Latest news with #RenewablePurchaseObligation
Time of India
18-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Rajasthan struggles to utilise solar power despite leading generation capacity
Despite being a leader in solar power generation and having the largest capacity of solar plants, the Rajasthan govt has been failing to tap green power for its own use. Renewable energy contributes only about 16 per cent of total power consumption of 3,200 lakh units a day. While the political leaders laud Rajasthan's achievement in solar, they barely talk of increasing green power consumption in the state, preferring to buy costly coal-based power despite discoms being burdened with a debt of over Rs 1.5 lakh crore. A tender for new coal power plants of 3,200 MW is set to be floated, for which Urja Vikas has sent the final document for the approval of the Rajasthan Electricity Regulatory Commission (RERC). Out of the total 37,000 MW wind and solar power plants in the state, only 11,000 MW are meant for Rajasthan's consumption. Power from the rest of the projects goes to other states. Centre for Energy, Environment & People (CEEP)'s Anshuman Gothwal, said, "Persistent inefficiencies and systemic issues have prevented state power utilities from fully leveraging the state's abundant solar potential. The state's generation utility, RVUNL, lacks a long-term vision for integrating renewable energy and has made little headway on its 2,000 MW solar project." Highlighting the fragmented approach of discoms, Gothwal said shifting between HAM tenders, the Kusum scheme, and other methods without a clear or consistent strategy has resulted in underutilisation of the state's vast solar resources for its own consumption. In fact, RERC made provisions in 2010 that a certain portion of the power consumed in the state has to come from renewable energy. Every year, the targets are set under the Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO). But not even in one year are the targets met. Even though there was a provision for a penalty, it was circumvented. For example, Rajasthan govt should have had 20 per cent of total power consumption from renewable sources in 2022-23. But the shortfall was over 24 per cent. In the past 13 years since RPO regulations came in, discoms and other obligatory entities of the power sector have missed targets every year. Director at Samta Power, an NGO in the energy sector, DD Agarwal, said, "RERC should not have allowed carry forward the backlog every year. This is one of the major reasons that the discoms have remained careless about the targets." Agarwal said Rajasthan's land is used extensively for the generation of solar power, affecting its environment and ecology. "But Rajasthan, which needs solar power the most to fix its unmanageable debt of the discoms, is deprived of the benefits," added Agarwal. Typically, one mega watt of installed capacity of solar power takes about 4 acres of land. With 37,000 MW of installed capacity, the total area under solar in Rajasthan is around 1.5 lakh acres.
Time of India
18-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Solar leader Raj banks on costlier coal power, not green energy
Jaipur: Despite being a leader in solar power generation and having the largest capacity of solar plants, the Rajasthan govt has been failing to tap green power for its own use. Renewable energy contributes only about 16% of total power consumption of 3,200 lakh units a day. While the political leaders laud Rajasthan's achievement in solar, they barely talk of increasing green power consumption in the state, preferring to buy costly coal-based power despite discoms being burdened with a debt of over Rs 1.5 lakh crore. A tender for new coal power plants of 3,200 MW is set to be floated, for which Urja Vikas has sent the final document for the approval of the Rajasthan Electricity Regulatory Commission (RERC). Out of the total 37,000 MW wind and solar power plants in the state, only 11,000 MW are meant for Rajasthan's consumption. Power from the rest of the projects goes to other states. Centre for Energy, Environment & People (CEEP)'s Anshuman Gothwal, said, "Persistent inefficiencies and systemic issues have prevented state power utilities from fully leveraging the state's abundant solar potential. The state's generation utility, RVUNL, lacks a long-term vision for integrating renewable energy and has made little headway on its 2,000 MW solar project. " Highlighting the fragmented approach of discoms, Gothwal said shifting between HAM tenders, the Kusum scheme, and other methods without a clear or consistent strategy has resulted in underutilisation of the state's vast solar resources for its own consumption. In fact, RERC made provisions in 2010 that a certain portion of the power consumed in the state has to come from renewable energy. Every year, the targets are set under the Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO). But not even in one year are the targets met. Even though there was a provision for a penalty, it was circumvented. For example, Rajasthan govt should have had 20% of total power consumption from renewable sources in 2022-23. But the shortfall was over 24%. In the past 13 years since RPO regulations came in, discoms and other obligatory entities of the power sector have missed targets every year. Director at Samta Power, an NGO in the energy sector, DD Agarwal, said, "RERC should not have allowed carry forward the backlog every year. This is one of the major reasons that the discoms have remained careless about the targets." Agarwal said Rajasthan's land is used extensively for the generation of solar power, affecting its environment and ecology. "But Rajasthan, which needs solar power the most to fix its unmanageable debt of the discoms, is deprived of the benefits," added Agarwal. Typically, one mega watt of installed capacity of solar power takes about 4 acres of land. With 37,000 MW of installed capacity, the total area under solar in Rajasthan is around 1.5 lakh acres.
