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Round-up 2010: Best of solar photovoltaics
Solar photovoltaics (PV) constantly reminds me of the early days of the telecom industry. Perhaps, the similarity lies in practically anyone and everyone wants to enter the solar/PV industry as well, just like it happened in telecom — before the industry consolidation started to happen.
In India, a lot more talk has happened since the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JN-NSM) was unveiled. With 2010 now drawing to an end, here’s presenting the top posts for solar PV from the year that is about to leave all of us!
Want to enter solar off-grid business? Build your own solar LED lanterns and emergency lights! — This was a smashing superhit! So many folks have accessed this post and quite a few commented! Definitely, my no. 1 post for the year and among my top 10 posts for 2010!
Union budget 2010: Solar, UIDs all the way!
NI DAQ workshop: Sun tracker suitable for Indian (and global) solar/PV industry
India to miss NSM target? No, it’s likely a mistake (in reporting)! — The faux pas of the year! 😉
SEMI India benchmarks India’s NSM on global FIT best practices — Goes on to show why SEMI continues to be a top notch industry association!
RoseStreet Labs develops breakthrough multiband solar cell technology! — I enjoyed writing this post a lot!
Solar PV heats up in India — NVVN signs MoU with 16 developers; new guidelines for solar projects — First clear signs that India is indeed hot, as a solar market.
Unique solution required for grid-tie inverters in India!
Solarcon India 2010: Timely implementation of phase 1 critical to success of JN-NSM
Need to develop indigenous manufacturing capacity in solar: Deepak Gupta
Is there a case for polysilicon manufacturing in India?
India has bright future in solar PV, other RE: Stan Meyers, SEMI
Pressing need to address solar project financing in India: D. Majumdar, IREDA
TÜV Rheinland opens South Asia’s largest PV testing lab in Bangalore
Need to look at smart grid standards from an Indian context: Venkat Rajaraman, Su-Kam
Bluetooth set as short range wireless standard for smart energy! — This should be interesting, as and when it happens!
Top 15 producers of c-Si and thin film solar PV modules, and outlook 2011
There’s more to come in the new year, now that NVVN has released a list of projects under the JN-NSM. I am more keen to see how JN-NSM takes off in the new year, and am sure, so are you!
Here’s wishing everyone a very happy, joyous and prosperous 2011! 🙂
India has bright future in solar PV, other RE: Stan Meyers, SEMI
(L-R): Daniel D. Martin, executive VP, PV Group, SEMI, Stanley T. Myers, president and CEO, SEMI, and Sathya Prasad, president, SEMI India, at SOLARCON India 2010, Hyderabad.
He said: “The NSM is the change in India. You try to look for simplicity, see what’s going on, and speed. We hope that happens in India.”
Meyers added: “We see SEMI playing the role as a ‘connector’ in markets where technologies are emerging. Two things need to happen in emerging technologies as well as regions. One, there has to be a roadmap — clear and defined. Two, there has to be standards development. SEMI is already playing a key role in the standards for PV manufacturing equipment and materials. It will extend that activity into India as well.
“Our experience in standards in semiconductors has shown that standards results in cost reduction and the net benefit of cost savings is passed on not only to the consumer, but this also allows the savings to be ploughed back into R&D by the industry.”
Solarcon India 2010: Timely implementation of phase 1 critical to success of JN-NSM
A view of the inaugural function of Solarcon India 2010 @ Hyderabad.
Strong emphasis is now being placed on research and development, and rightly so. The Indian government is also working toward tackling issues involved with project financing.
Let’s take a look at what the various dignitaries from Central and State governments, EPIA and SEMI, had to say at Solarcon 2010. Please bear with me as this is quite a long post!
India needs to develop research facilities
Delivering his address at the inaugural function of Solarcon 2010, Dr. Farooq Abdullah, Hon’ble Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy highlighted that JN-NSM has been the vision of Dr. Manmohan Singh, the Indian Prime Minster. Phase 1 is now underway — a target of 1,000 MW, with 500MW for solar PV and 500MW for solar thermal.
