Tamil Nadu floats new solar policy to generate 9 GW by 2022

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Of the total 9 GW solar capacity targeted by Tamil Nadu, 40 per cent would come from consumer-category solar energy systems. The government would review the implementation of the policy every year to evaluate the actual results against policy objectives.

According to Tamil Nadu Energy Development Agency (TEDA), Tamil Nadu’s installed capacity of solar energy as on March 31, 2018 was around 2 GW.

“Vision Tamil Nadu 2023, a strategic plan for infrastructure development in Tamil Nadu, includes a solar energy target of 5,000 MW. More recently, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) proposed a solar energy target for the year 2022 of 9 GW for Tamil Nadu. To meet the Vision Tamil Nadu 2023 and MNRE 2022 targets, substantial solar energy capacity addition was required,” read the policy 2019 document accessed by pv magazine.

“Achieving the solar energy target for 2023 requires new policy instruments and solar energy programs, especially so for the consumer category. Enhanced grid penetration of solar energy requires smart grid management and energy storage solutions.”

“With the experience gained from implementation of the Tamil Nadu Solar Energy Policy, 2012 and with a view of accelerating the transition to a sustainable energy future, this Tamil Nadu Solar Energy Policy, 2019 provides an inclusive policy framework that promotes both utility category and consumer category solar energy generation through various enabling mechanisms,” it added.

By achieving the 9 GW target, Tamil Nadu aims to become an international climate leader for emerging economies by 2023.

Just recently, the Tamil Nadu government had announced plans to purchase 2,000 low-maintenance, battery-operated buses as part of its endeavor to adopt environmentally-friendly public transport. The buses would run in Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai in the first phase of their deployment.

For the purchase, the state government is planning to borrow from German state-owned development bank KfW at 2% interest.

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