Thermal power generation companies will now be able to supply renewable energy under existing power purchase agreements (PPAs) with distribution companies (discoms) as per the revised guidelines issued by the ministries of power and new and renewable energy on Tuesday.
According to a government release, the revised guidelines allow thermal generation companies to “set up renewable energy generation capacity by open bidding by themselves (or) through developers,” and supply electricity to consumers under existing PPAs.
Under the revised guidelines, any savings accruing to thermal power plants from lower cost of power generation through renewable energy will be shared with the buyers such as distribution companies on a 50:50 basis.
The move is aimed at increasing the installed capacity of renewable energy to 500 GW (giga watt) by 2030, in line with commitments made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the COP26 climate change conference earlier this month.
COP26 Promises
In line with the commitments made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the COP26 climate change conference earlier this month, the move aims to increase the installed capacity of renewable energy to 500 GW (giga watt) by 2030.
“This will enable replacement of fossil fuel based energy by renewable energy under the existing PPAs,” the release said, noting that the discoms would be required to calculate the renewable energy purchased under the scheme for their Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO). will be allowed to do.
Under the long-term growth path of RPO, states have been asked to increase the proportion of electricity received from renewable sources to 21.2 per cent of their total purchases in FY22.
This is a very important step towards achieving the target of 500 GW non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030, the ministry said, adding that the government will soon issue orders on additional steps to achieve the target. is ready.
,