1st Airport In World To Go 100% Solar Is In India

   www.aws-india.co.in

 Originally published on Solar Love.

Cochin International Airport Limited in Kochi, Kerala (India) has become the first airport in the world to be powered entirely by solar power. A 12 MW solar PV plant, spread over 50 acres, was inaugurated two days back near the airport’s cargo complex.

The power plant took 6 months to complete and has come up at a cost of  ₹620 million ($9.5 million).

Technically speaking, the airport is now grid neutral, as it will give back more than it consumes from the grid. The newly installed solar power plant can generate between 50,000 to 60,000 kWh per day.

The airport has another 1 MW solar PV plant in addition to a smaller grid-connected 100 kW rooftop system, both of which were installed in 2013.

The electricity generated from the system will be fed into the power grid and the airport will use equivalent power from the utility. The plant is expected to produce much more than what the airport would consume, and for this purpose a PPA has been signed with Kerala State Electricity Board to sell any surplus power.

The 12 MW system was executed by Bosch’s Energy and Building Solutions team in India. This is the largest project for the company to date.

About a year back, the Indira Gandhi International Airport at Delhi took the solar plunge with a 2.14 MW plant.

Incidentally, the combined capacity of solar installations at Cochin Airport (12+1.1 MW) is more than the solar PV system installed at the Indianapolis International Airport, which holds the record for world’s largest solar plant at an airport. However, to be fair, Indianapolis has a single 12.5 MW ground-mounted system.

According to the German company Enerparc, which had commissioned the Delhi system, the only special requirement for putting up a solar plant at an airport is the glare analysis for the solar panels. Solar glare is a concern among pilots, but technology advancements have led to a substantive reduction in the reflective index of panels.

Kolkata’s Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, which seems to be the next in line to install a MW-scale solar plant, is said to have sanctioned a 2 MW solar PV unit. Though, if themedia reports are to be believed, the airport is eyeing a 15 MW ground-mounted solar power plant over 60 acres of land.

The Airport Authority of India (AAI), which operates 125 airports across the country, including the Cochin and Kolkata airports, has decided to build solar power plants at about 30 of its airports.

AAI has plans to install 50 MW capacity plants in the first phase (by 2016), which would be enhanced to 150 MW over a period of time. The plants would be established on surplus land available at these identified airports or on the large rooftops of the airport structures.

A MoU was signed between AAI and Solar Energy Corporation Of India (SECI) for construction of these solar plants.

India has 136 airports, some of which are spread over vast pieces of land. For example, the Hyderabad International Airport is spread over 5,400 acres, while the one at Chennai sits over 4,000 acres. Large-scale solar plants are possible on many of these. The one at Hyderabad, for instance, can house a 25 MW system.

Photo Credit: 12 MW Solar Plant at Cochin International Airport via official website 

Maharashtra backs solar power 

Original Post:  Shruti Ganapatye | 

• Mumbai

 

Representational image

The Maharashtra government is bringing a policy giving concessions to housing societies and new housing projects for installing solar energy panels. The incentives will include relaxing some taxes and giving more FSI for new buildings. The move has been made to encourage the use of solar energy in the state.

“We have prepared a draft of the policy to boost the use of solar energy in the state. The policy is meant for housing societies, residential complexes and institutions. Our emphasis is that the people should use rooftop solar panels and solar cookers, water heaters, purifiers, lamps and pumps,” an official from the energy department said. The proposal is expected to come before the Cabinet this month for approval, the official added.

The government is going to give the status of ‘green building’ to institutes that follow the policy norms, he said. “Other incentives could be in the form of tax relaxation and more FSI. But we need a nod from the urban development department for that. We want departments related to housing to support the policy and give incentives as per their convenience,” the official said.

The policy proposed by the state on the use of solar energy for domestic purposes is the first of its kind. “The solar energy required for household purposes is little, and therefore we are bringing this separate policy. The energy will be generated with rooftop solar panels. As per the surveys, the state has potential to generate a good amount of solar energy,” he added.

The state government has announced that 7,500 mw of solar power would be generated till 2019. It has invited a public-private-partnership model for the new solar power generation stations. There are innovative experiments taking place in the state to generate power by putting floating solar panels on the sides of dams.

India’s ‘absolutely power neutral’ airport to inaugurate 12MWp PV project       

Original Post By Andy Colthorpe 

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  Malaysia's Kuala Lumpur Airport has 19MW of PV, spread across ground mount, rooftop and carports. Image: SunEdison.
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  Kansai Airpot's 11.6MW solar power plant, Japan. Image: Solar Frontier.

An airport in the Indian state of Kerala will become “absolutely power neutral” when it inaugurates a 12MWp solar power plant onsite next week.

Cochin International Airport will unveil its green initiative on 18 August with Kerala’s chief minister, Ooomman Chandy, in attendance, according to local reports.

The commissioning of the PV plant is the third and biggest move so far in this direction by the airport, which installed a 100kWp rooftop plant in 2013 and another shortly after that with 1MWp capacity. According to the airport this was the first megawatt-scale solar PV plant in Kerala.

The latest move adds 45 acres of ground-mounted array, using 265Wp modules by Chinese manufacturer ReneSola and 1MW inverters by ABB India. The project was executed by German engineering company Bosch.

