A monthly newsletter featuring CSTEP commentary, publications, events, and other developments.

The United Nations High-Level Dialogue on Energy estimates that an annual investment of USD 35 billion will be required to make clean and affordable universal energy access (SDG 7) by 2030 a reality. For this, the financial solvency of utilities is a prerequisite.

The power sector is in the throes of a transition. This change is being driven mainly by renewable energy integration, energy storage technologies to support the renewables, and smart meters. By tracking electricity usage round the clock, smart metering facilitates dynamic pricing (raising or lowering the cost of electricity based on need), helping distribution companies (DISCOMs) cut down on commercial losses.

The Sixth Assessment Report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) projects intense heatwaves in India, with longer durations and at an increasing frequency. This doesn’t bode well for the country which has a predominantly tropical climate and cooling is constantly required to maintain comfortable indoor spaces.

In his address to the nation on the occasion of the India’s 75th Independence Day, the Prime Minister mentioned that we have crossed the milestone of 100 GW of installed renewable energy (RE) capacity. Out of 100 GW RE, 40 GW is accounted for by wind power, 44 GW by solar, and the rest by small hydro, waste-to-energy, and biomass projects. The government had initially set an ambitious target of 175 GW of RE by 2022, which was later increased to 450 GW by 2030.

In order to improve the plant performance there could be multiple focus areas, right at the plant design stage to integration stage to achieve optimized plant performance. It is important for developers, EPC Contractors, O&M service providers to consider various options/ strategies to increase their plant yield at a minimal cost. Knowledge about the performance of solar power plants results in correct investment decisions and better regulatory framework, technical enhancement of solar photovoltaic technology.

The imperative to adopt low-carbon energy is driving revolutionary changes in the power sector value chain across the globe. Renewable generation sources are proliferating, unidirectional distribution networks are slowly evolving into bidirectional networks, consumers are changing into prosumers, and dynamic energy markets are emerging.

India is still in the nascent stages of this revolution. Nevertheless, the journey towards a green energy future has begun. Artificial intelligence (AI) and the data that feed it are vital tools in this journey.

In yet another attempt to rescue the power distribution sector, the central government launched a new “reforms-based result-linked” scheme in this year’s Union Budget.