Addressing the Indian solar PV industry, Dr. Abdullah stressed: “India should develop its technology right here! Don’t import third rate technology!” He quipped, “Sastaa roye bar bar, mehengaa roye ek bar!” That is, it is better to buy expensive and quality technology rather than banking on cheap technology.
“Your technology has to work for 25 years! You must have your own research centers. Research is one of the goals of the NSM. You have to do your own research. You are going to the market, not only for India, but also for a unified world,” he added.
The Minister remarked that by simply adding solar water heaters in several hotels had reduced their electricity bills by half. He added: “We want to encourage many players. We want true players!” Addressing the solar thermal and PV debate, he said: “When we started, we put 60:40 for thermal and PV. We changed that to 50:50.” There may be a need to go down further. “Buy the best technology, don’t buy cheap,” the Minister insisted.
He added that many states had missed the boat in phase 1 of the JN-NSM. Some examples include Bihar and Kerala. However, there is every likelihood that they will get included in phase 2 of the JN-NSM. “Look at the amount of fossil fuels we are importing at the cost of dollars and the country’s health. Just look at the savings we can do for the nation if we can develop solar technology,” added Dr. Abdullah.
Solarcon India 2010 kicks off in Hyderabad!
Honourable Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy, Dr Farooq Abdullah, along with Honourable Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, K. Rosaiah, and Honourable Union Minister for Urban Development, Jaipal Reddy, inaugurating Solarcon India 2010.
Solarcon India 2010, the second edition of India’s largest solar-energy-focused event organized by SEMI India, the premier trade body of the Indian solar/PV industry, kicked off at HICC, Hyderabad today.
Honourable Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy, Dr Farooq Abdullah, inaugurated the three day exposition and conference. Honourable Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, K. Rosaiah presided over the event. Honourable Union Minister for Urban Development, Jaipal Reddy, was the Guest of Honour.
The conference keynote was delivered by Dr Winfried Hoffmann, President, European Photovoltaic Industry Association.
India’s first solar industry directory, published by SEMI India was released on the occasion.
More details later… am still at the conference! 😉
SEMI India benchmarks India's NSM on global FIT best practices
SEMI India organized a panel discussion in Bangalore, India, today to discuss public policy principles on feed-In tariffs (FITs) and their relevance to the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JN NSM).
L-R: Dr. J Gururaja, Honorary Executive President, REAF (Renewable Energy Advocacy Forum), K. Subramanya, CEO, Tata BP Solar and Chair, SEMI India PV Advisory Committee, and Sathya Prasad, President, SEMI India.
SEMI India also released a white paper on the policy principles and recommended global best practices for solar FITs, with comments on its relevance to the Indian context.
I believe the paper can be downloaded from the SEMI/PV Group’s website.
A feed-in tariff (FIT) is said to be a “Government policy to encourage adoption of renewable energy by requiring regional or national electric utilities to buy electricity from renewable sources at above-market rates.” If you look at the global FIT statistics, 37 countries adopted FITs in 2008, which now stands at 45 countries.
According to Sathya Prasad, president SEMI India, policy drives the solar PV market. For instance, over 80 percent of 2008 PV demand came from the FIT supported market.
More details later! 😉 Keep watching!
Round-up 2009: Best of solar photovoltaics
Part III in the series ‘Round-up 2009’ features the top posts in solar photovoltaics during the year gone by. Some friends and readers have spent hours searching for blog posts. Hope this list will help them to easily find the blog post they are looking for. Here you go!
SOLAR PHOTOVOLTAICS
Dramatic price forecast to reshape PV industry: iSuppli
Opportunities in India’s solar/PV landscape: SEMI India
More mature PV industry likely post solar downturn: iSuppli
How is PV industry reacting to oversupply conditions?
Dr. Robert Castellano on how to make solar a ‘hot’ sector again – 1
Dr. Robert Castellano on how to make solar a ‘hot’ sector again – 2
Consolidation likely in solar cell manufacturing to control oversupply, and, lessons for India!
