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Blogs


How much power will India need in 2035?

20 March 2015 | Tobias Engelmeier

What is the projected growth of India’s electricity requirements in the next 20 years, i.e. until 2035? In 2012, the country generated 1,050 TWh of grid power. The government now wants to set in motion a process of accelerated industrialization to provide much-needed jobs, sustain growth and drive development. This will raise energy demand. To date, there are few reliable projections on future...

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The Future of Solar in India: Three Perspectives

17 March 2015 | Tobias Engelmeier

There has been much talk and an equal amount of confusion about the future of India’s solar market. It is not easy to predict the growth rates or future market character, because the market is neither fully in nor fully outside of the government’s hands. It comes down to what one believes in. I am here proposing three perspectives to take into consideration: The “Vision”, the...

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The Real Prize

16 March 2015 | BRIDGE TO INDIA

Over the past weeks, we have provided plenty of analyses of the different solar policies in India in this newsletter. Overall, we are not terribly impressed with them. This is partially because of the weight of expectations the government has put upon itself with its 100 GW target. In fact, growth in the sector is picking up significantly. It is just that this growth is not driven by sustainable...

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Time for a big-bang financing solution

13 March 2015 | Vinay Rustagi

In view of the BJP government’s strong commitment to the solar sector and the much trumpeted 100 GW target, there was mighty anticipation about what the budget would bring by way of cheaper financing, tax incentives and other promotional measures to grow the sector. But the budget turned out to be bit of a damp squib and it is not clear how the government hopes to realise its solar vision with...

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Bridge To India

After much hype, central allocations to take a back seat for a while

10 March 2015 | BRIDGE TO INDIA

Over the past several months, we had the impression that central government-led allocations would be the preference of the new government and that the role of the states would be limited to setting up the infrastructure of solar parks and procuring solar power. The central government would make that power cheaper for the state utilities either through bundling it with coal power or through...

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Will the shining solar knight topple “King Coal” in India?

04 March 2015 | Tobias Engelmeier

Around 70% of India’s power comes from coal, less than 1% from solar. Will that change in the next 20 years? Can solar become the new backbone of the Indian electricity system? There is a good possibility that it will. Let’s look at some key drivers. India is just beginning to build the energy infrastructure it needs Solar is practically unlimited and cost trends are strongly in its...

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A status quo budget for renewables; nowhere close to expectations

03 March 2015 | Jasmeet Khurana

Most sections of the overall Indian industry have labeled the budget presented on Saturday (28th February 2015) as an incremental progress in the right direction and not a ‘big-bang’ or reformist budget (the yardstick being the 1991 budget). While infrastructure has received its due attention, unfortunately, for the solar industry, incremental progress just doesn’t add up to the new and...

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Not a dream budget for solar (a 3 out of 10)

02 March 2015 | Tobias Engelmeier

On the 28th of February, India’s finance minister has presented the widely anticipated first full budget of the new Modi government. After all the fanfare around growing the Indian solar market including at the recent RE-INVEST, the industry was expecting if not real boost to the sector, at least a clear directional step towards creating a sustainable and fast growing solar market. This...

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Bridge To India

Back to the past: The AAP’s demand for cheap coal power for Delhi is unrealistic and wrong-headed

27 February 2015 | Tobias Engelmeier

This is Arvind Kejriwal’s plan to provide power to Delhi: He has asked the government to supply a coal block for a new ultra mega power plant. This plant would then be operated by a private company and would sell cheap and reliable power to Delhi. What a nice thought! Except, we don’t live in fairyland. Better idea: let power prices be determined by the market and give Delhi a workable...

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Mr. Modi, where is India’s solar rocket?

25 February 2015 | Tobias Engelmeier

India can build excellent rockets. Last September, it successfully sent a space mission to Mars – and that, too, at a slim $74 million. Now, India’s government is again reaching for the stars. Actually, it is reaching out for a specific one, the sun. Mr. Modi has announced that India wants to build 100 GW of solar power in five years. That is nothing short of spectacular. Only, we have no...

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Punjab opens bids for phase two of the state allocations

24 February 2015 | BRIDGE TO INDIA

Punjab had floated a tender in December 2014 (refer) for the second phase of allocations in the state for 250 MW of solar PV projects. The state received eligible bids for over 300 MW (our estimate 344 MW) but details have not yet been...

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How to make money in the Indian solar market

18 February 2015 | Tobias Engelmeier

India has 3+ GW of solar installed. On the basis of that, in the last years, the country has built a broad ecosystem of manufacturers, installers, project developers and financiers. This sounds like a healthy launch pad for a big jump in capacity addition (perhaps even to an incredible 100 GW) – but it isn’t. Very few players in the market so far have made a good return. A common concern in...

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