One of the developments that has brought India onto the world map is solar energy. From a figure of 2,650 MW, capacity has increased to 10,000 MW in just over two years. This is important as the increase has taken place when tariff rates had crashed over the years. From a tariff rate of around Rs 12 per unit in 2010, solar power touched a tariff of Rs 2.62 per unit in the recently auctioned Bhadla Solar Park, Rajasthan.

Publication: Money Control

Over the last few decades many businesses have been affected by disruptive technologies which have delivered the same products as theirs at much lower cost and in an easier way. Be it telecommunication, computers, taxi operations, hospitality or travel, all have faced the brunt of technological disruption. The power sector is also facing the impact of developments in solar and wind technology, both globally as well as in India.

Publication: Money Control

Solar parks have helped renewable energy companies reduce tariffs substantially but some developers are complaining that at times the parks charge high fee and do not provide adequate infrastructure. Gyanesh Chaudhary, CEO and MD at Vikram Solar, said: “Unlike the Rewa auction, there are a lot of unknown factors in other auctions for solar parks. Terms and conditions for each of these parks also vary, making the unknown component vastly different for each auction at each park.” He said developers should make sure that park authorities divulge all costs.

Publication: The Economic Times

The government will come out with a policy for promotion of electric vehicles this fiscal with an aim to make India a global leader in the segment, Union minister Piyush Goyal said today. “We will see a very robust policy (for promotion of electric vehicles) in this fiscal,” the power and coal minister, who is on a four-day visit to Vienna and London with a business delegation, told PTI in an interview.

Publication: Money Control

India’s potential plan to sell only electric cars by the end of next decade would require nearly eight times the global stock of such vehicles, according to the International Energy Agency. The country would need to sell more than 10 million electric cars in 2030, compared with the almost 1.3 million on the road worldwide in 2015, the agency said in an emailed response to questions. The goal also equals 10 percent of the 2030 target for electric vehicles on the road globally agreed to in the Paris climate talks.

Publication: BloombergQuint

The government will come out with a policy for promotion of electric vehicles this fiscal with an aim to make India a global leader in the segment, Union minister Piyush Goyal said today. “We will see a very robust policy (for promotion of electric vehicles) in this fiscal,” the power and coal minister, who is on a four-day visit to Vienna and London with a business delegation, told in an interview.

Publication: ET Auto

ith an objective of lowering fuel imports and overall running cost of vehicles, Piyush Goyal, Minister of state with independent charge for power, coal and renewable energy and mines has now said that ministers and officials under this division will start using electric cars to promote the use of electric vehicles.

Publication: ET Auto

Electric vehicles (EVs) are growing in popularity and certainly in mind space. They are cleaner and more efficient, and even fun (think Tesla). Their growth, however, is still considered just a market problem: The end user should choose on the basis of what it costs to buy and run, or how it performs, etc. Markets matter, but there is also a need for government and policy inputs. EVs, after all, operate within broader energy and transportation ecosystems with their own distortions. Unless we understand Indian-use cases, drivers (in both senses of the word), limitations and opportunities, we risk ambitious targets that remain aspirational.

Publication: Live Mint