India records world-beating green energy growth

• India's transformation into a cleantech powerhouse moved up a gear in 2011 when it racked up investments of $10.3bn in the sector, a growth rate of 52 per cent year on year that dwarfed the rest of the world's significant economies. 
• Solar investments led the growth with a seven-fold increase in funding, from $0.6bn in 2010 to $4.2bn in 2011, just below the $4.6bn invested in wind during the year, according to figures released yesterday by analysts Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF). 
• A record 2,827MW of wind energy capacity was added in 2011, which kept India third behind China and the US in terms of new installations. BNEF said a further 2,500MW to 3,200MW could be added in 2012. 
• Grid-connected solar also saw a substantial increase, up from 18MW in 2010 to an estimated 277MW by the end of 2011, while another 500MW to 750MW of solar projects could be added in the coming year. 
• BNEF expects India to exceed the target of adding 12.4GW of grid-connected renewable energy during its 11th five-year plan, running from April 2007 to March 2012, and is likely to bring 14.2GW of capacity online. 

Gravity Power House, energy from gravity and sea waves

• An Indian innovator has come up with a technology that tweaks gravity power to harness sea waves for clean and affordable energy, a source more readily available than wind or solar power and, unlike fossil fuels, inexhaustible.
• The non-polluting technology, aptly named 'Gravity Power House' (GPH), is an offshoot of Gravity Power Tower, (GPT) both conceptualised, designed and developed by B. Rajaram, alumnus of the Indian Institute of Technology-Kharagpur, which have also been granted US patents in May 2010 and October 2011. 
• The technology is based on a simple concept, the conversion of kinetic energy, which an object or medium possesses owing to its motion, into potential deliverable energy to drive wheels on road and rails. Some of the most visible examples of gravity power are water-driven turbines to produce electricity and huge slings that hurled 150-kg projectiles 300 metres away to breach enemy defences, in ages gone by. 
• The World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), Geneva, a United Nations agency, also approved and published the patent specifications for GPT. WIPO has been set up to encourage creativity and innovation and to protect intellectual property rights, globally.

• The basic unit of the GPH is a dome-shaped sub-module, with a built-in water turbine. Driven by the cyclic motion of sea waves in the shallow region, the turbine's twin cast iron masses capture their kinetic energy and work to transmit them continuously to drive the generator, to produce electricity. Each dome, anchored to the sea and housed in a steel and plastic structure, has a two-by-two metre base and a height of 12 metres, said Rajaram.
• Five such domes, estimated to cost Rs.10 lakh each, make up a single floating module which delivers a minimum of 100 kw during commercial production. Dozens of modules, anchored at a depth of three metres in a straight line, within 50 to 100 metres of the shore, will make up a gravity power house. Every 100-metre section can deliver between one and five megawatts of power. If required, the GPH can be towed away to another location. 
• These floating modules will have gaps between them to permit free movement of the fishing boats and sea water. Using even a sixth of India's 6,000 km shoreline, GPHs could potentially generate 100 gigawatts of power at a cost of Re.1.60 per unit. A typical 200 MW plant will cost about Rs.1,000 crore. The moment the module is floated, it starts generating power. 
• The prototype for the first commercial unit is expected to cost Rs.50 lakh, which covers the development, testing and standardisation stages for production, which might take between three and six months. Bids have been invited for the proposal, which will close by Jan 31.

In Solar Power, India Begins Living Up to Its Own Ambitions

• Solar power is a clean energy source. But in this arid part of northwest India it can also be a dusty one.
• Every five days or so, in a marriage of low and high tech, field hands with long-handled dust mops wipe down each of the 36,000 solar panels at a 63-acre installation operated by Azure Power. The site is one of the biggest examples of India's ambitious plan to use solar energy to help modernize its notoriously underpowered national electricity grid, and reduce its dependence on coal-fired power plants.
• Azure Power has a contract to provide solar-generated electricity to a state-government electric utility. Inderpreet Wadhwa, Azure's chief executive, predicted that within a few years solar power would be competitive in price with India's conventionally generated electricity.
• Two years ago, Indian policy makers said that by the year 2020 they would drastically increase the nation's use of solar power from virtually nothing to 20,000 megawatts — enough electricity to power the equivalent of up to 15 million modern American homes during daylight hours when the panels are at their most productive. Many analysts said it could not be done. But, now the doubters are taking back their words.
• Dozens of developers like Azure, because of aggressive government subsidies and a large drop in the global price of solar panels, are covering India's northwestern plains — including this village of 2,000 people — with gleaming solar panels. So far, India uses only about 140 megawatts, including 10 megawatts used by the Azure installation, which can provide enough power to serve a town of 50,000 people, according to the company. But analysts say that the national 20,000 megawatt goal is achievable and that India could reach those numbers even a few years before 2020.
• Developers of solar farms in India, however, have shown a preference for the more advanced, so-called thin-film solar cells offered by suppliers in the United States, Taiwan and Europe. The leading American provider to India is First Solar, based in Tempe, Ariz.
• India does not have a large solar manufacturing industry, but is trying to develop one and China is showing a new interest in India's growing demand. China's Suntech Power sold the panels used at the Azure installation, which opened in June.
• India still significantly lags behind European countries in the use of solar. Germany, for example, had 17,000 megawatts of solar power capacity at the end of 2010. But India, which gets more than 300 days of sunlight a year, is a more suitable place to generate solar power. And being behind is now benefiting India, as panel prices plummet, enabling it to spend far less to set up solar farms than countries that pioneered the technology.
  

