Rooftop Aero Turbines: No promotion, no awareness from KERC or escoms

The Hindu

18-05-2025

Power consumers are left confused after the Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) announced that Rooftop Aero Turbines (RAT) can be installed, but the officials of electricity supply companies (escoms) said that they were unaware of it.
'I saw media reports that these wind systems can be installed and thought it would be a good addition to my existing rooftop solar system. But when I went and enquired at a Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (Bescom) subdivision office, they said they knew nothing about these systems,' said Venkatachalam R., a resident of Vidyaranyapura.
When enquired, even senior officials of Bescom said that they were not aware of the systems. However, the KERC said that interested consumers can directly approach the commission instead of escoms. In March this year, KERC had sought suggestions from stakeholders for the determination of the tariff for RATs. Now, as the commission did not receive any viable suggestions, it has decided to take a project-specific tariff approach.
'If any consumers are interested in installing RAT systems, then they can approach the commission, and we will determine the tariff for them based on the kind of turbine they get, the capacity, and other factors. Currently, there are two kinds of RAT systems available in the market – horizontal and vertical. One is manufactured in Europe and one in India. Consumers can procure the system, and then we will help with the determination of tariff,' explained P. Ravikumar, Chairman, KERC.
While the commission had announced that promotional tariff rates will be provided for RATs as the initiative aims to encourage decentralisation of power generation and reduce dependency on the grid, officials said that no steps had been taken to promote the initiative itself.
Experts said that instead of placing the onus on the consumers, the KERC, which is the subject expert in the matter, should guide them. 'Unless a thorough study is done by the KERC and they inform the consumers about where the RATs could be the most feasible, consumers will not find any incentives to install them. The commission should let them know if the RAT system will work in a particular area/region or not, as wind force is not the same everywhere,' said M.G. Prabhakar, former advisory member, KERC.
'The government does not have to go for big renewable energy projects. They need to engage and involve all the consumers. The 3 Ps, probability in terms of theory, possibility in terms of financial viability, and preferability with regards to the limit imposed on capacity should be addressed for this engagement,' he added.