India Still Capable of Reaching 2015 Renewable Energy Goal
getsolar.com
Bright news came out of the Indian solar market yesterday as thecounty’s top energy officials announced that India is capableof reaching its 2015 renewable energy goal. The goal, set by India’sNational Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC), calls for meeting 10percent of the nation’s energy needs with renewables.
India has a total generating capacity of over 1.5 million megawatts(MW), according to Pramod Deo, Chairman of the Central ElectricityRegulatory Commission (CERD). Right now, renewable energy accounts forover ten percent of that capacity — about 17,000 MW — but onlycontributes four percent to the nation’s total powergeneration. Renewable energy supply in India could reach nearly 48,000MW, with right around 4,000 MW coming from solar alone, according to astudy done by the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC).
The government is also offering a generation-based incentive in order for India’s solar market to meet a 2022 target of 20 gigawatts (GW). R. Chirstodas Gandhi, chairmanand managing director of the Tamil Nadu Energy Development Agency(TNEDA), has another idea of how India can meet this goal. He says thecountry should look into small, individual renewable energy projects tomeet energy requirements in remote locations around the country.
Whichever way India chooses to go, its decisions have proved to bepaying off so far. The country is one of nine that are set to surpass 250 MW in solar photovoltaic (PV) demand in 2010.
India’s 2015 Renewable Energy Goal Within Reach
