Did you know that Karnataka is home to Asia’s first major
hydro-electric power station, which was established back in 1902 at
Shivanasamudra, and is currently working on plans to build the world’s largest
solar park? The state also has an active policy for converting waste to energy,
and provides concessions for companies who use recycled water from sewage.
Karnataka continues to pioneer other initiatives and has been named a leader in
the country in terms of renewable energy policy by two panels of experts from
industry and government. This makes it all the more attractive for investors in
this sector, especially with incentives such as reducing VAT for manufacturing
of photo-voltaic cells.
During his opening remarks at the ‘Energy’ panel of Invest Karnataka 2016.
P. Ravi Kumar, Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Energy, Government of
Karnataka, promised that every household in the state will have access to
electricity by 2020.
Tech trends
On the technology front, the reduction in energy storage
costs should also be a driver for the renewable energy sector, says Tarun
Kapoor, Joint Secretary, MNRE. Other emerging technologies are increasing panel
efficiency by five per cent.
Tracking technology will also improve solar power facility
management, said Arul Shanmugasundaram, CTO & EVP, Tata Solar.
IoT is also playing a key role in generating data for
pattern-driven insights, said Mariasundaram Antony, Head, India Engineering
Centre, GE-Power. Analytics can help with efficient usage of power grids and
wind data can help predict power output. GE’s engineers in Bangalore are also
working on low-wind speed wind turbines.
Policy for energy
The state has a range of offerings for the entire energy
sector. For example, the coastline is a good destination for those who want to
set up power plants with imported coal, said Shankaralinge Gowda, Chairman,
Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission. It is also possible to combine
energy evacuation from solar and wind energy on the same stretches of land.
India has vast potential in rooftop solar energy generation,
and policy incentives can spur this trend, said Stefan Hediger, Head of Energy
Cell, KFW, New Delhi.
Karnataka was the first state to form separate entities for
power generation and distribution (in 1970), and the ESCOMs (BESCOM, MESCOM,
HESCOM, GESCOM) are taking customer services to the next level. Other plans
include an Energy Centre of Excellence and Incubation Centre in Bangalore, and
a Technology Innovation Centre at BESCOM.
The Karnataka government is also working with farmers to
lease their land for solar and wind power generation, and make them
stakeholders in the energy future, said D.K. Shivakumar, Hon’ble Minister for
Energy, Government of Karnataka. Over 12,000 acres have been contributed
voluntarily by Karnataka’s farmers.
Further land reform policies will target the renewable
energy sector, said G V Balaram, Managing Director, Karnataka Renewable Energy
Development Limited. He urged investors to check out the website of KREDL to get more updates
on new tenders and projects.
Overseas investors
Karnataka is growing three per cent faster than the rest of
India, calling for more initiatives in using existing energy efficiently and
tapping renewables, said Jorn Rohde, Consul General of Germany.
Germany is going through a paradigm shift in its energy
policy, and is focusing more on decentralised renewables initiatives such as
wind and bio-fuels, while phasing out nuclear power. Its experience in reducing
carbon emissions by 30 per cent from 1990 should be useful for India too as a
source of best practices, said Rohde.
Germany experienced only 15 minutes of downtime in its power
grid last year, a point of envy for most emerging economies. German technology
has also gone into initiatives such as Kochi’s solar-powered airport. The
renewable energy sector in Germany already employs over half a million people.
Other countries such as Spain have also been attracted to
Karnataka over other states of India, said Glen Reccani, Country Managing
Director, Acciona Energy. The company will also be manufacturing turbine towers
in Karnataka at a Rs 15 crore factory in Bijapur. However, he urged policy
clarification on issues like renewable energy subsidies, and recommended that
policies be stable and consistent for at least 15-20 years to allow energy
companies to plan and execute long-term strategies.
In sum, thanks to a pro-active approach and continuous
learning, Karnataka will continue to set the pace and standards for renewable
energy policy among Indian states, said S. Chandrasekhar, Managing Director,
Bhoruka Power Corporation Limited.
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