Markets & Policy

Government-owned Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited and Australian business Libcoin are in talks to form a joint venture to build a 1 GWh production capacity lithium-ion battery plant in India that would eventually be scaled up to 30 GWh.

Although the solar industry sees itself as young, its assets are aging. Owners still struggle with the complexity of making the best use of big data analysis to improve plant efficiency and profitability. Ragna Schmidt-Haupt, of Everoze, examines why this has not changed, and what can or should be improved. Artificial intelligence, advanced data analytics, automated assessments and smart monitoring software – holistic solar asset management starts here.

At the ongoing Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, Tata Group and Adani have announced plans to invest in lithium ion battery manufacturing in Gujarat. Chromeni Steels, a joint venture company of China’s Tsingshan Industries, will invest US$ 3 billion to manufacture stainless steel and electric vehicle (EV) batteries.

The test facility, to be set up by the Maxop Research and Testing Institute, will be capable of testing solar water pumping systems and other solar products in compliance with Bureau of Indian Standards guidelines and international standards.

At the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit, HyET Solar will sign a memorandum of understanding with the state to set up a solar module manufacturing facility.

The project would be awarded based on international competitive bidding followed by reverse auction. The deadline for bid submission is February 25. The bids will opened on February 26, while the date of reverse auction will be intimated at a later date.

The procurement will be worth an estimated Rs16,000 crore, and will stipulate the use of 1.2 GW of Indian-made equipment. The power generated will replace 4 GW of coal-fired electricity consumption used by the railways.

The nation still managed to attract around $11.1 billion for renewable energy in 2018, to be the world’s fifth most attractive destination for funds, according to new figures compiled by BloombergNEF.

India’s Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) will float a global tender to develop renewable energy projects coupled with battery energy storage system across the 11 islands of the union territory of Lakshadweep.

Taiwanese market research company EnergyTrend says the 5/31 policy change in China last year had a less dramatic effect on global demand than expected and, with the Modi government introducing solar-friendly policies, India – and Japan – will close the gap on the world leaders for installed PV capacity.