Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy Pralhad Joshi has said that India has surpassed Japan to become the third-largest producer of solar energy globally, which is a significant development in the nation’s clean energy development.

India produced 1,08,494 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of solar power, more than Japan, which produced 96,459 GWh, Joshi stated, citing data from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).

The minister has shared the update via a post on the social media platform X. “India has outpaced Japan in solar energy generation producing 1,08,494 GWh compared to Japan’s 96,459 GWh and is now the world’s third-largest solar power producer,” the Minister said. Thanks to the visionary leadership of Hon’ble PM Shri @narendramodi ji, India is leading the way in the global clean energy revolution, he further wrote.

IRENA, a global agency that supports countries in their transition to sustainable energy, provides comprehensive data and policy support for renewable energy development worldwide. The development comes as India pushes forward with its ambitious target of achieving 500 GW of non-fossil fuel electricity capacity by 2030 through a diversified energy strategy.

In addition to its solar success, India is also expanding its wind energy portfolio. Earlier last month, the minister informed the Parliament that the installed wind energy capacity in India had reached 51.67 GW as of 30  June this year.

According to data presented by the minister in a written reply in the Lok Sabha, the country’s wind energy capacity has been steadily growing over the last three fiscal years, from 2,275.55 MW added in 2023–2024 to 3,253.39 MW added in 2024–2025 and 1,637.02 MW of new capacity installed in the April–June quarter of 2025–2026. With 13,816.68 MW of installed capacity, Gujarat leads the top three states in terms of wind power generation capacity. Tamil Nadu comes in second with 11,830.36 MW. With 7,714.74 MW of installed wind power, Karnataka is the third-largest generator in the nation.

-IANS

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The installed renewable energy capacity (including large hydro) in India is projected to reach 250 GW by March 2026, from the level of 201 GW (as of September this year), according to a report on Tuesday. The capacity addition will be driven by the large project pipeline of over 80 GW, following the significant improvement in tendering activity in FY24, according to credit ratings ICRA. Moreover, the tendering activity remained high in the current fiscal, in line with the 50 GW annual bidding trajectory announced by the government in March 2023.

The healthy renewable project pipeline and the favourable solar PV cell and module prices are expected to improve the RE capacity addition to over 26 GW in FY2025 from 19 GW in FY2024. “This will further scale up to 32 GW in FY2026, mainly driven by the solar power segment, and given the impending expiry of the waiver on inter-state transmission system (ISTS) charges in June 2025,” said Girishkumar Kadam, SVP and Co-Group Head-Corporate Ratings, ICRA. Apart from the utility segment, ICRA expects the rooftop solar segment and the Commercial and Industrial (C&I) segments to contribute significantly to the capacity addition. The rise in the RE capacity over the next five years is estimated to enhance the share of RE plus large hydro in the all-India electricity generation from 21 per cent in FY2024 to over 35 per cent in FY2030.

“In this context, the development of adequate energy storage projects remains important to integrate the growing share of RE with the grid, given their intermittent generation,” said Kadam.

Further, the central nodal agencies are increasing their focus on awarding renewable energy projects offering round-the-clock (RTC) and firm and dispatchable supply (FDRE), which can mitigate the intermittency risk associated with RE. The report said this can be made possible through the use of hybrid RE projects complemented with energy storage systems.

–IANS

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Harjeet Singh, Global Engagement Director of the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative, acknowledged scaled-up investments in the renewable energy sector on Tuesday and said that they were contributing to the country’s efforts in combating climate change.

Speaking to IANS on the sidelines of the NDTV World Summit, Singh emphasised on the important conversations held around climate change and the responsibilities of developed countries. “We had some really good conversations, particularly regarding the role of developed countries, which have not yet fulfilled their responsibilities in reducing emissions, moving away from fossil fuels, and providing financing to developing countries,” he said. Singh also shed light on India’s leadership role in addressing these issues. “We discussed India’s leadership in reducing emissions, expanding renewable energy, and simultaneously dealing with the impact of climate change,” he said.

He praised the summit as a valuable platform for discussing critical global issues and showcasing India’s efforts to collaborate with both developing and developed nations to tackle the ongoing crises. Lauding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership in addressing climate change, Singh said, “We heard from the Prime Minister about the positive steps we are taking to address global challenges, especially in regard to climate change. India has demonstrated leadership, whether in the growth of electric vehicles, the use of LEDs, or the increase in energy efficiency. We are significantly boosting our investments in renewable energy, which has greatly contributed to addressing climate change.”

However, Singh acknowledged the remaining challenges and called for more support from developed countries. “We would like to see more finance and technology coming in from developed countries to help us achieve the transition to renewable energy and away from fossil fuels more quickly. While there is much positivity, there are still local challenges, particularly in protecting our environment, and that is where we need to focus our efforts,” he added.

–IANS

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Led by solar and wind energy, India has crossed the 200 gigawatt (GW)-mark in renewable energy (RE) production in the month of September.

As per latest data from the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), the renewable energy-based electricity generation capacity (including small and large hydro, biomass and co-generation and waste-to-energy) crossed the 200 GW-mark in September.

