Technology

Panellists including a government representative and a member of the chief policy thinktank used by Narendra Modi agreed coal will continue as the staple source of Indian power into the mid century and technology should be employed to ‘clean’ it.

With electric vehicles making up only 3% of the global car market last year, analyst WoodMac says battery packs need to be cheaper and lighter and range anxiety must be addressed to change the habits of drivers.

The grid-connected solar project shall come up at a reservoir of NTPC’s Auraiya Gas Power Plant in Uttar Pradesh. It is to be developed under Open category, allowing use of solar cells and modules of any origin.

MIT scientists have developed a solar desalinator which transports heat from the sun through a ten-stage process of evaporation and condensation. The group estimates a $100 device employing their innovation could provide the daily drinking water needs of a family.

Any proponent can install such facility in the country, said Minister of State for Environment, Forest And Climate Change, noting that technologies are available for complete recycling of lithium batteries to recover valuable metals.

Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd has invited global bids to set up 500 MW of grid-connected solar projects. It shall enter into a 25-year PPA with successful bidders. Tariff ceiling is set as Rs 2.65/unit. Another tender for 185 MW—floated by Gujarat State Electricity Corporation Limited—seeks to select EPC contractors for plants ranging from 20 MW to 40 MW, which shall come up at various substations of Gujarat Energy Transmission Corporation Limited.

Solar module manufacturers should begin testing new technologies in higher-value niche markets, say scientists at the U.S. institution. For example, bringing perovskite technology directly to the mainstream market remains prohibitive in terms of initial investment but segments such as building-integrated PV or microelectronics devices may offer better routes to commercial maturity.

The company has won an order from Power Grid Corporation of India Limited to install 765 KV gas-insulated substation bays at Phagi in Jaipur district. With this installation, the state will be able to evacuate around 1 GW of additional renewable energy from three solar parks at Bhadla, Fatehpur and Bikaner to various beneficiaries.

Product development company the Cambridge Design Partnership, working with compatriot solar business Solivus, has developed a curved solar module featuring an organic thin film. The design is based on Solivus’ desire to “create a product so attractive that people would be happy to have one in their garden”.

The project will be awarded to the bidder who quotes the lowest viability gap funding requirement. The upper limit for VGF to be quoted by a bidder is kept at Rs 130 million for 1 MW solar PV project with battery storage of 3 MWh.