Sun has long been the sustainer of this planet and others in its perimeter and a direct exemplar to humankind of how Nature can be a source of energy, treasure and solution for the worst of all their problems and needs.
No doubt, the Sun has enjoyed great reverence in the history and culture of India.
We realized this potential of Sunlight as a wonderful and clean energy resource since the industrial ages. This came as a great tiding for India as it has been endowed with vast solar access.
The whole territory enjoys a staggering 5,000 trillion kWh annual energy that is received through Insolation with most areas, on an average receiving 4-7 kWh per sq. meter per day.
Why Solar Energy needs an impetus in India?
Solar energy is absolutely clean with no emissions, every dynamic but stable technology, negligible waste, can be a perfect resource coupled with other forms of renewable energy forms like Wind energy, biogas, wave or tidal energy etc.
It is the most secure, abundant as well as renewable energy resource.
It is said that even if a small fraction of the total solar energy captured effectively is captured, it can yield the entire country’s power requirements.
As per the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC): “India is a tropical country, where sunshine is available for longer hours per day and in great intensity. Solar energy, therefore, has great potential as future energy source”.
“It also has the advantage of permitting the decentralized distribution of energy, thereby empowering people at the grassroots level”.
National Institute of Solar Energy has estimated the nation’s potential to reach 748 GW considering the best utilization of 3% of its waste land area that can possibly be covered by highly-productive Solar PV modules.
On these lines, National Tariff Policy has been amended in 2011 to introduce the solar-specific RPO (Renewable Purchase Obligation) which has been further increased from a bare 0.25 per cent in 2012 to nearly 3 per cent by 2022.
With this level of renewable energy promotion, paired with clean energy demand in the country and greater energy transition, India is never going to look back.
As a matter of encouragement, the ratings agency ICRA has estimated the India’s renewable energy generation capacity addition in Fiscal Year 2023 to be around 16 gigawatt.
The agency’s statement said: “Growth prospects robust with India’s commitment to reducing emissions and meeting 50% energy requirement from renewable sources by 2030”.
“Investment requirement remains large at $450 billion – $500 billion to achieve the RE capacity targets by 2030.”
The push for Clean energy will help meet the country’s 50% of energy needs alone, by the end of this decade.
“The outlook for the capacity addition in the renewable energy (RE) sector remains strong with a large project pipeline of over 55 GW and the highly competitive tariffs offered by these projects”.
“The capacity addition witnessed a strong recovery in the first eight months of FY2022 with 8.2 GW added against 3.4 GW added in 8M FY2021.”
Of the Nation’s intended 40% of achieved total installed capacity of the country, nearly 48.55 GW, 40.03 GW and 51.34 GW is for solar, wind and hydropower energy.
Findings in the report expect the Renewable Energy capacity addition to swell significantly from 7.4 GW registered in FY2021 to 12.5 GW in FY2022 so that 16.0 GW can be attained in FY2023.
Currently, 63GW RE capacity is already under consideration and construction.
But these plans can be hijacked by the increasing prices, supply chain difficulties and execution operations.
“The ability of the developers to secure modules within their budgeted costs and cost of debt funding at less than 8.5% remains important to make these projects viable.”
“On the other hand, the wind segment continues to witness subdued capacity addition owing to execution headwinds, financing challenges for few developers and weak financial profile of some of the OEMs leading to supply side constraints”.
With India moving at a speed barely no one in the world can arrest, in terms of Renewable energy generation, the onus lies on the government, investors, capitalists and consumers, after all, to execute the best of ideas in the similar direction.
While we offer our efforts to this green push, we ask can it be a just and equitable energy transition if it comes without a greater benefit to a broader public?
Hence, we talk of study performed to scroll the additional benefits which can result from a low-carbon energy transition in India, that comes subsequent to the renewable energy promotion.
It dares to quantify the specific impact of the Indian power sector that remains largely coal driven, assesses the health benefits in case of increased share of renewables in the country’s energy and power sector.
Plus it also adds the economic savings which result from the improvements in air quality, inherent from the change.
Co-Benefits of an equitable Energy Transition:
India can noticeably elevate the livelihoods of its citizens if it is able to reduce its air pollution. Being a developing country, fighting for growth and power at every step, it can get its dreams fueled with the Renewable generation.
One can say this because in 2020 alone, almost 500,000 people died prematurely due to exposure because of particulate matter (PM10) and if we are to believe the estimates of the study, this number would only rise to 600,000 premature deaths for 2030 and 830,000 till 2050.
Devoid of any opportunity in 2020 or near-time, future calamities can be simply avoided if our policies can be inclusive of the needs, struggles of common man and suggest an inclusive transition.
The energy crisis that incurred a severe blow to the world recently, wherein all the finite energy sources went bleak and inaccessible in certain parts of the world and the countries met their demands through their respective inventories, has been just a single jolt in a string.
Experts say, there are many more to come if the Renewables cannot step in the shoes of their dirtier counterparts, often and enough.
Secondly, India can significantly limit its economic losses by providing a greener path to its economy and deploying a gamut of renewable energy sources.
Its businesses need to align with the dreams, aspirations and needs of the country, be sustainable, ever-evolving, fulfilling and ever-inclusive.
Following a ‘business-as-usual’ path may incur the economic losses inclusive of the health costs which could increase from INR 4.6 trillion (USD 64.6 billion) calculated in 2020 to more than its double in 2030 and maybe more than a ten-fold to INR 47 trillion (USD 660.3 billion) in 2050. However, by following the NDC PLUS pathway, economic losses in 2050 could be reduced by as
A straightened INR 12 trillion (USD 168.6 billion) can be saved if our policies be respective of the NDC rules in all aspects.