Top-10 solar cell suppliers in 2009: iSuppli — This was also a top read article during 2009!
Solar PV industry scenario in India!
Rising opportunities in India’s solar PV space
Highest efficiency Si solar cells realised with n-Si — Prof. Weber, Fraunhofer ISE
Solar Semiconductor’s Hari Surapaneni on why solar is good for India!
India major destination for solar/PV investments!
Dynamics of the global PV industry
Prof. Eicke R. Weber, Fraunhofer Institute on future of PV
Solar PV and Utility 2.0: Making the grid smarter!
Union Cabinet approves National Solar Mission; 20 GW by 2022 (not 2020)! — The day and event everyone’s waited so very patiently for long in the Indian solar/PV industry!
Indian government unveils National Solar Mission Plan document!
What’s next in PV equipment?
Again, it is extremely difficult for me to list the Top 10. If you can decide, that’ll be great.
Best wishes to my dear friends, well-wishers and everyone for a happy and prosperous 2010!
Solar PV and Utility 2.0: Making the grid smarter!
The plenary session at the recently held Solarcon India 2009 was presented by Jigar Shah, Founder, SunEdison.
According to him, emerging markets are important for growth of solar energy as these markets are likely to grow at CAGR of 72 percent from 2008-13.
In contrast, North America would grow at 61 percent, other OECD countries at 21 percent and Europe at 16 percent. So, what would be the total addressable market? In 2010, $100 billion (approximately 5 percent) of the global retail electricity demand could be competitively addressed with solar power.
He added that system prices had fallen 40 percent in 2009 vs. 2008, with more to come in 2010. It is expected to stabilize to long-term trend of ~5 percent per annum. The system cost is expected to drop to $2.85/W, supported by the increase in the system efficiency.
Shah mentioned that India has the best solar resource in Asia. All technologies work in India including the technologies that generate electricity only from direct normal insolation (DNI).
Thin-film and multijunction solar cells can easily be manufactured in India and have half the performance degradation due to temperature.
He highlighted the case of wireless telecom in India, which has helped India leapfrog in communications (over the fixed line services) and though it is more expensive, yet communication has been the largest source of productivity growth in the entire decade.
Shah put solar in the similar situation which could be exploited as the largest energy resource for India in the long term. According to him, energy has the capability to be the next largest source of GDP growth potential in India. However, it also presents the biggest challenge to growth. Here, there are four aspects:
* Price is not as important as the existence of electricity.
* India continues to be unable to institute land and water policies necessary to grow electricity simply through new coal.
* Nuclear is proving to be just as difficult and costly as coal.
* What is the trade off between electricity pricing and GDP growth? Data shows that household electrification in villages results in a 64 percent increase in family income.
Besides, airports, shopping centers, deserts, and industrial sites can cover 20,000 MW of solar without using agricultural land. He opined that solar is a better energy product due to the following factors:
* Solar is scalable and growing.
* Solar is competitive.
* Solar is predictable.
* Space for solar installations is available.
Plan for Grid connected solar program
The main challenge is that the state electricity boards (SEBs) do not know how to integrate 21st century technologies or “Utility 2.0.” This involves energy efficiency, self generation, independent power producers, etc. So how does solar fit into Utility 2.0? It is not only about solar, but also about storage.
Shah also advocated a plan for a grid connected solar program. The new goal should be: 20,000 MW program by 2020, starting with 100 MW in 2010!
For this, the industry would be required to grow at 50 percent annually to meet ~2 percent of India’s needs by 2020. Government should also allow for 80 percent depreciation on all systems.
It should encourage SEBs to provide full tariff without seeking Central funding support. Integrated solar manufacturing should be encouraged. This can result in creation of 1 million direct job years of employment.
How to achieve all of this?
How would one go about in achieving this? First, start with a generous 25-year feed-in Tariff (FIT). For instance, Rs 15 per kWh would show seriousness and attract players. Also, it would be prudent to reduce FIT based on MW targets – not based on calendar year.
