Policy

The Renewable Energy Project Development Office is tendering seven large-scale IPP solar projects. The exercise is part of Round 2 of the Saudi National Renewable program, which is expected to allocate almost 2.2 GW of PV capacity this year.

State owned Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVN) has asked 1,703 farmers from Faridabad, whose applications for new tubewell connections up to 10 BHP are pending, to give their choice for off-grid solar connections from the Haryana Renewable Energy Development Agency or grid connections from the DISCOMs, reports The Tribune.

The nation saw 1.3 GW of renewable energy secured for business through private PPAs in 2018, almost twice as much as the volume recorded in Australia, but the picture could change next year if China follows through with its renewable portfolio standard commitment.

Solar-wind and wind-only projects will be set up in centralized renewable energy parks along the lines of successful solar installations to keep power evacuation simple, under the terms of the state’s new land policy.

At the Korea-China Free Trade Agreement Joint Committee meeting, the South Korean government urged China to lift import measures against its polyoxymethylene, optical fiber, polysilicon and grain-oriented electrical steel. China imposed duties on polysilicon from South Korea and the United States in July 2013.

Avaada Power and Adani lead the way with each bidding for half the 1 GW of capacity available, after the state distribution company raised the maximum tariff and extended the bid deadline.

The solar industry seeks tailor-made financing options for end consumers, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and micro SMEs (MSMEs), in addition to supportive and stable government policies to ensure speedier progress.

India Ratings and Research has maintained a stable-to-negative outlook on India’s power sector for FY2019-20 owing to issues such as slower resolution of the stressed [coal based thermal] capacity, domestic coal unavailability, and reluctance of DISCOMs to sign long-term power purchase agreements. The outlook is not sunny for solar either.

Sources have told pv magazine the authorities are ready to restart the nation’s residential rooftop segment and have also agreed upon subsidy payments for other distributed generation and utility-scale projects.

Electric car sales in India declined by 40 per cent to a mere 1,200 units in the financial year 2018 over the financial year 2017, while electric two-wheeler sales rose 138 per cent to 54,800 units during the same period—according to research and consultancy group Wood Mackenzie.