The Hindu Business Line : More power to green energy

That power utilities such as NTPC Ltd, the country's largest generation company, and a host of private sector players, including multinationals, are interested in investing in renewable energy only shows that the sector is finally getting the kind of attention it deserves. Till recently, any talk of renewable energy was confined to seminars and discussion papers. No doubt, there have been investments in renewable energy, notably wind, but that has been largely driven by the developers. Also, investments have been based on the subsidies or incentives on offer rather than on the need to have a strong portfolio of renewable energy capacity. Nor did all state electricity boards welcome them; at least one of them made it difficult for wind farms to push the electricity generated into the grid. That probably explains why the renewable energy capacity is just 6 per cent of the country's total installed electricity capacity of 132,000 MW.

This may be about to change with the increasing realisation on the importance of the sector. And about time too, for even the developed nations, which do not face constraints in either accessing fossil fuels or in getting the funds for putting up power plants, have been actively encouraging the renewable energy sector. Regulators in some of these nations even prescribe a renewable energy portfolio standard — directing the power utilities to access a fixed percentage of the electricity they sell to consumers from such sources. Some State regulatory agencies in India have only now started issuing directions to this effect, which is one of the reasons for large companies such as NTPC, Tata Power or Reliance Energy or multinationals such as Roaring 40s or BP Energy India to commit huge sums to green power, particularly wind.

India's potential from various renewable energy sources is estimated at about 85,000 MW, with that of wind power alone accounting for close to 45,000 MW. That the country has tapped less than 8,000 MW is a telling commentary on the state of the sector. China, in comparison, had stated its goals clearly and though being a recent entrant into this sector is all set to overtake India in total installed wind energy capacity. A mindset change is needed at the policy-makers level and, more importantly, at the States utilities level for them to encourage renewable energy so that the use of fossil fuels is contained. When all nations, developed and developing, are worried about global warming and its dire consequences, it is all the more important for policy-makers to actively push green energy. Providing incentives is not the only way to do it; facilitating investments by removing hurdles is more important.

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