Koodunkulam to add 2000 MWe to grid

• After more than a decade of delays, the Koodunkulam Atomic Power Project will attain criticality in the next quarter.
• Power Secretary P. Uma Shankar said 1000 MWe would be added in the next quarter and another 1000 MWe in the last quarter of this year.

India to set up an autonomous nuclear regulatory authority

• The government will introduce a bill in the nest session of parliament to create an independent and autonomous Nuclear Regulatory Authority of India that will subsume the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB)
• This was decided at a meeting convened by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the current status of the 9,000 MW Jaitapur nuclear project and the impact of Japan's Fukushima atomic tragedy on India's nuclear programme.
• The meeting also decided to use best available expertise to ensure the highest levels of safety.
• The government will invite the Operational Safety Review Team (OSART) of the International Atomic Energy Authority (IAEA) to assist its own safety reviews and audit. Each of the six reactors in Jaitapur will have their own individual stand alone safety and operation systems
• The government has also decided that the initial results of the six safety review committees set up by the prime minister after the Fukushima accident in Japan will be made public and action taken on previous safety reviews will be put in the public domain.
  

Rajasthan solar experiments: bird sanctuary, dargah go green

• As part of its plans to tap the solar energy option that is abundant in the state, solar plants have already been set up at the Ajmer dargah and measures are afoot to do the same at the Keoladeo National Park in Bharatpur. Also on the list is the tourist hotspot Chittorgarh fort, one of the largest forts in Rajasthan.
• Officials said that at the dargah in Ajmer a 20 KW plant has been installed to function at least for six hours when the sun is out in full force. The plant has been set up under a Central government demonstration project.
• While providing power for lighting purposes inside the dargah, the plant also enables solar water heaters to function to provide hot water to devotees.
• "We have installed solar water heaters of 500 litres and 1500 litres capacity to heat the water used by devotees to perform their pre-namaz ablutions. Earlier wood and electric heaters were used for the purpose," said R R Chowdhry, an official of the Rajasthan Renewable Energy Corporation Limited, the state's nodal agency for promoting and developing non-conventional energy.
• At the Keoladeo National Park at Bharatpur, a World Heritage Site, the authority is setting up plants to equip pumps and tubewells to function with solar energy. "The ponds at the park need to be kept filled with water for birds to remain there. The tubewells and pumps used to pull water to the ponds are being turned solar," he said.
• Besides, an 8 KW plant has also been installed to make the office and the museum at the sanctuary solar sufficient. This includes the computers at the sanctuary's office and the water heaters, that will now draw energy from the sun.
• The Rs 1 crore Bharatpur project is expected to be implemented by October this year. A portion of the power needed at the sanctuary will come from renewable source, though conventional sources will continue to be used.
• The bird sanctuary hosts thousands of rare species of birds including the Siberian Crane, and over 230 birds have made the park their home.
• At Chittorgarh, a major tourist destination of the state, an 8 KW plant will supply power to some sections of the fort.
• Solar energy will be used to generate power to illuminate the two main towers of the fort -- the Vijay Stambh and the Kirti Stambh.
• Rajasthan government has drawn up a solar energy policy to promote the use of the energy from the sun as an alternate source of power. The policy was cleared by the cabinet earlier this month.

Massive uranium deposits found in Andhra Pradesh

Huge deposits of natural uranium, which promise to be one of the top 20 of the world's reserves, have been found in the Tummalapalle belt in the southern part of the Kadapa basin in Andhra Pradesh.

The continuity and tonnage of the Tummalapalle deposits is very high although the grade is medium.

The AMD earlier found uranium deposits in Nalgonda district and it was confident that it could locate reserves in the adjoining Guntur district, where its men were working now.

