Assessing Green Industrial Policy

Factors to be taken into account while choosing storage technology

Key Highlights

• A Renewable Resource Development Project (RRD) increased the wind energy capacity deployment from 40 MW in 1993 to over 1,000 MW in India in 2000.
• Installations of wind energy have increased at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 26 per cent in the last decade, with annual installations of over 1,000 MW every year since 2004.
• National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) envisages renewable energy to constitute approximately 15 per cent of India's energy mix by 2020. This share is expected to be increased by 1 per cent per annum to reach its target.
• The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy proposed to fund solar projects through a viability gap funding (VGF) mechanism due to the limited amount of unbundled power available.
• 10 states have announced their own solar policies, which provide preferential tariffs and other benefits such as single window clearances, transmission facilities, tax exemptions, etc.
• Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSN) has set a manufacturing capacity target of 4–5 GW of the equivalent of installed capacity, including 2 GW of polysilicon solar cells, for 2020.
• FDI up to 100 per cent has been allowed through the renewable energy sector's automatic route subject to conditions under the Electricity Act, 2003.
• The number of households reporting solar-based electricity sources as the primary source of lighting increased from a little over 500,000 to over 1 million between 2001 and 2011.
• Exports and imports of solar components were comparable until 2010, but subsequently, imports have outstripped (many-fold) the demand for domestically manufactured components.
• Solar PV and wind-based power generation positively impact human health and the avoided costs associated with premature mortality and morbidity-related health end-points are significant.
• Renewable energy power has ecological impacts that can be mitigated through proper planning and execution.

Key Recommendations

• Ensure that there are no adverse impacts on the economy in the long run as renewable energy has implications for long-term energy security and national security.
• Reinforce industrial policies and environmental policies to achieve green goals through affordable technologies.
• Ensure, measure and report the outcomes of R&D efforts for continued efficacy of policies. This can enhance the renewable energy ecosystem in India.
• Ensure overall ease of starting and running businesses in the country for building a thriving manufacturing sector.
• Build efforts to scale-up renewable energy to dent India's GHG emission profile for both energy and non-energy uses.