Solar Energy in India – Analytical View

Geography Renewable Energy

572 views

India is focusing on solar energy to reduce the impact of climate change. Indian Prime Minister hlaunched a global solar alliance with 121 countries, and created what is being called the billionaire's fund, with corporate heads like Jack Ma, Mukesh Ambani, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg and Ratan Tata pledging to finance green technology innovations.

There are more than 25 solar parks have been signed and price of per unit of solar energy is lower or almost equal to coal. This is just the beginning, but to assume that it will be same forever is premature.

India upped the 2022 target of the National Solar Mission from an installed capacity of 20GW to 100GW. At the Paris climate summit last week, India pledged to produce 40% of its energy from non-fossil sources by 2030, and 175GW by 2022.

India's energy bill is high, dependent as it is on imported coal, oil and gas Over 300 million people still have no access to electricity and sustainable economic growth will need alternative sources of clean energy.

The cost of photovoltaic panels has fallen drastically -the chief reason for solar power to become cheaper than it was five years ago.

Hinderances- Analysis

Policies and infrastructure to transmit and distribute solar energy are still weak, and 21 of the 29 state power distribution companies (discoms) are abysmal ly debt-ridden, unable to purchase any power gener ated in their state. These are not only inefficiencies but also risks for developers.
Solar energy still has regulatory obstacles.
The two biggest challenges for solar the world over are need for land to mount solar panels, and building the expensive, time-consuming infrastructure to connect to the grid.
Bulk transmission of an unstable power like solar needs a strong grid and high-voltage substations, which are expensive. Their transmission lines are time-consuming to build.
Solar energy developers may not bid for solar park projects in other states at all if their discom is ranked low. The risks are too high
Private power producers may not be able to sustain low tariffs till major technological advancement happens.
Many developers believe technological change should be the real driver for a fall in solar tariffs. Even in a household, people who bought poor-quality solar panels were turned off it for life. If we don't invest in technology, and rush to slash prices, it will help neither energy security nor climate action.
Cost of production of one unit of solar energy which was once 12-15 rupees per unit decreased to 4-6 rupees per unit. More states starts investing in soloar enegry which increased the total installed solar capacity of India to 4346.82 Mwp.
There is technical potential of 5,000 trillion kWh per year and minimum operating cost, Solar Power is considered the best suited energy source for India. With the advancement of technologies, investment, regulations, low tarrfis , solar energy will be sustainable for India.