Next, there should be hassle free interconnection to the grid and purchase of electricity in priority to conventional electricity. There should also be a training program for contractors to learn how to install solar PV – grant funding.
Further, in the areas of utility rates and revenue policies, Shah recommended charging customers real cost of electricity –- peak and off-peak. He suggested keeping subsidized rates for the poor, and a tiered rate structure (higher rate as the consumption increases) for middle class and wealthier customerss.
“It all comes down to Utility 2.0! It needs some effort to make the grid smarter,” Shah concluded.
Rising opportunities in India’s solar PV space
SEMI India, in association with Intersolar India and partner organizations India Semiconductor Association (ISA) and Fab City, organizing SOLARCON India 2009, today held an interactive panel discussion titled, ”Rising opportunities for Solar/PV in India”.
The participants were: Sathya Prasad, president, SEMI India, BP Acharya, CMD APIIC, Sankar Rao, MD, Titan Energy Systems, SSN Prasad, VP, Solar Semiconductors, and Seshagiri Rao, India Sales Head, Oerlikon.
Abundant solar radiation in India!
According to Sathya Prasad, president, SEMI India, India is abundantly endowed with solar radiation — > 300 sunny days a year and 5 trillion kWh of solar energy per year available across the land mass. “Even 0.5 percent of India’s land mass generating solar electricity can meet the entire power needs of the country in the year 2030,” he said.
India PV end market – opportunities
Several opportunities exist in the India PV end market, such as:
* Basic lighting and electrification of rural homes.
* Irrigation pump sets.
* Power backup for cellular base stations.
* Urban applications.
* Solar power plants
Indian PV manufacturing background
India has a long history of solar/PV activity. CEL and BHEL have been around from the 1970s. Pioneering R&D work has also been done. The Indian space program was one of the early drivers. A few private companies have been in operation for ~two decades.
There has been a rising production capacity in India. This is extending from module to cell manufacturing. Also, the industry is now getting into downstream opportunities.
India PV end market – opportunities in urban applications.
Today, most of the output is in exports (~70 percent).
India solar capacity targets
* Satisfy large solar local market (generation capacity)
— A few hundred MW Today
— 1000 MW by 2013
— 6000 – 7000 MW by 2017
— 20,000 MW by 2020
— 100,000 / 200,000 by 2030/2050, respectively
* Solar manufacturing capacity targets
— A few hundred MW Today
— 1000MW-1500 MW by 2012 / 2013
— 4000MW-5000 MW by 2017
Why is local solar/PV manufacturing important?
* Benefits of manufacturing locally in India
— Ability to scale production to meet end-demand
— Cost reduction
— Quality/reliability enhancements for local conditions
— Customization of end solutions targeted for India market
* Build competitive advantage in the long-term
* Employment creation (~100,000 over next 10 yrs)
Solar/PV manufacturing in India
* Govt recognition of potential of solar/PV
— Targets of 20,000 MW by 2020
* State government initiatives: Example: FabCity initiative
* Rising interest from Industry for solar/PV
— Integrated PV/solar manufacturing park
* India can provide a competitive manufacturing base for PV (cells, modules and solutions)
— Well established industrial base
— Industrial manpower available (PV training needed)
Solar farms, India an emerging leader Read more…
Opportunities in India's solar/PV landscape: SEMI India
Solar/photovoltaics (PV) holds tremendous potential and promise for India, a fact not hidden from anyone. To further highlight its importance, SEMI India unveiled its first paper on Solar PV in India yesterday afternoon.
More action from Indian government needed
The meet called for more action from the government of India, a more closer industry-government collaboration, as well as the need for financial institutions to pay more attention to the solar/PV segment in India.
The photo here shows from left to right: Dr. Madhusudan V. Atre, President, Applied Materials India; Dr. J. Gururaja, Renewable Energy Action Forum & Executive President, SEMI India; K. Subramanya, CEO, Tata BP Solar; and Sathya Prasad, president, SEMI India.
