Latest news with #ShripadNaik
Time of India
23-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
States asked to submit green energy corridor proposals, complete prepaid metering by 2025
New Delhi: The Union government on Friday urged southern states to submit proposals for Phase-III of the Green Energy Corridor (GEC) and complete the installation of prepaid smart meters in government establishments by August 2025, and in commercial and high-load consumer categories by November 2025. The directions were issued at the Regional Conference for Southern Region States and Union Territories held in Bengaluru. The meeting was chaired by Union Minister for Power and Housing & Urban Affairs Manohar Lal and attended by Union Minister of State for Power and New & Renewable Energy Shripad Naik, Karnataka Energy Minister K J George, Telangana Deputy Chief Minister and Energy Minister Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu, Tamil Nadu Electricity Minister S S Sivasankar, Puducherry Electricity Minister A Namassivayam, and Andhra Pradesh Energy Minister Gottipati Ravi Kumar via video conferencing. The Power Secretary highlighted the importance of planning power generation capacity in line with the resource adequacy plan up to FY2035 and called for infrastructure development using financing options such as Tariff Based Competitive Bidding, Regulated Tariff Mechanism, budgetary support, or asset monetisation. States were also asked to implement cyber security protocols and ensure financial health of distribution companies. Karnataka's Energy Minister requested central support for state-level distribution and transmission projects. Telangana, Tamil Nadu, and Puducherry outlined their initiatives and progress on power sector development . Union Minister of State Shripad Naik asked states to execute PM-KUSUM projects and sign related Power Purchase Agreements within seven months. He assured that the Centre is acting on the feedback received from states. Union minister Manohar Lal emphasised the need for cooperation between the Centre and states to make the power sector financially sustainable. He called for encouraging energy-efficient practices, resolving intra-state transmission issues including Right of Way constraints, and adopting central guidelines. The minister urged states to use the ₹1.5 lakh crore, 50-year interest-free loan scheme announced in Union Budget 2025–26 for infrastructure development. He highlighted the role of renewable energy with storage in ensuring energy reliability and fulfilling India's global climate commitments. On the distribution side, the Minister cited challenges such as poor tariff structures, billing inefficiencies, and delays in subsidy payments. He asked states to engage with electricity regulators for cost-reflective tariffs and timely orders. The minister also directed the completion of prepaid smart meter rollout in government buildings by August 2025 and for commercial and high-load users by November 2025. He said smart meters could improve efficiency and transparency using analytics-based tools. He assured states of continued central government support in strengthening the power sector.
The Hindu
20-05-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
How energy sufficient are India and its States?
The story so far: 'India has been transformed from a power deficit to a power sufficient nation in past ten years,' announced Union Minister of Power Shripad Naik in a written query in April 3, 2025. An addition of 238 GW in generation capacity since April 2014 spanning 2,01,088 circuit kilometers (ckm) of transmission lines has helped to boost inter-regional transferring capacity to 1,18,740 MW, he noted. In the past four years, the gap between the energy demand and capacity has fallen to 0.1% and total installed capacity has increased to 470 GW. Currently, energy produced by thermal fuels (coal, diesel, lignite and natural gas) is 12,41,261 Million Units (MU), while nuclear and hydro-electric sources account for to 51,962 MU and 1,39,780 MU respectively. Renewable sources accounted for 2,30,868 MU in energy production, with wind at 78,214 MU, solar at 1,27,339 MU, biomass 3392 MU, bagesse 8349 MU, small hydro 10,951 MU and others at 2621 MU. A closer look at India's power production shows that while renewable energy sources are increasing, thermal