Distributed solar

A study by Auroville Consulting assesses the techno-commercial impact of generating solar power close to the point of consumption. The study was undertaken on ten feeders of a substation in the Erode district of Tamil Nadu. The results indicated that 100% solar energy penetration, in energy terms, is not only possible but a winning proposition, especially for the distribution companies.

The new billion-dollar investment is aimed at scaling distributed renewable energy across developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Developers have until November 30 to lodge their interest with Uttarakhand Renewable Energy Development Agency (UREDA) to install and support PV plants for beneficiaries of Mukhyamantri Saur Swarojgar Yojana. A total of 10,000 solar power plants (in sizes up to 25 kWp) are proposed to be set up under the scheme.

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy is eager to ramp up deployment of solar-powered dryers, cold storage and charkhas across the nation’s 600,000 villages.

The latest edition of the Global Off-grid Solar Market Report by the World Bank and GOGLA has called for regulatory and financial support to help off-grid distributors create jobs lost to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Launched in November 2015, the alliance aims to collectively address key challenges to the scaling up of solar energy in member countries that fall between Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn. The Alliance is now supported by 68 member countries, and a further 20 countries are in the process of becoming members.

The government is trying to harness renewables to increase domestic output but will need a more liberal energy market and to consider the structure of procurement auctions, cloying red tape and the financial travails of state utilities if it is to achieve its goals, says Rakshika Kaul of Amp Energy India.

The Solar Energy Corporation of India has issued a call for expressions of interest to supply clean energy to isolated off-grid communities and warned components will probably have to be transported manually.

The innovators will be required to showcase their technologies in real field conditions. The shortlisted ones will be empanelled and allocated sites to install solar pumps under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evem Utthan Mahabhiyan (PM KUSUM) Scheme.

Faced with raw material and labor shortages, solar manufacturers have stressed the need to find alternative supply chains and to push automation and internet of things applications on the factory floor to keep production running.