarly, solar operations and maintenance (O&M) practices […]

Shrinking revenues owing to low solar power tariffs are exerting a downward pressure on developer margins. This calls for a change in project development strategies at all levels in order to reduce costs and improve […]

The Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojana (Saubhagya) was launched on September 25, 2017, with the aim of providing electricity to every willing household in rural and urban areas by March 2019. The scheme […]

It is pitch dark as we near Nagwa village, 150 km from Varanasi. No lights emanate from any of the hamlets that we cross. Then, we see a bunch of barefoot boys and girls emerge […]

In March 2019, the Ministry of Civil Aviation introduced the National Green Civil Aviation Policy, 2019 to create an ecosystem for the sustainable development of the aviation sector in India. The aviation industry is one […]

Indian Railways (IR), the country’s largest electricity consumer, accounting for 2.4 per cent of the total consumption, and the third largest user of high speed diesel (2.6 billion litres annually), now plans to become the […]

For developers, working in the commercial and industrial (C&I) solar space in India has been nothing short of a circus. They have had a good time benefiting from corporate demand for renewable energy and high […]

India’s installed solar power capacity has grown by leaps and bounds over the years to stand at 55.34 GW as of April 2022. Supportive market dynamics and favourable cost economics have led to a huge […]

By Sarthak Takyar Captive power plants (CPPs) play a significant role in meeting the power generation requirements of commercial and industrial (C&I) users and reducing their dependence on the grid while optimising energy costs. According […]

By Khushboo Goyal In recent months, a number of renewable-based captive power plants (CPPs) have come up across industries and corporates. In January 2019, Suzlon Energy commissioned an 8.4 MW wind CPP for Hindustan Aeronautics […]

By Ashay Abbhi The search for alternative fuels has led to the largest energy revolution across the world. New technologies for power generation have emerged as all countries move away from fossil-fuel- based sources. Renewable […]

By Dolly Khattar Over the past two decades, hydrogen technologies have experienced cycles of high expectations followed by discontent. However, the situation seems to be changing as a growing body of evidence now suggests that […]

The government has set a target to install 100 GW of solar power capacity by 2022, of which 40 GW is to be achieved by the rooftop solar segment. Several policy measures have been announced […]

India’s rooftop solar segment has grown from a mere 3 MW in 2011 to around 2,300 MW as of December 2019. While this jump might seem significant, it is inconsequential when compared to the growth […]

India’s ambitious targets, record capacity additions and a steep fall in tariffs in 2016-17 have attracted global attention, with domestic as well as international investors and developers expressing interest in the country’s renewable energy sector. […]

With the constantly evolving ecosystem of the Indian renewable energy market, financial instruments too have developed over the years. The government envisages an investment requirement of $100 billion to realise the renewable energy targets over […]

Over the past 12 months, there has been a growing impetus to rooftop solar deployments, which has translated into a sharp increase in installed capacity. According to BRIDGE TO INDIA, the installed rooftop solar capacity […]

Net metering is usually employed using two types of metering arrangements – unidirectional and bidirectional. A bidirectional meter displays both the energy consumed and supplied by the consumer on the same meter. In another metering […]

As India moves rapidly towards its target of 175 GW of installed renewable energy capacity by 2022, it is experiencing some hiccups in integrating the new capacity into the country’s underdeveloped grid. Solar plants are […]

Efficient grid integration has assumed prime importance in the country’s energy and power sector, considering the impetus being given to the growth of renewable energy capacity over the next five years. Given the variability and […]

It has been roughly four years since the end of the feed-in tariff (FiT) era and the launch of competitive bidding for allocating wind power projects. However, the wind segment continues to be in a […]

Transformative technology advancements are under way in the wind power space, across its various sub-segments. The size and shape of wind turbines are undergoing a change with the use of different types of foundations, increase […]

Solar power tariffs saw a steep decline in the recent Rewa Solar Park auction. While this is being seen as a significant achievement in the country’s solar growth story, industry stakeholders are wary of the […]

With the steep fall in solar tariffs, there is an increasing pressure on the solar industry to continuously optimise the cost of various plant components. The past few years have seen a significant decline in […]

Status of sanctioned projects […]

Nearly 20 cent of the country’s solar installed capacity target for 2022 is slated to come from solar parks. These parks have a number of solar power projects with a cumulative capacity of over 500 […]

Solar PV inverter technology has witnessed limited progress in terms of design, size, efficiency improvement and manufacturing cost reductions as compared to other electronic devices like computers and TV sets. The maximum power ratio (per […]

The rooftop solar market in India has been gaining traction in recent years, with the segment reaching a total installed capacity of 1,020 MW as of September 2016. In line with the target of achieving […]

With a major portion of the Indian population being dependent on agriculture for their livelihood, there is a need for proper irrigation facilities in the country. However, power supply to rural farmlands is often unreliable, […]

India has been making rapid progress in adopting solar energy. With growing climate concerns and falling prices of solar technology, the country has planned an energy overhaul. Significant progress has been made in the utility-scale […]

The rapid pace of urbanisation and industrialisation in Southeast Asia has led to a big surge in the volume of waste generated in the region. Major cities in several countries are running out of landfill […]

As the country moves ahead with industrialisation and urbanisation, there is expected to be significant waste generation. As per the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, municipal solid waste generation across India will reach […]

By Khushboo Goyal and  Anukriti As the country moves towards achieving its 100 GW solar capacity target by 2022, the segment is beginning to witness increased capacity additions. The total installed solar power capacity has […]

By Ashay Abbhi The adoption of competitive bidding for project allocation and tariff determination completely disrupted the wind power market in 2017. Tariffs plummeted to Rs 2.44 per kWh, putting huge pressure on developers and […]