remains the primary source. The contribution of renewable contribution as a percentage has gradually increased from 11.5% in 2021-22 to 13.78% in 2024-2025. Keeping in pace with India's growing power demand, its generation has increased from 13,74,024 MU in 2021-22 to 15,46,229 MU in 2024-25, closing the gap from 0.4% in 2021-22 to 0.1% in 2024-25. How is power transferred between States? India's States are divided into five regional power grids – North, East, West, South and North-East. The first inter-regional grid connection was accomplished in 1991 when the East and North-Eastern grids were connected. The West followed in 2003 and the North in 2006. A national power grid was established after the South was synchronously interconnected with the commissioning of the 765 kilo Volt (kV) Raichur-Solapur transmission line in 2013, thereby ensuring that the entire nation was operating at one frequency – 50 Hertz (Hz). The archipelagos of Lakshadweep and Andaman & Nicobar, which are far away from the Indian mainland, are not connected to the national grid. This National Grid is maintained by the government-run Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (the Power Grid) to monitor, regulate and facilitate inter-State power flow. Overall, the Power Grid carries 45% of India's transmission capacity via its large network of transmission towers, substations of varying voltages, satellite communication, transformers and reactors. As part of its national grid operations, PGCI manages the national load dispatch centre (NLDC), five regional load dispatch centres (RLDC) and State load dispatch centres (SLDC), monitoring the power flow across States. These centres interact with the dispatch centres of private power companies to monitor and regulate their power flow too. While the Power Grid is the central transmission utility in India (and the largest), private companies like Adani Transmission, Tata Power, Sterlite Power, and ReNew Power too have their own network and load dispatch centres which are connected to the SLDCs. The Power Grid also oversees power trading between various power entities, States and regions and is responsible for integrating power produced by renewable energy sources with the National Grid, implementing smart grids across cities, facilitating power transfer between India and Bhutan, Nepal, Myanmar, and Bangladesh. How are States bridging the power gap? North Comprising of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Rajasthan, Punjab, Jammu-Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi and Chandigarh,in the N//orth has consistently reduced from 1% from 2021-22 to 0.2% in 2024-2025. Jammu-Kashmir has seen a dramatic drop in its power gap from 7.6% to 0.5% as energy supplie,=[==d which ranged between 18,400 and 19,700 MU caught up to its demand which has risen from 19,000 to 20,500 MU. Among the large states, Uttar Pradesh has managed to meet its energy demand reducing its gap from 0.9% to 0.2%, while Rajasthan saw fluctuation in its energy gap from 0.6% to 1.7% in 2022-23 and 0.3% in 2024-25. During this time, Rajasthan's demand rose to 89,000 MU to 1,07,000 MU. Overall, Himachal Pradesh is the only state whose energy gap has increased from 27 MU in 2021-22 to 37 MU in 2024-25. South & West These two regions which cover India's largest power consuming states like Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh and Telangana, have managed to keep their energy gap limited to 0.1% through the years. In the West, Maharashtra is the largest power consumer as its requirement grew from 1,72,823 MU in 2021-22 to 2,07,018 MU in 2023-2024. However, it has managed to meet its power requirement keeping its energy gap a mere 0.1%. Gujarat, the region's second biggest power consumer, saw its requirement increase from 1,29,953 MU to 1,45,768 MU; but its energy gap remained at 0%. Similarly in the South, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana have large power requirements. The region's requirement has ballooned from 3,50,672 MU in 2021-22 to 4,19,531 MU in 2023-24. The power demand of Tamil Nadu is the highest 1,09,816 MU to 1,26,163 MU but the energy gap is 0%. Similarly, Telangana and Karnataka have maintained a 0% energy gap but Andhra Pradesh's energy gap has been gradually reducing from 0.6% to 0% in 2024-25. East & North-East Despite it being