Page 13 - AsiaElec Week 34

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in the country’s National Electricity Market
(NEM).
Output from renewables reached 11.7GW
across the NEM, which interconnects
Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria,
South Australia and Tasmania. The previous
record of 11.3GW was set in November 2019.
Alex Wonhas, chief system design and
engineering officer at the Australian Energy
Market Operator (AEMO), said the milestone
reflects the rapid generation transformation
underway across the NEM.
“In the last six months, we’ve
commissioned five new wind and solar
farms with a generation capacity of 580MW
that are feeding into the NEM, and another
seven committed projects working towards
construction of a further 1,785MW,” he said.
The new record follows AEMO’s recently
2020 Integrated System Plan, which forecasted
that more than 26GW of new variable
renewable energy is needed to replace the 63% pie. Project developers also grapple with other
of NEM’s coal-fired generation that is set to According to Shanxi Coal, the rationale for issues such as unavailability of land and
retire by 2040. its investment is to help with the province’s inadequate power transmission infrastructure,
According to the plan, the least-cost energy transition and meet the need for leading to inordinate delays. The investments
transition of the NEM will be a diverse state firms to get behind strategic emerging involved in the stuck projects with combined
portfolio consisting of distributed energy industries. capacity of 8,000 mw is roughly Rs 36,000
resources and variable renewable energy, The company will own a 88.5% stake crore at Rs 4.5 crore per MW.
supported by multiple dispatchable resources. in the venture, Shanxi Coal International Projects facing uncertainty due to lack of
Photovoltaic Power Technology Co. The rest buyers include those backed by global players
will be held by Huzhou Junhua Siyue Equity like the UK’s CDC-(Ayana Renewable),
Shanxi Coal moves into Investment Partnership and Ningbo Qixian Netherland’s Avaada Energy, French utility
Enterprise Management Consulting Co.
Engie (Betam Wind), New York-based Eden
solar cells Renewables, SoftBank Group, Hong Kong
based UPC Renewables (Masaya Solar),
Chinese coal miner Shanxi Coal International India’s solar power story Italy’s Enel (Avikiran Surya), Germany’s Ib
Energy Group is planning a significant Vogt, Spain’s Solarpack Corporacion and the
investment in the competing business of disrupted as renewable Canada-based Amp Energy Green.
making high-tech solar power cells, bllomberg SECI has also not found buyers for power
reported. energy finds no buyers from some units of local players like ReNew
The state-owned firm will lead a Power, Azure Power and Adani Green Energy.
joint venture to build a 3-gigawatt solar The impact of the coronavirus outbreak on the According to data compiled by the Central
manufacturing plant for 3.19 billion yuan supply chain has also been cited as a cause of Electricity Authority, SECI has not been
($461 million), according to a statement on the demand for PPA cancellations. able to sign PSAs with any state discom for
Friday. It’s the first phase of a project that will India’s solar power story has been largely 5,840 MW of solar and 920 MW of ISTS
grow to 10 gigawatts -- the equivalent of the creditable, with a rapid pace of capacity wind power projects. SECI being the national
generating power of 10 nuclear power plants addition and competitive tariffs being aggregator of renewable energy, signs power
-- producing high-efficiency cells through so- discovered, but several adversities including purchase agreements (PPAs) with the winning
called heterojunction technology. reluctance of discoms to sign power supply developers in competitive auctions, and
While unusual, Shanxi Coal’s foray into agreements (PSAs) are threatening to disrupt subsequently inks PSAs with states to supply
rival territory isn’t a first. Jinneng Group, it. electricity from these plants.
a provincial coal peer, also has a solar cell Nearly a third of the 23,600 megawatt In fact, as much as 1,665 MW of renewable
and panel manufacturing business. Shaanxi (MW) renewable power projects, won by power projects (Acme: 600 MW, Torrent:
Coal Industry Co., meanwhile, holds a 3.88% various players after quoting the lowest rates 500 MW, Mytrah: 300 MW and ReNew: 265
stake in the world’s biggest solar wafer-maker in reverse auctions conducted by the Solar MW) have sought to terminate their PPAs,
LONGi Green Energy Technology Co. Energy Corporation of India (SECI) for frustrated by delays caused by other parties, in
China is both the world’s biggest coal and inter-state transmission system (ISTS), are spite of SECI finding buyers of electricity from
solar producer. Despite its dirty credentials staring at an uncertain future as the agency these projects.
and role in global warming, such is coal’s has not yet found buyers for electricity from
importance to cheap power and employment these solar/wind power generation units. Most
in the nation it won’t be fading away anytime of these are under-construction units; only
soon, even as renewable energy takes bites out 2,200 MW of the awarded capacity has been
of its dominant share of the power generation commissioned till date.

Week 34 26•August•2020 www. NEWSBASE .com P13