United News of India
24-06-2025
- Business
- United News of India
Centre ready to set up first nuclear power plant in Bihar
Patna, 24 June (UNI) Taking a major step towards promoting nuclear energy across the country, the central government today approved the Bihar government's proposal to set up a nuclear power plant in the state. Union Power Minister Manohar Lal made this announcement at the Power Ministers' Conference here. The Minister said: 'If the Bihar government sets up a nuclear power plant, the Central Government is fully prepared to provide support. We aim to set up a nuclear power plant in every state to ensure the country's energy security.' He added: 'There is also a request from Bihar government for a 1,000 MW battery storage project under Viability Gap Funding (VGF), and we have given in-principle approval for that as well.' He said India is fulfilling whatever power requirement is there in the country. Until a few years ago, India was known as a power-deficient country. However, today, India is not only fulfilling its needs but also exporting power to countries like Myanmar, Bhutan and Bangladesh. He noted that India successfully met a peak power demand of 250 GW in May 2024 and 242 GW thus far in 2025. But the peak demand is projected to rise further, reaching approximately 270 GW later this year. He said: 'India's peak electricity demand is projected to reach 446 GW by 2034–35 and meeting this sustainably requires proactive planning and continued coordination between the centre, states, and other stakeholders.' The Minister laid emphasis on ensuring Resource Adequacy and necessary power generation capacity tie-ups and advised states to ensure a balanced and diversified power generation mix. This should include the addition of nuclear generation capacity, with an aim to establish at least one nuclear power project in each state. The minister remarked that states should promote renewable energy coupled with energy storage systems in order to ensure reliability of supply of power. He mentioned India is moving towards having an increased share of renewable energy and the same has increased from 32% in 2014 to 49% in April 2025. He also highlighted the national ambition to achieve 100 GW of nuclear energy by 2047. He urged the states for reinforced implementation of Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) mandates and called upon them to form dedicated teams for these critical planning. A vision paper- 2035 was also prepared for the power sector, the Minister said adding that the country was already extensively working on Thermal Power, Solar Energy, wind power and projects related to storage of energy. UNI XC RS SSP
New Indian Express
12-06-2025
- Business
- New Indian Express
Green energy corporation to lease barren land for solar projects in Tamil Nadu
CHENNAI: In a move to address the paucity of land for solar projects and meet the state's Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) targets, the Tamil Nadu Green Energy Corporation Limited (TNGECL) has decided to lease barren and unused agricultural lands from farmers for installation of decentralised, grid-connected and ground-mounted solar power plants. A senior TNGECL official told TNIE, 'We plan to take land under the Centre's Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha Evam Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM) scheme. For the planned solar panel capacity of 420 MW, we will need around 1,300 acres of land.' In the first phase, the corporation had already installed solar plants with a capacity of 3 MW in Ranipet and Vellore districts. 'We are waiting for approval from the Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission to go ahead with another 11 MW. Once the lands are identified and approvals are received, tenders will be floated to select project developers,' the official said. Another official explained that these kinds of solar plants should ideally be located within a five-kilometre radius of power substations operated by Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corporation Limited to avoid high cost of transmission power lines. The official further said that the discom will sign a 25-year agreement with the developers to purchase power.