Cochin International Airport’s press release said that the array, when combined with the existing 1.1MW of installed capacity will “technically” make the airport “’absolutely power neutral’”, meaning the PV plants will produce as much electricity as the entire facility demands.  

Other significant airport PV installations in Asia include an 11.6MW PV plant at Kansai Airport in Japan, commissioned in March 2014 and a 19MW plant in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

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2020 Annual Solar Installations To Reach 92 GW (Report)

August 12th, 2015 by Adam Johnston 

Originally published on Solar Love.

Global solar installations will rise by to 2020 to 92 GW yearly, according to a new report from Apricum, compared to 42 GW annually in 2014.

The Berlin-based cleantech consulting firm said most of the 50 GW in annual increases from 2014 until 2020 will come from China, the US, and India, with 36 GW combined.

Image Credit: Queen of the Apostles Solar via Flickr Some Rights Reserved

The Middle East/North Africa/Africa (MENA) region will represent 6 GW, the rest of Asia 5.6 GW, the non-US Americas 4.1 GW, and Europe 3.5 GW.

However, Japan expects to see declines yearly  (-5.2 GW) as it looks to slow its hot growth.

Apricum also notes cumulative installations will reach 604 GW, from 178 GW six years earlier.

In regards to cumulative installations, China will lead with 180 GW, followed by the US (83 GW), Japan (57 GW), Germany (46 GW), and India (41 GW). Concerns over air pollution and climate change will help China with its steady growth.

Meanwhile, the US will see continued growth as more regions hit socket parity and grid parity. Apricum predicts a good 2015, followed by a drop in utility-scale installations as the federal tax credit drops from 30% to 10%, due in 2017.  However, strong rooftop demand, thanks todeclining solar prices will continue to bolster US markets, Apricum suggests. Recent clean power legislation and Hillary Clinton’s plan of reaching 140 GW by 2020 may also have positive effects.

While China, the US, and India remain strong, Apricum’s report points to new “solar boom zones” within the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and Africa. Insufficient energy will drive African countries towards solar, while MENA countries including Israel, Morocco, Jordan, and Egypt are going towards cleaner and cheaper solar energy. Competitive tenders have helped keep prices low (with record lows of 4.9 cents/kWh and 5.84 cents/kWh set within the past year).

Brazil’s strong growth through aggressive auctions and many manufacturers setting up shop there will help push Latin America forward as well. In Q2 of 2015, 363 MW of utility-scale solar energy were added. Brazil was fourth in Q2, behind Honduras, Chile, and Panama, according to GTM Research’s Latin American PV Playbook. While Brazil has potential, recent numbers suggest Brazil will need to do more work to reach Apricum’s fearless predictions.

Europe’s PV market will fall, according to the report. On a positive note for Europe, France is expected to increase renewable energy adoption as it closes its nuclear power plants, which could benefit solar a good deal.

In the future, Europe could see another solar growth period after 2020, when battery storage will reportedly hit grid parity in Italy and Germany. This could help advance residential and commercial installations.

Apricum’s analysis of global markets until 2020 is a unique perspective of where solar energy is heading. However, there are always major X factors which could benefit or detract from the growth. This includes the upcoming Canadian federal election, where the New Democratic Party (NDP) of Canada is leading the polls narrowly against the Conservative Party. An NDP or Liberal Party government would be more inclined to support renewable energy and climate change initiatives than the current Conservative government.

Nonetheless, hotspots like China, India, and the US will remain good places to invest in solar almost invariably, while Latin America, MENA, and Africa are becoming real contenders in the solar energy game. The future looks bright… if also hot. 

India Releases Detailed Timeline For 100 GW Solar Power Installation

August 15th, 2015 by Saurabh Mahapatra 

Originally published on Solar Love.

The Ministry of New & Renewable Energy in India has shared year-wise capacity addition targets for the ambitious National Solar Mission.

As per the updated targets under the National Solar Mission, India aims to have an installedsolar power capacity of 100 GW by 2022. The original target under the mission was 22 GW by 2022. 100 GW capacity will include 40 GW rooftop solar power capacity and 57 GW utility-scale solar power projects; India had an operational solar power capacity of around 3 GW when the upgraded mission targets were announced earlier this year.

For the current financial year, the ministry has set a target of adding 200 MW rooftop solar power capacity. This is supposed to increase to 4.8 GW in the next financial year (2016–17). In 2017-18, capacity of 5 GW rooftop solar power projects has been envisaged, with a 1 GW additional target up to 9 GW in financial year 2021–22.

The rooftop solar power projects are expected to be commissioned mostly by the state governments through their own solar power policies.

The ministry expects 1.8 GW of utility-scale solar power capacity additions in the current financial year, followed by 7.2 GW in financial year 2016–17. Capacity addition targets for financial years 2017–18 to 2019–20 are 10 GW each, while a total of 18 GW capacity would be added in financial years 2020–21 and 2021–22.

To set up utility-scale solar power projects, the central government as well as the state governments shall organise competitive auctions. These will include auctions for ultra mega solar power projects as well. The government has announced plans to set up 25 such projects, which will have a capacity of up to 4 GW each. They are expected to have a cumulative installed capacity of 20 GW.