Earlier, in January 2016, the government had initiated an exercise to review the Tariff Policy of 2006 and had issued several amendments to it. At the time, the biggest impact of the amendments was felt in the renewable energy segment, which saw changes such as an increase in solar RPOs to 8 per cent by 2022, the introduction of a provision for renewable generation obligation, the compulsory procurement of 100 per cent power from waste-to-energy plants by discoms, and the removal of ISTS charges for solar and wind power.
One of the key trends observed in the power sector last month was the spurt in spot market prices. According to data from the IEX, the average market clearing price (discovered in the day-ahead market) at Rs 4.02 per unit was 24 per cent higher than that in February 2018 and 57 per cent more than the Rs 2.56 per unit registered in the same month last year. This is the second instance of a spurt in prices after they had climbed to Rs 4.11 per unit in September 2017 (touching almost Rs 9.90 per unit in one time interval).
In a significant policy development this month that came as a big relief to thermal power plant (TPP) owners, the government has issued a notification stating that investments in the installation of emission control technologies will be considered for a pass-through in tariffs.
With the approval for commercial mining, the coal mining industry is set to experience significant structural changes in the future as it moves from being a monopoly to a competitive industry. Amidst this changing scenario, Coal India Limited (CIL), the world’s single largest coal producer, is working towards strengthening its leadership position.
The fly ash produced as a by-product of coal combustion in the boiler poses environmental challenges, and its efficient, sustainable utilisation has been of paramount importance to the power industry. According to latest Central Electricity Authority (CEA) data available for 2016-17, almost 169 million tonnes (mt) of fly ash was generated by thermal power plants (TPPs) in India.
Almost 40 per cent of ash generated from coal-based power plants is not utilised and ends up in landfill sites as a waste product. Fly ash, which accounts for 80 per cent of the total ash generated from a thermal power plant (TPP) while the rest is bottom ash, poses a serious threat to the environment. It may consist of silicon dioxide, aluminium oxide, calcium oxide and heavy metals, depending on the source and composition of coal. Groundwater contamination, fugitive dust emissions and land pollution are some of the common issues associated with ash disposal, which severely impact the local population around ash lagoons. Ash disposal through traditional methods results in significant water consumption. Ash is transported from TPPs to cement units, brick kilns, mine filling sites and road construction sites. This requires extreme caution as ash lost in transit will cause environment degradation.
Microgrids can help provide electricity even in the most inaccessible areas, supporting the grid during peak load and emergency situations, lowering transmission and distribution (T&D) losses, and meeting additional load in areas that have major right-of-way (RoW) issues, among other things. Further, microgrids operating on renewable energy sources and supported with energy storage systems (ESS) help in addressing the intermittency associated with renewable energy sources and in maintaining reliable power supply. Besides this, microgrids help in assessing the outcomes of smart grid projects in a cost-effective manner with the roll-out on a much smaller scale.
There has been a long-standing debate in the power sector regarding the deployment of measures to improve power quality and grid reliability.
The renewable energy sector has made significant strides over the past few years and this growth momentum is expected to continue in the future. Slideshow 7958081 by powerlinemagazine
Microgrids or local energy grids with distributed generation sources, typically renewables, with control capabilities can provide a promising solution to India…
Given the challenges associated with upcoming hydropower projects, the pace of project development has become not just slower but also costlier in recent years. In this context, renovation, modernisation, uprating and life extension (RMU&LE) of hydro plants provide a cost-effective way to add capacity quickly, besides extending the plant life and ensuring better reliability and availability. The estimated cost per MW for R&M and life extension is much less than the cost of setting up new hydro projects of similar capacity. Further, R&M yields benefits in about three to four years as against six to seven years or even more for developing a new hydro project.
Power quality and reliability are two important aspects of an electrical power supply system. Therefore, the effective measurement of supply quality is crucial to track the sources of interruptions and enable the comparison of power quality (PQ) at various locations.