one of the first regions to get an interconnected grid, East grid's States like Bihar and Jharkhand have been unable to meet their power demands. However, West Bengal and Odisha have been able manage their demands. In 2021-2022, Bihar and Jharkhand had an energy requirement of 36,216 MU and 11,148 MU for which 355 MU and 558 MU remained unmet respectively. This energy gap increased through the years before it settled to 0.4% and 0.5% for the respective states in 2024-25. On the other hand, Odisha and West Bengal's demands which have increased from 54,001 MU and 38,339 MU respectively from 2021-22 to 67,576 MU and 41,358 MU in 2023-24, have managed to keep their energy gap within 0.1%. One of the lightest regions in terms of energy requirement, the North Eastern grid's demand has increased slightly from 18,079 MU in 2021-22 to 20,022 MU in 2023-24. Its energy gap, however has been erratic increasing from 0.3% to 1.4% before dropping back to 0.1% by 2024-25. Assam, the region's biggest power consumer, has seen a boost in its demand from 10,844 MU to 12,445 MU through the years. However, it has managed to meet its demand keeping its energy gap between 0-0.8%. On the other hand, Meghalaya, whose energy demand has more or less remained constant at 2200 MU, has seen its energy gap oscillate between 0.8% to 7.6% before dropping to 0%, indicating how its energy requirement of 170 MU remained unmet in 2023-24. What is being done to rectify this? According to the Power Ministry's annual report 2024-25, India has added 14,360 ckm this year, enhancing the country's transformation capacity by adding 86,610 MVA and interregional capacity of 2200 MW. Six Extra-High Voltage (EHV) lines – voltages above 400 kV, have been commissioned through the year in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Assam and Meghalaya. Moreover, the Centre revealed that in the past four years, renewable energy production has increased from 1,70,912 MU in 2021-22 to 2,30,867 MU in 2024-25. Rajasthan has almost doubled its capacity from 24,099 MU to 50,322 MU, followed by Gujarat which added 15,644 MU in this time. States like Tripura, Manipur, Jharkhand, Puducherry, Goa, Arunachal Pradesh and Chandigarh are some of the regions where renewable energy production is very negligible (<40 MU). With India's plan to boost its non-fossil energy capacity to 500 GW by 2030, the Centre needs to install the transmission system needed to evacuate the power. Accordingly, interstate transmission networks for the evacuation of 161.9 GW of the installed capacity of 209 GW of renewable energy are under construction. Transmission systems for delivery of power to the Green Hydrogen/Green Ammonia Manufacturing hubs at Mundra, Kundla, Gopalpur, Paradeep, and Vizag are under planning. Public or private investment upto ₹9.15 lakh crore is needed in the transmission sector to realise the Centre's plan.
Business Standard
13-05-2025
- Automotive
- Business Standard
Driving Change: TSL Foundation Successfully Hosts India's First Indian Road Safety Alliance CoP
VMPL New Delhi [India], May 13: TSL Foundation successfully hosted the First Annual Convention of Parties (CoP) of the India Road Safety Alliance (IRSA) at Le Meridien, New Delhi, bringing together key stakeholders to address India's road safety challenges. The convention aimed at strengthening policy frameworks, fostering multi-sectoral collaboration, and drive innovative solutions to reduce fatalities on the road in alignment with global safety standards and India's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This event was graced by several esteemed dignitaries from India, including Shri Ajay Tamta, Hon'ble Minister of State, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways; Shri Shripad Naik, Hon'ble Minister of State, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy; Shri Yogender Chandoliya, Hon'ble Member of Parliament; Shri Nitin Agrawal, Hon'ble Minister of State (Independent Charge), Excise Ministry; Smt. Meenakshi Lekhi, Former Union Minister, Ministry of External Affairs; Smt. Vimala R., Senior Official; along with other senior government officials, policymakers, corporate and civil society representatives, and academic experts. Shri Ajay Tamta, Hon'ble Minister of State, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, stressed the importance of advanced