The world is witnessing a major shift in energy demand from advanced to developing economies, with demand growing fastest in India – according to the International Energy Agency’s (IEA’s) latest World Energy Overview.
Developers gave short shrift to gloomy predictions about depreciation, protectionism and tax headwinds as tendering and auction figures soared, but they shied away from the tough price caps set for SECI’s procurement exercises.
While the timelines for PV power plant execution and completion of manufacturing facilities are now more realistic, production obligations – especially for capacity utilization – need to be revisited.
The target of 105 GW of cumulative installed photovoltaic power, which was originally planned to be achieved by the end of the decade, has already been surpassed. PV Info Link now reports that the 2020 solar target may be revised upwards to between 210 GW and 270 GW.
The developer will supply energy to the NTPC under a 25-year PPA and can build the project anywhere in India, with construction slated to finish in early 2021.
A failed association with IL&FS has failed to deter SoftBank from its plan to invest a staggering $1tn in Indian solar by 2030. Now the Japanese funding giant is working with Essel Infraprojects on a 500 MW plant, with further details yet to be revealed.
As the currency continued to fall today, analysts are concerned developers will see any savings from falling module prices disappear, and lenders may get nervy, putting the national solar target in grave doubt.
Azure Power has raised the capital since June 30th, and says it is “the largest amount of financing raised by a solar power company in India during this period”. Azure says the fund leaves it well positioned to deliver a 2 GW project pipeline.
Despite political hurdles in key markets including China and Japan, Asia remains highly active. This year, 59 GW of solar is expected to be installed and due to further system price declines, a phase-out of subsidy schemes can be offset.
Big players such as Acme, ReNew, Adani, Azure, Hero Future and Aditya Birla Solar are likely to stay away from procurement which requires 3 GW annual manufacturing commitment, says industry insider Gopal Lal Somani.
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