About 4,000 tonnes of U3O8 deposits were discovered in the Bhima basin at Gogi in Karnataka. Gradewise, the Gogi ore was richer than the Tummalapalle ore but it did not continue over a long distance.

Fracture-controlled mineralisation of uranium has been found at Rohil in Sikar district in Rajasthan and the grade of the ore is similar to that of the Gogi ore. The Rohil belt is 130 km long and there is continuity of occurrence of uranium ore. The Rohil belt may yield between 5,000 tonnes and 10,000 tonnes of uranium

In Meghalaya, about 10,000 tonnes (at Domiasiat) and 8,000 tonnes (Wakhyn) of deposits were discovered several years ago. But the UCIL was unable to mine them because of socio-economic problems, said S.K.
India has 19 operating Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs) that use natural uranium as fuel. It is building more PHWRs of 700 MWe capacity each.

Scope for generating 68,000 MW of green power: World Bank report

• The World Bank has stated in its latest report that India can generate 68,000 MW of power, costing less than Rs.6 a unit from renewable energy sources, a step that can address the country's energy security concerns.
• The report released here by the multilateral funding agency on Friday said the 68,000 MW of wind, hydro and biomass energy can be harnessed at less than Rs.6 a unit. "Developing indigenous renewable energy sources, which have low marginal costs of generation, are more economically viable in the long run,'' the study — Potential of renewable energy in India — has stated.
• India's electricity demand is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 7.4 per cent in the next 25 years. The generation capacity will have to increase five-fold to keep pace with the growth of demand.
• At present, the installed capacity of the country stands at about 1.70 lakh MW from all sources of energy, as per official data.
• The report also suggested that renewable energy development can be an important tool for regional economic development within the country. Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand have 65 per cent of India's small hydro power resources. Much of the economically attractive wind potential in Orissa or the biomass potential in Madhya Pradesh lies largely undeveloped, the report adds.
• The report emphasises that coal, gas and oil have witnessed considerable price volatility in recent years, renewables are the only free hedging mechanism against price volatility of fossil fuels. The risk-adjusted cost of renewable energy is lower than that of fossil-based fuels, and their use enhances the price certainty of the portfolio and increases energy security, the report says.
• The entire renewable potential, including solar, is less expensive than diesel, where the existing 20,000 MW of diesel based installed capacity points to innovative possibilities of scaling up renewable in a big way, according to N. Roberto Zagha, World Bank Country Director in India.
• The government has set an ambitious target of installing at least 44,000 MW of additional capacity of renewables in the next 10 years.

PM approves formation of GoM to sort out environment issues affecting coal production

• PM has approved formation of a ministerial panel, headed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, to sort out environmental issues affecting coal production.
• This comes in the backdrop of an ever widening demand-supply gap in coal production which is likely to touch 142 million tonnes next fiscal and classification of 203 coal blocks by the Environment Ministry as "no-go" zones.
• The panel has been asked to finalise its recommendations within two months.
• It will finalise the recommendations which will include issues like efficacy and legality of forest clearance norms, damage to environment due to projects and afforestation steps. It will also suggest whether changes are required in the existing laws and provisions.
• Concerned over coal shortages faced by various sectors including Power, the Prime Minister has already asked the Ministry of Environment and Forests to revisit the policy of no-go and go areas.

India’s 20th nuclear reactor connected to power grid

• The fourth unit of 220 MW Kaiga Generating Station (KGS-4) located in Uttar Kanada district of Karnataka was connected to the southern power grid after the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) granted clearance to it.
• With the synchronisation of KGS-4 with the grid, India's nuclear power capacity has gone up to 4780 MW, with 20 reactors in operation. The installed capacity of Kaiga station is now 880 MW, making it the third largest after Tarapur (1400 MW) and Rawatbhata (1180 MW), he said.
• The unit, fuelled by indigenous uranium, will supply electricity to Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.
• NPCIL has also achieved new landmarks of generating over 4000 MW and over 95 Million Units of power a day. This is a 100 per cent increase over what was being generated same time last year, Mr. Kakde said.

NTPC eyes Maldives for solar power projects

• NTPC is conducting a feasibility study in Maldives to explore the potential of the island nation for setting up solar power projects. The final report is expected in the next 3-4 months.
• NTPC was also going to set up 105 MW new solar power plants at Anta, Dadri, Ramagundam, Sipat and Korba in the next 2-3 year
• NTPC generates over 31,000 MW of power from all sources of energy. The company plans to ramp up this capacity to 75,000 MW by 2017.
• NTPC has also formulated a capacity addition of about 1,000 MW through renewable resources by 2017. Simultaneously, it will also have a capacity addition of 301 MW through Solar PV (photo-voltaic) and thermal by March 2014.