infrastructure and technology-driven policy reforms: "Our approach to road safety must evolve beyond traditional awareness campaigns. Embracing smart technologies and enhancing infrastructure design will be pivotal in reducing road fatalities and ensuring a safer transportation ecosystem." Shri Shripad Naik, Hon'ble Minister of State for New and Renewable Energy, emphasized the synergy between road safety and sustainable energy solutions, stating: "Road safety and clean energy are inherently interconnected. The adoption of green technologies, such as electric vehicles (EVs) and solar-powered smart traffic systems, not only enhances transportation safety but also contributes to the reduction of carbon emissions. It is imperative to prioritize sustainable and environmentally responsible solutions in road safety initiatives. In this regard, the efforts of IRSA and TSL Foundation are highly commendable, as they represent a significant step toward integrating modern technology and sustainability into road safety frameworks." Smt. Meenakshi Lekhi, Former Union Minister, Ministry of External Affairs, underscored the importance of community engagement in road safety, stating: "Road safety goes beyond infrastructure and laws--it requires active community participation. Engaging local communities, civil society, and youth can turn it into a mass movement. Recognizing it as a shared responsibility is key to safer roads. I commend TSL Foundation and IRSA for leading this initiative and am confident it will drive impactful policies and interventions." Shri Yogender Chandoliya, Hon'ble Member of Parliament, North West Delhi, emphasized the critical role of grassroots engagement: "Local communities and civic organizations must be at the heart of our road safety initiatives. Their active involvement is essential to drive lasting behavioral change and cultivate a culture of safety that benefits every generation." Shri Nitin Agrawal, Hon'ble Minister of State, Excise and Prohibition Department, participated in the event virtually and stated: "Road safety is a serious social and public health concern requiring collective action. The Uttar Pradesh government is enhancing safety through awareness campaigns, strict anti-drunk driving measures, ambulance network expansion, and legal protection for Good Samaritans. I commend IRSA for uniting stakeholders to strengthen road safety efforts." Vimala R, Resident Commissioner & Secretary, GoM, Maharashtra Sada, New Delhi, highlighted the importance of research and data-driven policymaking: "Accurate data collection and analysis are crucial to devising targeted road safety interventions. Academic institutions and research bodies must play a pivotal role in shaping policies." Shri Sahil Arora, CEO, TSL, emphasized the vision behind establishing IRSA and the CoP as a collaborative platform: "The First Annual CoP of IRSA was conceived to unite key stakeholders in road safety, fostering dialogue and partnerships that drive impactful change. By creating a dedicated platform for collaboration, we aim to build a sustainable ecosystem for policy innovation and implementation." Shri Adesh Gupta, Director Advisory Board, TSL, highlighted the long-term goal of the initiative: "IRSA and the CoP were envisioned to bridge gaps between policy, industry, and grassroots efforts in road safety. This platform is not just about discussions but about forging sustainable and scalable interventions that lead to real, measurable impact on the ground." The convention featured four expert-led panel discussions, bringing together policymakers, corporate leaders, academics, and civil society representatives to address key road safety challenges. Discussions focused on adopting a Safe Systems Approach to reduce fatalities, fostering cross-sector collaborations to drive impactful interventions, leveraging technologies for smarter traffic management, and exploring behavioral insights to influence driver compliance. These sessions provided a comprehensive, multi-stakeholder perspective on strengthening road safety frameworks in India. The First Annual CoP of IRSA represented a landmark step in transforming India's road safety landscape. By bringing together decision-makers, innovators, and community leaders, this convention aimed to catalyze meaningful policy action and create safer roads for all.
