Clean energy potential beyond 100GW milestone

Reaching the 100GW milestone involves dedicated efforts by India’s renewable energy sector and the government. India established the Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources in 1992 and renamed it the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) in 2006, laying the foundation for renewable-led development of our energy sector. The first sign of India’s rise on the global energy map was the establishment of the International Solar Alliance by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the Paris Climate Summit. His resolve to see India emerge as a leader in this field became even more evident when he set an ambitious target of achieving 450GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030. Didn’t look back.

Over the past 10 years, renewable energy has seen rapid growth in our energy ecosystem, with wind power leading the way, followed by solar. Estimates suggest that wind and solar power alone has more than 1,050GW of renewable energy capacity in India, with wind capacity at 300GW and solar 750GW. The decision to realize this potential got a major boost in 2014 when the current government took power. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the government immediately set ambitious targets for the industry to follow (175GW of capacity by 2022, later revised to 450GW by 2030). This was led by a number of policy reforms, such as transparent bidding, waiver of inter-state transmission system fees and losses for inter-state sales of solar and wind power for projects, and creating renewable purchase obligations, which allowed distribution companies to had made it mandatory. Apart from giving ‘must-run’ status to renewable energy projects, procuring a part of power from renewable sources, preparing liquidity package for distribution companies and other specific policies like Kisan Urja Suraksha and Utthan Mahabhiyan, aimed at energy security to ensure. Farmer. The sector has also benefited from large investments. In the last seven years, as much as ₹5.2 trillion has been invested in renewable energy.

Regular policy interventions by the government, fiscal and other incentives, an investment incentive and fiscal stimulus over the years have helped India emerge as a global leading runner in the clean energy ecosystem. Today, we rank fourth in the world in terms of installed renewable capacity (fifth in solar and fourth in wind). With another 50GW installations and 27GW under tendering, our ranks will improve.

A key driver of this growth has been regional technology, which has sharply reduced the cost of renewable energy over the years, making them an energy resource known for its use. New means of electricity generation (such as floating solar and offshore wind projects) have been introduced, storage-based systems are coming into play to provide round-the-clock energy, and efforts are underway to digitize our power grids. As we continue to increase capacity, technology will play a major role in solving the problem of intermittency, which is unique to renewable energy, through improved storage. Battery costs are constantly falling. In 2010, lithium-ion battery packs cost $1,200 per kWh. Today, it costs about $120 and Bloomberg estimates it will drop 8% each year to reach $60 by 2030. The new renewable capacity, along with storage, can ensure 100% renewable energy generation for stationary electricity to the grid.

In India, Renew Power has a project currently under development that envisages the use of wind, solar and batteries for a steady supply of renewable energy.

The rise of renewable energy offers a lot of opportunities. Moving towards the 2030 target, given the scale of our market, our relatively low electricity penetration on a per capita basis, and the relative maturity of the sector in India, presents several avenues for growth. We should strive to promote the development of a complete clean energy ecosystem so that India can become a global champion. We have already taken several steps to stimulate the growth of our solar manufacturing industry by creating demand and providing supportive policies. The same playbook can be adopted in other enabling industries, such as wind equipment-manufacturing and electrolyser and fuel-cell manufacturing. Given their requirement of skilled labor, investment in these would also generate employment. According to the International Labor Organization, about 330,000 new jobs can be created in the renewable energy sector by 2022 and more than 24 million new jobs can be created by 2030.

Achieving 100GW of renewable capacity is a major step towards India’s goal of an essential energy transformation. As we continue our quest for clean energy, I expect to achieve many more such potential milestones in the years to come.

Sumant Sinha is the Founder, Chairman and Managing Director of Renew Power