Ministry of new and renewable energy has constituted solar energy industry advisory council (SEIAC) to advice it on various technology related matters, attracting investments across the value chain, suggest steps required to encourage R&D and drive down costs and make the Indian solar industry globally competitive.

New Delhi: In a rare compliment from a UPA minister for the Modi government in Gujarat, new and renewable energy minister Farooq Abdullah on Monday said the solar power plant atop a water canal in the state has shown the nation the way and it will be replicated by Damodar Valley Corporation.
“Gujarat has shown the way” with the commissioning of the world’s first 1MW canal-top solar power plant in Mehsana district, he said in RS. The project eliminates the requirement to acquire vast tract of land and limits evaporation of water from 750 meter long canal. TNN

Rajasthan govt issue fraud certificates to Cong MP for solar projects

The risk of there not being enough water in the stream — the ‘hydrology risk’ — is the “single largest risk” that a small hydro project faces, says a study of the rating and analysis agency, ICRA.

The study went into the question of why small hydro projects — projects of less than 25 MW capacity — have not been happening on a scale consistent with the potential in India. It found out that after ‘hydrology risk’, the risk of ‘containment of capital cost’ was the second biggest stumbling block.

The Punjab Government has fixed a target to generate 1,000 MW through non-conventional energy resources. This was decided at a high-level meeting presided over by Renewal Energy and Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia. Reviewing the status of ongoing non-conventional energy programmes in the state, Majithia said the Punjab Government had introduced special incentives for such programmes under NRSC (New and Renewal Source of Energy) scheme 2012 so that the investors could invest in these projects in a big way.

KOCHI: The Solar City project, intended to make Kochi the first solar city in the state, is all set to takeoff soon as the Corporation is planning to constitute a committee for its launch. The project that will be implemented with the financial aid from the Central and State Governments mainly aims at installing solar energy systems to power streetlights, garden lights, households, hotels and restaurants and major administrative offices.

“Initially a special committee will be set up comprising a Solar City cell and stakeholder committee. The proposal will be presented in the next Corporation Council meeting for its approval,” said a top official with the Corporation.

Renewable Energy Ministry Eyes OilMin’s Model For Awarding Blocks
New Delhi: The government has initiated the process of putting in place a policy to auction, or award, offshore wind farms in a way that could be similar to the auction of oil and gas blocks. The ministry of new and renewable energy has constituted an inter-ministerial panel of secretaries, which also includes heads of pertinent organizations such as Coast Guards, to frame policy guidelines, approve and oversee execution projects and identify private or public sector partners.

Centre for Wind Energy Technology (C-Wet), an autonomous R&D institution under the renewable energy ministry, has launched another phase of its wind assessment project. This phase of the project will measure the potential of wind energy at a height of 100 meters in 75 locations and at 120 meters height in 4 locations.

Funds released by the Centre not utilised properly: CAG

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India has picked holes in the implementation of the Centrally-assisted solar photovoltaic project in the State during 2005-07. The project launched by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy in January 2006 encouraged the use of solar lighting systems in rural areas to bring down the consumption of kerosene.