New Indian Express
28-04-2025
- Business
- New Indian Express
Indian government unveils major plan to reduce energy consumption by 89 Mtoe by 2030
VIJAYAWADA: The Indian government, through the Ministry of Power, announced in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, that it plans to cut energy consumption by 89 million tonnes of oil equivalent (Mtoe) by 2030. The Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE), under Minister of State for Power Shripad Naik, unveiled the roadmap recently, aiming to boost energy efficiency across industries, buildings, transport, and appliances. The plan, introduced to meet growing demand sustainably, outlines how states can implement energy-saving measures through new building codes and appliance standards. At the event, the BEE launched the Energy Conservation and Sustainable Building Code (ECSBC) for commercial buildings and the Eco Niwas Samhita (ENS) for residential construction, encouraging states such as Andhra Pradesh to adopt these frameworks. Appliance efficiency will be promoted under the expanded Standards and Labelling Programme, mandating 1-to-5-star ratings for products like air-conditioners, fans, and refrigerators. Industries participating in the Perform, Achieve and Trade (PAT) Scheme will receive tradable Energy Saving Certificates for exceeding energy-saving goals. Speaking separately in Delhi, Minister Naik emphasised the importance of collaboration and praised Andhra Pradesh's State Designated Agency (SDA) for its leadership in implementing energy initiatives. BEE Secretary Milind Deore highlighted India's commitment to reducing its carbon intensity by 45 per cent by 2030. The BEE-German Energy Summit held in Vijayawada also produced a concept note focused on doubling India's energy efficiency, with significant contributions from Andhra Pradesh's experience in the residential sector.
Hans India
28-04-2025
- Business
- Hans India
BEE implements two codes for energy efficiency, conservation
Vijayawada: Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) under the Ministry of Power has introduced two codes to increase the usage of energy efficiency electrical appliances and conservation of energy. The BEE is implementing Energy Conservation and Sustainable Building Code (ECSBC) for commercial buildings and Eco Niwas Samhita (ENS) for residential buildings. In a press release on Sunday, the BEE has said these codes are intended for adoption by State governments and local bodies, ensuring that energy-efficient and climate-resilient infrastructure becomes the new norm across India. In addition, key household appliances such as air-conditioners, ceiling fans, and refrigerators have been brought under the mandatory Standards and Labelling Programme to ensure that only energy-efficient products are used, helping reduce overall electricity consumption. The BEE, spearheading the efforts under the aegis of the Ministry of Power, has initiated several critical programmes across sectors: Perform, Achieve and Trade (PAT) Scheme is one of the important schemes. PAT is targeting energy-intensive industries, this flagship initiative assigns sector-specific energy reduction targets. Industries surpassing their targets are awarded Energy Saving Certificates, which can be traded on power exchanges. Standards and Labelling Programme - Major energy-consuming appliances are rated from 1-star (least efficient) to 5-star (most efficient) under this programme. The star ratings empower consumers to make informed purchasing decisions, thereby driving down electricity consumption at the household and commercial levels. Through ECSBC and ENS, BEE aims to significantly curb the burgeoning energy demand from the building sector. States and urban local bodies have been called upon to adopt and rigorously implement these codes to realize maximum energy savings. During a recent event in Delhi, Minister of State for Power Shripad Naik has emphasised that achieving the 2030 targets will require concerted and sustained efforts by all stakeholders, particularly the State Designated Agencies (SDAs) of state governments, Milind Deore, Secretary, BEE, said. He underscored the need for proactive states like Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, Telangana, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh to lead by example. 'India is committed to reducing the carbon intensity of its economy by 45 percent by 2030 as part of its climate change and energy efficiency objectives. This is a critical juncture for all SDAs to put forth aggressive, state-specific programs focusing on energy conservation across key sectors including domestic/buildings, industry, agriculture, municipal operations, and transport,' said Deore. He further advised that each state should assign sector-specific energy reduction targets, prioritize interventions in the major energy-consuming areas, and track progress rigorously to ensure that the cumulative national target is met on time. Drawing attention to the rapidly expanding residential sector, Deore highlighted that residential buildings account for 24 percent (approximately 375 TWh) of India's total electricity consumption. Alarmingly, energy demand from the residential sector is projected to increase more than eightfold by 2050. Given this trajectory, Deore called for urgent action in integrating energy efficiency measures within the residential construction boom. Widespread adoption of the Eco Niwas Samhita and rigorous compliance with star-rated appliances can significantly mitigate this looming surge in electricity demand. The BEE and Ministry of Power called upon all stakeholders — states, industries, builders, and consumers to join hands in this transformative journey toward a greener, more energy-efficient India.
