Pravinbhai Parmar’s farm for six years Gujarat The state in western India is littered with rice, wheat and solar panels.
The 36-year-old is among a handful of farmers in his native Dhundi village who are using solar power to irrigate crops.
“I was spending around 50,000 rupees ($615) every year to water my crops,” Parmar said. “With solar I spend nothing.”
Parmar also sells excess electricity to his state’s grid, earning an average of 4,000 rupees ($50) a month.
“It’s a win all the way,” he said.
Thousands of farmers have been encouraged to turn to solar power for irrigation in the agriculture-rich state as India aims to reach ‘net zero’ by 2070. The world’s heating gas, and last year announced its biggest ever auction for coal mines.
The share of coal in electricity generation for Gujarat has fallen from 85% to 56% over the past six years, according to an analysis by London-based energy think tank Amber. The share of renewable energy for the state increased from 9% to 28% over the same period.
But Gujarat is one of only four out of 28 states in India that have met their renewable energy targets for 2022. Most of the states have established less than 50% of their target and some states like West Bengal They have installed only 10% of their target.
Nationwide fossil fuels generate more than 70% of India’s electricity and have been doing so for decades. Coal is by far the largest share of the dirtiest fuel. Renewable energy currently contributes to about 10% of India’s electricity needs.
From 2001 to 2021, India is set to install 168 gigawatts of coal-fired electricity generation, almost twice as much as solar and wind power combined, according to an analysis by Ember Data. India’s federal power ministry estimates that its electricity demand will grow by 6% every year for the next decade.
“The challenge of reducing the share of coal in the electricity generation mix is particularly acute because you are dealing with a sector that is growing rapidly,” said Thomas Spencer, energy analyst at the Paris-based International Energy Agency.
Spencer said that India’s fast-growing economy and rising per capita consumption of electricity are leading to rising demand.
“Historically, countries that have achieved a substantial and rapid transition from coal-fired electricity have either grown slowly or had stable or slight declines in electricity demand,” he said.
A report by the Global Energy Monitor has ranked India among the top seven countries globally in terms of renewable energy potential. The planned construction of 76 gigawatts of solar and wind power by 2025 could avoid the use of about 78 million tonnes of coal annually and save up to 1.6 trillion rupees ($19.5 billion) per year.
India missed its target of installing 175 GW of renewable energy for its overall electricity generation by 2022. Experts say that to meet its 2030 renewable energy target of installing a total of 450 gigawatts, India needs to create clean energy at a much higher rate than that. Doing it now.
The Indian government has repeatedly defended its use of coal and its energy transition strategy, saying the fuel is essential to the country’s energy security. Coal India Limited, a state-owned company, is the largest state-owned coal producer in the world. It accounts for about 82% of the total coal produced in India.
In November last year, the Indian government announced its biggest-ever auction for coal mines, inviting bids for 141 mines spread across 12 states in the country. The government says the additional mines will contribute to its target of producing 1 billion tonnes of coal by April 2024.
Analysts say many of the hurdles include land acquisition for clean energy projects, partly due to resistance from local communities. Long-standing contracts with coal plants also make it easier for state power companies to buy coal power instead of clean power.
As of December 2022, Indian state-owned power distribution companies owed electricity generators $3.32 billion in outstanding payments. Analysts say his poor financial health has reduced his ability to invest in clean energy projects.
Analysts say building energy storage, implementing more progressive policies — such as a $2.6 billion government plan to incentivize the components needed to produce solar power — and these policies being implemented, It is necessary to ensure this.
“New laws such as the Energy Conservation Bill as well as updated mandates issued by the federal government that make it necessary for power companies to buy renewable energy provide hope,” said Madhura Joshi, energy analyst at climate think tank E3G. “What is needed at the end of the day is expediting the installation of renewables and associated infrastructure.”
He added: “It is great that India has a 2070 net zero target, but to achieve this change needs to happen now. We must rapidly build up our renewable energy capacity.”
Experts say power distribution companies need to allow more rooftop solar installations, even if it causes them short-term economic losses. Investments in the modernization and construction of new wind power projects will also accelerate the transition, analysts said.
“After all in India, renewable energy is a highly cost-effective technology. The perception that coal is cheap is changing,” said Spencer.
The cost of renewable energy has fallen. The cost of solar power has fallen nearly sixfold from 12 rupees (14 cents) per kilowatt-hour in 2011 to 2.5 rupees (0.03 cents) per kilowatt-hour in recent years.
Aditya Lola, an energy policy analyst at Amber, is optimistic about India’s clean energy future, saying renewable energy is skyrocketing. He believes that battery storage will grow at a rapid pace for renewables to provide uninterrupted power and clean fuels – such as green hydrogen.
“The storage technology for clean energy as well as green hydrogen is expected to become affordable in the coming years,” Lola said. “India is betting big on that.”
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Wildman reported from Hartford, Connecticut.
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Follow Sibi Arasu on Twitter @sibi123
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