Page 30 - CV April-May 2019 issue

Toeing the path of developing renewable capacity additions are likely to remain below government policy and economic merit, give
energy infrastructure, prices of both wind five GW annually in the next decade, held in us confidence India will stay the course," the
and solar power have recently fallen check by increased retirements of highly report said.
significantly in India with record low prices polluting, end-of-life sub-critical coal-fired India is ranked 14th in the Climate Change
seen this year. As a result, for the first time power plants. "We expect retirements to Performance Index (CCPI) 2018 out of 56
in India, addition of new renewable average more than 2.5 GW annually, but nations and the European Union by
generation topped that of thermal power in with coal-fired power plant utilisation rates environmental organizations German watch,
2016-17. During this period, net thermal averaging just 56.7 per cent in 2016-17 and an improvement from its 20th position last
power addition fell to just 7.7 gigawatts, well little prospect of this improving over the year, for reducing greenhouse gas
below the roughly 20 GW added annually in coming decade, retirements could well emissions by opting to transform its
the prior four years, while renewable accelerate to four-five GW annually," said electricity sector towards green technology.
additions jumped to 15.7 GW, the report Buckley. China, with its high emissions and growing
said. India's draft national electricity plan energy use over the past five years, still
calls for renewable energy installs to These retirements are likely to be pushed ranks 41st, says the German watch report
average 21-22 GW annually going forward. forward by the reality that solar and wind released last week.
already are being deployed at tariffs below
Given the rapidly improving economics of those of even existing domestic thermal At the just-concluded UN Climate Change
renewable, solar's cost is down 50 per cent power generation. India's target to all but Conference (COP23) in Bonn, a coalition
in just two years, for example hovering at cease thermal coal imports by the end of led by Canada and Britain jointly launched
about $0.038 per kilowatt-hour, making this this decade is now the logical economic the Powering Past Coal Alliance with more
an achievable target. Some in India have outcome, especially since plants using than 20 partners, and even a US state, to
been concerned about rising module prices expensive imported coal are increasingly move away from coal, a major source of air
in the near term, but IEEFA pointed to the the high-cost dispatch option. pollution. A climate expert told IANS that this
record low $0.018 and $0.021/kWh tariffs As the second largest importer of thermal is a first-of-its-kind attempt to phase out the
awarded in Mexico and Chile respectively coal globally, this is a materially adverse traditional coal power on such a massive
this past week. Clearly India can look development for nations exporting thermal scale after the 2015 Paris Climate Change
forward to further renewable energy tariff coal. "The challenges to integrating India's Agreement that aims to keep global
reductions medium term, the report said. 40 per cent renewable energy target by warming within 1.5 degrees Celsius by
While renewables are expected to surge, 2030 are real, but the momentum over the cutting greenhouse gases from burning
IEEFA forecasts that net thermal power past three years, gained through fossil fuels.

28 / CONSTRUCTION VISION / May June 2019