Policy

The financial lender will now oversee the implementation of the second phase of the Central Public Sector Undertaking (CPSU) Scheme which provides viability gap funding (VGF) support for state-run generators to set up 12 GW of solar projects using domestically-made equipment by FY 2022-23.

Due to temporary disruptions caused by Covid-19 epidemic and the current lockdown, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has notified six months extension in the effective dates for the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM). The list is now set to apply from the end of September 2020.

Pinaki Bhattacharyya, Amp Energy India MD and CEO, speaks to pv magazine about the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on the solar industry and the ways in which the government can build a positive sentiment in the industry.

The clarification came after States reacted wrongly to the power ministry’s recent order providing a moratorium on conventional power payments and started stopping payments or curtailing renewable power.

Planning ahead is crucial to ensure the Indian solar industry bounces back quickly and the slowdown is not carried forward to 2021-22, say BloombergNEF analysts even as they estimate 75% fall in PV imports in the first quarter of year 2020 over the previous quarter and revise annual capacity addition forecasts.

The ministry further announced waiver from section 144, Nationwide Lockdown, Curfew, or any other limitation on the number of people required for operation and maintenance of solar power plants. The directive came a day after lobby group National Solar Energy Federation wrote to the ministry asking for waivers.

Sliding electricity demand and declining commercial and industrial activity could prompt distribution companies to block or delay payments to solar power producers.

India’s energy system immediately needs a shift from centralized commands to dynamic interactive structures. While the UK is already spearheading digitalization of its energy systems, India has ample areas demanding interventions, such as integration of decentralized energy systems using digital innovation and analytical tools.

India’s energy storage juggernaut is on a roll with the country discovering the cheapest renewables cum storage tariff in history, anywhere in the world. The technology chosen is pumped storage. And by setting up an enabling environment, the government has signalled its commitment to boosting the market!

For one of India’s largest foreign investors, it’s time to invest in renewables.