India

With 34 of the 38 key technologies needed to hit the Paris Agreement’s best-case scenario falling short, PV and electric vehicles are keeping hopes alive

In the face of actual and threatened tariffs in the US and India, the world’s biggest solar manufacturers may have to set up shop in the protectionist nations in question ahead of a predicted cooling in their home market

Bloomberg New Energy Finance says EVs will make up 44% of all new vehicle sales in Europe by 2030, 41% in China, 34% in the US and 17% in Japan. India trails with only 7% forecast. Buses, globally, will go electric at great pace.

Price deflation and technological innovation are helping solar transform the global electricity sector. A new report by IEEFA highlights the latest solar milestones around the world and charts important trends including the rise of floating solar and the corporate PPAs helping the tech giants ‘green’ their energy-hungry data centres.

The country will achieve solar PV capacity of 50 to 75 GW by 2022 – a little over 60% of the 100 GW target. Total rooftop capacity will be less than 10 GW.

To smoothen this transition, the country needs to build fast solar PV-powered charging stations. In 2017, there were only 220-250 operational charging stations in India, compared to 56,000 petrol stations.

Azure Power has been awarded a 130 MW solar PV project by the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL). It is expected to be commissioned in 2019.

The Chinese-Canadian solar company reached commercial operation for the plant just in time to still benefit from the state of Karnatake’s lucrative incentives programme. Open access rules allow businesses to broker PPA’s directly with the PV operator.

For the German PV-company the solar farm of 27 MW is its first in East-India. For the project IBC solar secured a tender for a PPA with a duration of 25 years.

India has unveiled a national wind-solar hybrid policy that provides a framework for promotion of large grid connected wind-solar PV systems for optimal and efficient utilization of transmission infrastructure and land, reducing the variability in renewable power generation and thus achieving better grid stability.