Indian Express
07-06-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
‘Will launch pilot project to install solar houses in Haryana soon': Khattar on Vij's proposal
The Ministry of Power 'will soon launch a pilot project to install solar houses across Haryana', Union Energy Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said on Friday, adding that if successful, it will eventually be expanded to other states. A solar house, also known as a solar home system (SHS), utilises solar panels to generate electricity from sunlight, which can then be used to power a home's electrical needs. The system can either be on-grid (connect to power grid) or off-grid (operate independently of grid). The announcement came after Haryana Energy Minister Anil Vij — during the Regional Power Conference with northern states and union territories, in Chandigarh on Friday — suggested the construction of solar houses in Haryana villages, to 'meet farmers' rising power needs'. Currently, many in Haryana villages have 10-kilowatt (kW) solar panels, Vij said. 'For higher capacity needs, dedicated solar houses will be more feasible. They require reliable electricity supply for agricultural activities, regardless of the source — solar, Bhakra or power central pool. Thus, a comprehensive solar project should be implemented to benefit all the stakeholders.' 'The state government has been working on promoting the use of solar energy across Haryana, so that it becomes self-reliant in the power sector. The Energy Department should run a pilot project to install solar houses across Haryana, and if successful, it could be expanded to other regions of the state,' Vij added. Khattar said India's renewable energy share in the total installed power capacity has increased to 49 per cent in April 2025 from 32 per cent in 2014. The minister said states should also work on having an adequate power generation mix, including the addition of nuclear generation capacity while meeting their resource adequacy plan. He also pointed out that states should complete the installation of prepaid smart metres in government establishments and colonies by August 2025 and for all commercial, industrial and high-load consumers by November 2025. States should work towards listing power sector utilities to generate additional resources and improve transparency and governance, the minister noted. 'We successfully met a peak demand of 250 GW in May 2024 and India has transformed from power-deficit to a power-sufficient nation and as of today, peak demand shortage is zero,' he said. He outlined the importance of continuous cooperation and coordination between central and state governments in achieving the goal of Viksit Bharat by 2047. India's peak electricity demand is projected to reach 446 GW by 2034-35 and meeting this sustainably requires proactive planning and continued coordination between the centre, states, and stakeholders, the minister said. He also advised states to implement Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) Guidelines and urged them to form dedicated teams for this critical planning. The minister highlighted the importance of cyber-security measures and islanding schemes as effective measures to prevent power outages due to cyber concerns and enable the resilience of the grid. Earlier, Vij urged Khattar to approve the 'viability gap funding for a 600 megawatt-hour (MWh) Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) in Haryana', while requesting 'early approval' for Rs 3,179.47-crore proposals under the Revised Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) to strengthen supply systems in Sonepat and Jhajjar, and Rs 142 crore for the pending proposal of a 33 kV substation augmentation under the LRP plan. The Haryana Energy Minister also proposed a policy to 'regulate the installation of poles, substations and transmission lines' on agricultural fields and residential areas, in a bid to prevent inconvenience to stakeholders, while suggesting 'underground cabling' in densely populated or sensitive areas. The meeting was attended by Anil Vij ( Energy Minister, Haryana), Harbhajan Singh ( Power Minister, Punjab), Subodh Uniyal (Forest Minister, Uttarakhand), A K Sharma ( Energy Minister, Uttar Pradesh), Ashish Sood (Power Minister, Delhi), Javed Ahmad Rana (Jal Shakti, Environment & Forest & Tribal Affairs, Jammu & Kashmir) and Heeralal Nagar (Energy Minister of State, Rajasthan).
