While Tamil Nadu is making rapid strides in enhancing power generation from renewable sources to meet its growing demand, several hurdles are still preventing them from achieving their potential. L Rajagopal takes stock of the wind and solar energy situation, examines the problems and the possible way ahead.
Large hydroelectric power stations are increasingly shunned for being expensive and disastrous on the environment, while nuclear power is prohibitively costly and is also extremely risky and toxic.
Thermal power has gathered steam, but is polluting and is also depended on a depleting resource. As the consumption and demand of electricity keep increasing each passing day, there then are the two renewable forms of energy that Tamil Nadu can tap into even more vigorously – sun and wind.
Electricity consumption has risen steadily over the years to touch a peak daily demand of around 15,000 megawatt (MW) in summer and about 13,000 in winter.
Even as the State is making rapid strides in enhancing power generation from the renewable sources to meet the demand, sources in the industry say there still are several hurdles that is preventing it from achieving the most that it can.Here, Express takes examines the situation of these two sectors to explore what fetters them from flying high.
Wind in the sails
There are other bigger states like Gujarat, Rajasthan and Maharashtra who have invested considerably in wind energy generation, but Tamil Nadu is the leader among them all. There now are about 17,000 windmills dotting the skyline across the State, with a total installed capacity of 7,685 MW – or more than half of peak daily demand during summer.
The interest in wind energy received a shot in the arm in 2012, which was the best year till then - 11,296 million units were generated then.
This was immediately reflected in installed capacity, which went up sharply, by more than 1,000 MW, by the next year (see box). The record on generation was broken in 2016 when a total of 12,289 million units of electricity was generated.
Aided by earlier setting in and delayed ending of the wind season in the recent years, this record, too, is expected to be broken this year, said experts.
The wind season that ensures optimum generation usually starts by the end of May and lasts till September. But it commenced a bit earlier last year, which experts said could be because of climate change. This year, it was as early as second week of March, and is expected to last till October or even November as has been the case in the last couple of years. The wind speed is also good, which has helped in generating approximately 87 to 90 million units of power – about 4,600 MW a day.
Another indication that the season would break records came from the statistics. In the three months between April 1 and June 30, wind power generation in the State was 4,595 million units, which is 1,503 million units more than corresponding period last year. The State power managers have also added more transformers near windmills for easier evacuation with much less transmission loss.
However, the positive developments from the generation part aside, the sector is in crying need for sophisticated power storage facility that would help save it for later use. In advanced countries like the United States and Japan, excess power is stored in state-of-the-art facilities that also optimise the cost of wind energy generation. But this would require efforts from the State government to install the capital-intensive infrastructure, said office-bearers of Indian Wind Power Association.
“Tamil Nadu’s geographical location is best suited to implement solar and wind power generation schemes in a big way. For that, the State government should focus on establishing storage infrastructure,” said the person. The members of the association also urged the government to allocate funds for paying for the power evacuated, which is important to attract more industrialists from other parts of the country into investing in wind power generation here.
Light up the solar lamp, it has huge potential
That old joke about Tamil Nadu that it has three seasons – hot, hotter, hottest – works quite well for the solar power generation section. Though it remains the leader among the states in total installed capacity, Tamil Nadu is yet to realise the full potential for a variety of reasons.
As the State falls under the tropical climate zone, hot and humid conditions that are ideal for solar power generation prevail for more than 300 days in a year. This potential has attracted big names to establish infrastructure here.
The biggest is by Adani Group, which has set up a 700 MW solar power farm in Ramanathapuram. Welspun Renewable Energy, now a part of Tata Power, has established infrastructure for 300 MW. There are other industrialists particularly those running spinning mills, who have invested in solar power generation, taking the total installed capacity to 1,600 MW.
On an average, the State generates 1,000 MW during summer and 700 MW during winter months every day. Space is a factor while considering this – to generate a megawatt of electricity, solar panels would have to spread over four acres of land. This has made rooftop models more popular. High cost of panel has also been a hurdle, which, however, has been falling consistently in recent years.
In all, the cost of investment for 1 MW solar power has come down to `4.5 crore now from `7.5 crore in 2013. The biggest impediment for the sector’s growth comes from the lack of support and inconsistent government policies, say insiders.
Even on days of good generation, there are cases when the power generated is not evacuated, leading to losses to the companies that have installed the solar panels. The government have at times orally instructed power utility managers not to evacuate the power generated by solar sector, which remains the biggest headache, alleged an industrialist who has invested in solar power.
“The money for the power evacuated is kept pending for at least eight months, which is burdensome for the investors,” said a textile industry veteran.
Also, even in the domestic side, the State government has recently made a proposal to reduce the return on investment for those who install rooftop solar panels instead of supporting decentralised generation that eases pressure on the grid.
“If the government comes forward to offer subsidies, ensure full evacuation of power, and prompt payment for it, investment will increase in this sector,” opined Raja M Shanmugam, president of Tiruppur Exporters Association. If the government extends support at policy and practical levels, the capacity can be doubled to 3,000 MW in just the next few years, said experts.