Increasing Demand For Power Grids: Renewable Energy

Energy Business Review | Sunday, January 23, 2022

The renewable energy industry is growing fast, with 66gw of renewable energy affiliated to the nation's power grid. However, the transmission aid expected from the energy generating projects is still doubtful. There is always volatility in understanding whether the transmission structure will be able to handle the flow of new irregular power generation.

 According to the Green Energy Corridor project, a new plan was suggested as a part of the Green Energy Corridor project to include interstate and intrastate transmission lines to intensify the renewable energy management core at regional and national load dispatch centers.

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Several industries are behind schedule, which postponed the completion of the green corridor project. However, according to Mercom, the standing committee stated that they are sure that the Green Corridor plan is achievable. The 8500 ckt-km transmission lines target will be installed by March 2020 for the Green Energy Corridor.

 In September 2017, PGCI (Power Grid Corporation of India) filed a petition to prevent renewable energy companies' underutilization of energy, asking the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission to mediate the issue. However, the renewable energy companies alternatively encouraged PGCIL to reinforce interstate transmissions by 2020.

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The transmission infrastructures are, however, accommodate 175 GW of energy generation expected in 2022. Grid infrastructures have to be reinforced because it is ideal for conserving non-renewable resources like fossil fuels to be less dependent on imports. Digitalization of the power grid will enhance transparency and create a smart system.

The infrastructure would dramatically change the electricity system by upgrading energy security. 15% of India's population still does not have access to electricity. SAUBHAGYA program by the Indian government evaluates that 212,925,998 households have obtained electricity. The diverse geographical condition in India causes it difficult to implement a plan consistently.

Micro and Mini-grid could solve the transmission problem, but it would take years to reach all the remote places. Due to the setup costs, a massive investment is needed to set up and maintain the system. The region must produce a significant amount of revenue to recover the investment. Mini-grids will provide remote places with sustainable energy, and if proper subsidies are provided, states can overcome the energy transmission issues.

 

 

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