UAE pushes on with plan for first nuclear reactors

The UAE's state nuclear company is moving ahead with plans to build its first nuclear power plant, saying it has filed a construction license application covering the project's first two reactors.

The Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation (ENEC) announced the filing of the roughly 9,000-page regulatory application on December 27, a year after it awarded a South Korean consortium led by Korea Electric Power Corporation the $20 billion contract for the project.

The application to the UAE's Federal Authority for Nuclear Regulation is based largely on previous work done for reactors in South Korea that will serve as a reference for the Emirati plants.

ENEC plans to build the Gulf Arab state's first reactors at Braka, a sparsely populated site on the Persian Gulf coast near the border with Saudi Arabia. It aims to have the first reactor running in 2017.

Jaitapur project promoters can't buy off villagers: study

It will be a mistake to construe the people's struggle against the proposed Jaitapur Nuclear Power Project as an agitation for higher compensation, says a social impact assessment report prepared by the Tata Institute of Social Sciences.

A majority strongly believe that the project will harm their environment and lives. The people are insecure about the location of nuclear plants in seismic areas, fearing they may lead to a major catastrophe, the report says.

In the first assessment of its kind of the project, the report says higher compensation and better packages will not pacify villagers. A large part of the land planned to be acquired at Madban in Maharashtra's Ratnagiri district is being used for farming and grazing. With government support, horticulturists have spent lakhs on making the land cultivable.

Lack of transparency

Another matter of concern is the lack of transparency on the part of the government and the company that is going to execute the project. The issues are much more complex and the people's concerns raise some fundamental questions about the so-called 'development,' the report notes.


Among the key issues that are not addressed includes the fact that the region falls in seismic zone three — a fact acknowledged even by the government.

According to an activist of the region, the report of the Vengurlekar Committee, submitted in 1972, sets forth the criteria for establishing nuclear reactors in seismic regions. Reactors can be set up only in seismic zones one and two.

The likely impact of the project on health is one of the prime concerns of the villagers. People are aware of Hiroshima, Chernobyl, Pokhran and Jadugoda, where radiation is believed to have harmed the people's health and the environment.

There are fears of damage to the environment, too. The area lies in the Konkan belt that boasts a long seashore, creeks and dense deciduous forests, with more than 150 species of birds and 300 species of plants. Some rare species of birds and plants are on the verge of extinction. There are concerns at the cumulative impact of the more than 12 power plants proposed on the coastline. The region borders the tourism district of Sindhudurg; Ratnagiri has been declared a 'horticultural district' by the State government.

The people are also afraid that the project will have a negative impact on fishing: heated water disgorged by the plant will impact the catch, forcing fishermen to migrate.

The experience from the other mega projects around the area in the past is an important factor that has led to protests against the Jaitapur project. The people expect the government to explore renewable and alternative sources of power such as tidal and wind energy, the report says.

But a small minority supports the project, but it too is not convinced that the health and livelihood of those living in the area would not be harmed. It believes that a mega project will have the potential to spark development in an underdeveloped Jaitapur.

Nice Article on energy security of India

Apart from giving more autonomy to the public sector oil companies and creating a Sovereign Energy Fund, India needs to strategically engage energy-rich countries in 'energy diplomacy' for ensuring continuous availability of commercial energy at competitive prices to support massive economic growth.

Though India has achieved some success on this front, however, it urgently requires a value-added strategic and competitive road map towards acquisition of overseas energy assets, according to a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) study on "Energy assets acquisition: a comparative analysis of India and China policy," released here.

In an interesting comparison of the rising profile of China and India's lagging behind, the CII report states that Chinese companies spent a record $32 billion in 2009-10 for acquiring energy assets overseas versus India's single $2.1 billion investment by ONGC Videsh Limited (OVL) in the same period.

While India produced 8.8 million tonnes of oil and gas from its overseas assets in comparison to China's production of 800 million barrels of oil and gas from its overseas assets.

India is also facing an uneven contest to close the gap with China, which is dipping into $2.5 trillion of foreign currency reserves to buy stakes in oil and natural gas fields compared with India's $250 billion.

