RENEWABLE ENERGY

India’s renewable energy potential has been assessed (in the medium-term) at 8, 96,602 MW, which includes the potential from solar (7,48,990 MW), wind (1, 00,000 MW), small hydro (20,000 MW) and biomass (26,800 MW) power.

Apart from grid power requirement, renewable energy sources are also being used for distributed generation, lighting, pumping and motive power requirement in remote and inaccessible areas. India is graduating from Mega watts to Gig watts in the generation of clean renewable energy. The target from various renewable energy sources has been increased by the GoI to 175 GW by the year 2022 – solar and wind to contribute 100 GW and 60 GW, respectively. The major steps taken by the government to boost the sector in recent times are as given below (by early 2017):

(i) Solar Rooftop: Grid-connected rooftops systems to come up by 2019-20 under the National Solar Mission (NSM).

(ii) Solar Parks: 25 solar parks and ultra mega solar power projects with an aggregate capacity of 20,000 MW to be set up in the next five years (from 2015-16 to 2019-20).

(iii) Solar Projects under the NSM: In February 2015, the government announced to set up 15,000 MW of grid-connected solar PV power projects under the NSM by 2018-19.

(iv) Solar Pumps: Target of installing of one lakh solar pumps for irrigation and drinking water by 2016.

(v) Solar Cities: Approval granted for 56 solar city projects under the Development of Solar Cities Programme.

• The Surya Mitra: This scheme was launched in May 2015 for creating 50,000 trained personnel within a period of five years (2015-16 to 2019-20).

In addition to the above, major policy initiatives taken by the government up to March 2016 include:

(i) National Offshore Wind Energy Policy 2015 to exploit the vast 7600 km coastline for development of offshore wind energy in the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ),

(ii) Inclusion of renewable energy in the priority sector and bank loans up to Rs. 15 crore limit to borrowers categories for purposes like solar-based power generators, biomass- based power generators, windmills, micro- hydel plants and for nonconventional energy-based public utilities like street lighting systems, and remote village electrification. For individual households this is up to Rs. 10 lakh per borrower.

(iii) Investments in renewable energy are on automatic route, i.e. automatic approval for up to 74 per cent foreign equity participation in a JV and

100 per cent foreign investment as equity is permissible with the approval of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB).

(iv) Approval to the amendments in the National Tariff Policy 2005, for promotion of renewable power.