The total renewable energy production reached 201,457.91 MW, driven by solar at 90,762 MW and wind energy production at 47,363 MW. The country’s total non-fossil fuel-based power capacity now stands at 46.3 per cent of the total installed electricity generation capacity.

Top four states are Rajasthan (31.5 GW), Gujarat (28.3 GW), Tamil Nadu (23.7 GW) and Karnataka (22.3 GW), as per the data.

According to the government, the country saw an impressive 86 per cent increase in power generation via renewable energy since 2014, from 193.5 billion units (BU) to 360 BU.

Union Minister of New and Renewable Energy, Pralhad Joshi, said last week that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India has witnessed a transformative increase in its renewable energy capacity since 2014, with a 175 per cent rise from 75 GW to over 200 GW today.

India is also making significant strides in the green shipping sector, and aims to be among the top 10 shipbuilding nations by 2030 and the top five by 2047. India is the only G20 country to have met its climate targets ahead of schedule, despite having the lowest per capita emissions among G20 nations.

As per the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), India had a cumulative installed wind power capacity of 44.7 GW in 2023, ranking fourth globally. The country added 2.8 GW of wind capacity in 2023, marking a significant increase after five years of slower growth.

–IANS

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Cover Image Credits: Bishnu Sarangi from Pixabay

India is gearing up to enhance wind turbine standards as part of its efforts to bolster domestic manufacturing in the renewable energy sector. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy is soon expected to introduce a quality control order (QCO) that will focus on ensuring the quality of various components used in wind turbines, including blades and gears. The move comes as India aims to tackle China’s practice of dumping products in the Indian market, which has contributed to a significant trade deficit between the two countries.

The QCO approach is being increasingly adopted by the Indian government to regulate product quality in various sectors, ranging from textiles to wind power. Under this order, manufacturers, importers, and distributors will be required to possess a license from the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and adhere to the prescribed standards for the products they sell. Additionally, the government is developing the Indian Wind Turbine Certification Scheme (IWTCS), which is expected to be mandated under the QCO. The certification scheme, under development since 2018, aims to establish comprehensive standards that combine global best practices with relevant national standards and regulations set by the Central Electricity Authority.

Implementing a certification system, according to industry experts, will enable the creation of an Indian standard aligned with international certification norms, such as the International Electrotechnical Commission Renewable Energy (IECRE) standard. This move is expected to benefit the domestic wind power industry and facilitate global acceptance of Indian products. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy reports that the wind power equipment manufacturing sector has already achieved a significant level of indigenization, with around 70-80% localization.

While India houses several major global players in the wind energy sector, certain components are still imported from countries like China, Japan, South Korea, and Europe. By establishing stringent standards, India aims to expedite the development of offshore wind energy projects, contribute to its net-zero targets, and strengthen its position as a key player in the renewable energy domain.

(With inputs from Swarajyamag)

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Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari has emphasized on the adoption of alternative fuels which will be import substitute, cost-effective, pollution-free, and indigenous and discouraged the use of petrol or diesel as a fuel.

Addressing ‘Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA)’ Conference on ‘Alternative fuel- Road ahead’ he said that biggest benefit of Bio- ethanol as alternative fuel is that it is a clean fuel with very low greenhouse gas emissions. He said the additional income that is generated is directly diverted to the farmers, which empowers the rural and backward economy.

Minister Gadkari said looking at the ethanol production capacity and its adoptability as a fuel, the government has redesigned and launched the E-20 fuel program which will ensure the use of bio-ethanol in 20% blend with Petrol by 2025 in India. He said government has also calculated that to achieve 20% ethanol blending, the country will require around 10 billion litres of ethanol by 2025. He said currently, the sugar industry contributes to 90% of ethanol demand as a blended fuel in the country.

Minister Gadkari said he keeps on doing research to find ways to increase ethanol production with available resources and one such proposal is to add 15% to 20% sugar into B-Heavy Molasses. He said this will have multiple benefits as it will utilise an excess stock of around 45 to 60 Lakh Metric Tonnes of Sugar and will improve the ethanol recovery by 30% due to better quality of raw material.

On similar lines, the Minister said production of C-Heavy Molasses from sugar can be discouraged which will standardise the production of B-Heavy Molasses and will permanently lead to lesser production of sugar by 1.5% per Metric Tonne of Sugarcane.

Nitin Gadkari said all of these steps will  increase the production of ethanol and can lead to a scenario where excess availability of ethanol in one state can be transported to ethanol-deficient states such as the North-East and Jammu-Kashmir and Ladakh. He said Bio-ethanol can also be a sustainable fuel for aviation purpose. as it can provide 80% savings on greenhouse gas emissions and can be blended up to 50% with conventional jet fuels without any modification. He said It is already been tested and approved by the Indian air force. He said with the rollout of flex-fuel vehicles on 100% bio-ethanol, the demand for ethanol will immediately jump by 4 to 5 times.

(Published from PIB)

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NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd , a 100% subsidiary of NTPC, has received the go-ahead from Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) to set up 4750 MW renewable energy park at Rann of Kutch in Khavada, Gujarat. This will be India’s largest solar park to be built by the largest power producer of the country.

NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd (NTPC REL), has been given the go-ahead by MNRE on 12th July 2021 under Mode 8 (Ultra Mega Renewable Energy Power Park) of Solar Park Scheme. NTPC REL has plans to generate green hydrogen on a commercial scale from this park.

As a part of its green energy portfolio augmentation, NTPC Ltd, India’s largest energy integrated company aims to build 60 GW Renewable Energy Capacity by 2032. Currently, the state owned power major has an installed capacity of 66 GW across 70 power projects with an additional 18 GW under construction.

Recently, NTPC has also commissioned India’s largest Floating Solar of 10 MW (ac) on the reservoir of Simhadri Thermal Power Plant, Andhra Pradesh. An additional 15 MW (ac) would be commissioned by August 2021.

Further, a 100 MW Floating Solar Project on the reservoir of Ramagundam Thermal Power Plant, Telangana is in the advanced stage of implementation.

Additionally, NTPC RE Ltd. has recently signed an MoU with UT, Ladakh and Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC) for the generation of green hydrogen and deployment on FCEV buses. The signing of the MoU was also marked with the inauguration of NTPC’s first solar installations in Leh in form of solar trees and a solar car port.

NTPC REL, the subsidiary was incorporated on 07.10.2020 to accelerate the RE business of NTPC.

(Published from PIB)

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The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was apprised of the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and France in the field of renewable energy cooperation.

The Cabinet approval was given ex-post facto, as the MoU was signed in January 2021.

The objective of the MoU is to establish the basis for promotion of bilateral cooperation in the field of new and renewable energy on the basis of mutual benefit, equality and reciprocity.  It covers technologies relating to solar, wind, hydrogen and biomass energy.

The MoU entails:

· exchange and training of scientific and technical personnel;

· exchange of scientific and technological information and data;

· organization of workshops and seminars; transfer of equipment, know-how and technology;

· development of joint research and technological projects.

This MoU will help in the development of technological know-how in the field of Renewable Energy and thereby aid the process of attaining the ambitious target of 450 GW of installed Renewable Energy capacity by 2030.

India’s renewable energy portfolio has been evolving. According to reports, wind and solar together account for about 80% of the power generated through renewable sources. The share of wind energy has reduced to 44% from 52% in 2017-18, while that of solar has increased from 25% to 39%. Among top 15 producers of power, India ranks 11th in share of production from renewables.

(Published from PIB)

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Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated the 3rd Global Renewable Energy Investment Meeting and Expo (RE-Invest 2020) through video conferencing. The summit organised by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy was themed ‘Innovations for Sustainable Energy Transition’.

The Prime Minister expressed happiness that within a short time much progress has been achieved from from megawatts to gigawatts in generation capacity in the renewable energy sector. He said that “One Sun, One World, One Grid” are becoming a reality, all of which were discussed in the earlier editions. He added in the last 6 years, India is travelling on an unparalleled journey. He pointed out that India’s generation capacity and network is being expanded to ensure every citizen of India has access to electricity. He said that India’s renewable power capacity today is the 4th largest in the world and is growing at the fastest speed among all major countries. The renewable energy capacity in India is currently 136 Giga Watts, which is about 36% of our total capacity.

The Prime Minister expressed happiness that India’s annual renewable energy capacity addition has been exceeding that of coal based thermal power since 2017. He highlighted that in the last 6 years, India has increased installed renewable energy capacity by two and half times. He said investing in renewable  energy early on even when it was not affordable has helped in achieving the scale, which is bringing costs down. He said we are showing to the world that sound environmental policies can also be sound economics. He said we have ensured energy efficiency is not limited to one ministry or department, instead it has been made a target for the entire government. All our policies have a consideration of achieving energy efficiency.

The Prime Minister said after the success of Performance Linked Incentives (PLI) in electronics manufacturing, we have decided to give similar incentives to high efficiency solar modules. He stressed that ensuring “Ease of doing business” is our utmost priority and dedicated Project Development Cells have been established to facilitate investors. He announced that there are huge renewable energy deployment plans for the next decade and are likely to generate business prospects of the order of around $ 20 billion per year. He invited investors, developers and businesses to join India’s renewable energy journey.

(Published from PIB)

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A team of researchers from University of Cambridge have developed a wireless technology that converts sunlight, carbon dioxide and water into a carbon-neutral fuel and requires no electricity.

It is based on an advanced ‘photosheet’ technology that converts sunlight, carbon dioxide and water into oxygen and formic acid which is a storable fuel form. It can be either used directly or can be converted into Hydrogen.

This was published in the ‘Nature Energy’ journal and outlines a novel methodology for the conversion of carbon dioxide into fuel. It aims to achieve artificial photosynthesis by mimicking the ability of plants to convert sunlight into energy. The technology solely relies on photo-catalysts (carbon-dioxide converting cobalt-based catalyst) embedded on a sheet. The sheets are made up of semiconductor powders which can be scaled up to several square metres and can be employed like that of solar cells.

It is a cleaner source compared to others as it shows a higher degree of selectivity and a lesser number of by-products and shows a promise for a clean renewable energy resource with maximum efficiency.

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