IPCL sees 80% of power supplies to come from renewables

Integrated power utility company India Power Corporation Ltd (IPCL) expects close to 80 per cent of its power to come from renewable energy (RE) by 2023. Nearly 50 per cent of its connected load of around 200 MW currently comes from RE.

Connected load is the energy consumed when all connected systems, circuits, components, devices or equipment are operating and drawing power simultaneously.

According to Somesh Dasgupta, Wholetime Director of IPCL, switching over to renewable energy would help bring down utility cost, which can then be passed on to consumers.

Pact with SECI

The company has entered into a long-term agreement with Solar Energy Corporation of India Ltd (SECI) for a 100 MW RTC (Round the Clock) solar-wind hybrid RE power. This would increase renewable energy with round-the-clock availability of power for consumers and make tariffs further competitive.

“The agreement with SECI has been approved by the regulator and we were supposed to start getting the power from August 2021. However, there have been some delays but we are hopeful of getting the power by December 2021. We have also signed another 100 MW agreement for RTC RE power and that is likely to be implemented by 2023,” Dasgupta told BusinessLine .

The company plans to invest in its own RTC project of around 50 MW capacity on a partnership model. A 50 MW RTC RE plant might entail an investment of about ₹500 crore.

“On the generating front we are looking at generating RTC RE power preferably through a partnership model. So instead of investing in thermal plant we would like to invest in RE,” he said.

Kolkata-headquartered IPCL has a distribution license spread across 618 sq km in the Asansol–Ranigunj area of West Bengal. It supplies to government utilities, mines, commercial and domestic consumers in the region.

The company, with an average billing rate of around ₹5.50 per unit, is looking to further bring down the tariff. This can only be possible if it can reduce its cost by using renewable power more efficiently.

Huge potential

It is to be noted that India is committed to installing 175 GW of renewable energy (RE) sources by 2022 and 450 GW by 2030. To promote RE power and provide round-the-clock power to the discoms from renewable energy sources, the Ministry of Power has issued RTC power guidelines in July last year. The amendments made in the said guidelines were notified in the Gazette of India in November last year.

According to Dasgupta, renewable energy has vast potential, but unless discoms appreciate it, it would not be implemented. A comprehensive procurement plan and future demand forecasting are vital to bring down costs.

“If you want to reduce tariff for consumers then the thrust has to be on discoms. As long as distribution sector is not reformed then whatever happens in the generating sector is a waste,” he said.

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