BENGALURU: The 2024-25 state budget left some unaccomplished targets in the energy sector. One of the announcements pertaining to the sector listed in the 2024-25 state budget presented by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah — to increase the number of electric vehicle charging stations in the state — did not see the expected results.
Even as Karnataka, more so Bengaluru, tops the list of public EV-charging stations in India, as per the Vahan portal, the target to increase the numbers and set them up on highways, in public utility spaces and other strategic locations, has not been attained.
Officials in the energy department admitted to the lull and said they were taking a relook at their project operations. “Since private agencies are involved and land availability is a concern, we are repackaging the proposal,” an official said.
However, the green hydrogen project — battery storage and power generation — is yet to begin. While discussions were held at the recent Global Investors Meet ‘Invest Karnataka’, it saw no breakthrough. The officials reasoned that since it is a new and expensive venture, it is taking time.
The government, however, made headway in implementing its solar energy programmes. Energy Minister KJ George and energy department officials said solarising irrigation pump-sets under Kusum B and C scheme was showing some progress.
The subsidies offered by the Central and state governments helped draw farmers. However, since the monsoon rain was good, there was no rise in registrations for new installations.
However, the target set in the 2024-25 state budget of covering 4.30 lakh IP sets was not attained. During the last leg of the financial year, the department called for tenders for setting up floating and ground-mounted solar plants, a programme undertaken by Karnataka Power Corporation Limited in collaboration with Tehri Hydro Development Corporation India Limited. Land for setting up 100 MW plants in Raichur and Ballari has been identified.
However, the ambitious project of upgrading the sub-stations under public-private partnership (PPP) model to cater to the growing energy demand is yet to see success. The department had identified Anand Rao Circle sub-station for the pilot project. A project report to monetise the land, make the sub-station compact and use the area for commercial purposes is yet to materialise.
The officials admitted that companies and the government agencies (Bangalore Electricity Supply Company and Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited) were unable to come to a common platform during the project’s gestation period, on security deposit, and on underground/above ground sub-station. This apart, the department invited tenders for launching mobile sub-stations and they aim to place orders by March-end.
“This budget (2025-26), we have proposed to the government to stress up solarisation and decentralisation of power generation, increase subsidy and financial models for setting up EV-charging stations and solar panels. Support for extending the Ganga Kalyan scheme is also being looked forward to,” the official said.