The CII report feels that the Central Government, in order to enhance the success rate of Indian companies for overseas energy acquisition, should grant greater autonomy to Indian public sector undertakings (PSUs) along with creation of a core team and a well defined strategy for timely decision and fund allocation to acquire energy assets overseas; creation of sovereign energy fund for financial support to Indian companies; domestic joint venture for overseas investments to create financial leverages required to successfully bid for overseas investments; promotion of private companies to enhance energy acquisition to expand India's competitiveness in international arena; capacity building in resource rich countries by creation of a sound oil and gas infrastructure and energy diplomacy through deepening political exchanges as well as economic and commercial linkages with energy surplus countries.

Drinking water supply system using renewable energy sources

•  The Minister for Rural Development Ms. Agatha Sangma today informed the Rajya Sabha that Secure supply of electricity is one of the essential components in ensuring supply of adequate potable drinking water.
  
• A number of public and private sector companies have developed and deployed Solar Photo-Voltaic (SPV) water pumping systems in the country.
  
• 7495 SPV water pumping systems have been installed upto 30.09.2010 in different States in the country.
  
• The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy is providing 30% subsidy subject to a maximum of Re.90/Wp and loan at 5% for installation of SPV water pumping system having a maximum PV capacity of 5KWP to individual and for community drinking water supply under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission.
• Solar desalination systems have been developed by a number of manufacturers in the country. The systems are being used for providing drinking water and distilled water for batteries. This system is one of the components being provided to the consumers with a financial assistance of 30% subsidy under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission. 
• No financial allocation has been made for 11th Plan for PV pumping systems. No separate targets are fixed or allocation made for deployment of the above mentioned SPV water pumping systems and Solar Desalination Systems.

Coal Resources in the Country

As per the latest National Inventory on Indian Coal Resources by GSI, as on 1.4.2010, the total coal resources assessed are about 276.81041 billion tones of which about 110 billion tones or 40% are proved reserves. The extractable reserves are estimated to be around 55 billion tones. At the current level of production of about 550 million tones per annum, the extractable reserves of coal in the country would last for about 100 years. However, the extractable reserves will increase as more coal reserves come into proved category.

Besides this coal is also imported, the import of coal in 2009-10 increased from 59.003 mts. In 2008-09 to 73.255 mts. i.e. an increase of 14.252 mts. The extent of increase in import of coal during 2008-09 over the previous year was 9.209 mts.

To encourage production of coal, captive mining is now permissible by private companies engaged in the generation of power, production of iron and steel, production of cement, coal gasification and coal liquefaction and other end uses, to be notified by the Government from time to time. In this regard 208 coal blocks with 48.82 billion tones reserves have been allocated so far to the government companies and approved captive end users for captive mining. As far as foreign direct investment (FDI) in coal sector is concerned, 100% FDI under the automatic route is allowed by the Government. Besides, the Coal Mines (Nationalization) Amendment Bill 2000 was introduced in Rajya Sabha in April, 2000, which seeks to permit private participation in coal mining, without the existing restriction of captive use, in order to augment coal production in the country.

Jaitapur nuclear power project gets green nod

• The 9,900-mw Jaitapur nuclear power project on Sunday received clearance from the Environment Ministry, which prescribed 35 conditions and safeguards.
• Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said he considered various issues like economic growth, diversification of fuel mix for power generation and environment protection before giving nod to the proposed project on Konkan coast, which had faced opposition from locals and green groups.
• Will be jointly developed by state-owned Nuclear Power Corporation (NPC) and French giant Areva.
• An agreement between Areva and the NPC is expected to be signed during French President Nicholas Sarkozy's India visit next month.
• The project would help energy deficient States like Maharashtra, which face compulsory power cuts and the NPC expects the first unit of the project to be commissioned by 2017-18.
• The project had been opposed by groups like the Konkan Bachao Samiti which expressed concern about the radiological safety of the nuclear plant and its impact on the environment.
• They also pointed "faults" in the environmental impact assessment report prepared by the National Environment Engineering Research Institute (NEERI) alleging that it is based on generic and incomplete inputs on radioactive threats.

Kaiga atomic plant becomes operational

• India's 20th nuclear power plant today became operational here taking the total installed atomic power capacity in the country to 4780 MW.
• The indigenously-developed 220 MW capacity Unit 4 of the Kaiga Atomic Power Station attained criticality at 8.07.22 a.m. making India the sixth country in the world to have 20 or more nuclear power plants in operation.
• The Kaiga-4 was built a few years ago but was unable to start power production for want of fuel.
• India's exemption from the Nuclear Suppliers' Group guidelines in 2008 that facilitated its return to global nuclear trade made the access to fuel possible.
• Presently, India produces 568 billion units of electricity and of that 23 per cent is from hydro—power, 64 per cent from thermal power, 10 per cent by non-conventional methods and only three per cent by the nuclear power.