Touching on the rationale for this SEMI paper on solar/PV’s landscape in India, Dr. J. Gururaja, Renewable Energy Action Forum and Executive President, SEMI India, said it was meant to project the solar/PV industry’s perspective: where we are and what needs to be done! This is a first account report and will be followed by many other such reports.
He said: “Solar in general, and PV in particular, can address the challenges that we face today. Solar/PV has a special attraction. It converts solar to electricity without involving any moving parts.”
He added that although the industry has been looking at the potential, the markets have not been expanding as expected. “We need to see what can be done and achieved. This report is a stock-taking exercise,” he pointed out.
Case for solar/PV in India
Sathya Prasad, president of SEMI India, touched upon the case for PV in India. These include:
* The existing power deficit situation in many parts of the country.
* India’s brisk economic growth implies rising energy needs.
* Overdependence on coal for electricity generation — limited coal reserves and CO2 emissions.
* Overdependence on oil and natural gas imports — it accounts for 7 percent of GDP and consequent energy security concerns.
According to him, India is abundantly endowed with solar radiation. So far, so good!
Key PV opportunities for India
According to SEMI’s paper, the key PV opportunities for India lie in off-grid applications and grid-connected PV. The off-grid applications include:
* Basic lighting and electrification of rural homes.
* Irrigation pump sets.
* Power back-up for cellular base station towers — approximately, there will be 2.9 lakh base station towers by the end of 2009.
* Urban applications — such as street lighting, etc.
The opportunities in grid-connected PV exist in:
* The current grid connected PV generation capacity is very small.
* Existing power deficit and huge projected future need.
* The cost point of PV has been declining continuously with technology improvements and scale.
Benefits of PV in India
The benefits of PV in India extend well beyond addressing energy needs. For instance, renewable energy technologies create more jobs than any fossil fuel based technologies. It also creates jobs across the value chain — from R&D to manufacturing, installation and maintenance. Sathya Prasad highlighted MNRE’s point that about 100,000 jobs could be created out of PV.
PV also has the capability of transforming lives. About 450 million Indians today manage with kerosene/other fuels for very basic lighting despite its significant health and safety risks. In this context, special mention needs to be made of the Aryavarta Grameen Bank’s home electrification program.
Challenges for PV in India
Evidently, a bunch of opportunities are awaiting India in the solar/PV space. However, several challenges need to be overcome as well. These would be:
* Need for closer industry-government co-operation.
* Need for standards.
* Need for collaborative, goals driven R&D.
* Training and human resources development
* Need for financing infrastructure and models.
So, what are the recommendations of this paper on solar/PV landscape in India, and further call to action? These are:
* Need to evolve a common government-industry vision to make India a world leader in PV.
* Develop financing infrastructure and models that will motivate large-scale PV adoption and investments.
* Expand development of PV in off-grid applications.
* Accelerate grid-connected PV generation on a large scale.
Call for low carbon growth strategy
“Low carbon growth path is universal now. To make that happen, there needs to be a political will,” advised K. Subramanya, CEO, Tata BP Solar, and chairman SEMI India PV Advisory Committee, while presenting his perspective on the solar/PV industry in India.
There has been little action on part of the government of India. “This needs to be implemented on the ground. We need policy and lifestyle innovation,” he added. Subramanya cautioned that, “Too much of analysis will result in paralysis.” According to him, separate budgets are required for a low carbon growth strategy. “Solar has tremendous potential. Even its learning curve is brilliant,” Subramanya noted.
He added that if the European Union (EU) can make a low carbon journey so smoothly, then why not India? For instance, in Karnataka state alone, the demand is said to be 6700MW and a 10-11 percent peak shortage. We have 20-odd lakh Bhagya Jyoti and Kutir Jyoti units, and around 7,870-odd street lights. If a majority of these can be replaced by solar, it could lead to tremendous savings! This could be at least 57MW for a state like Karnataka. Apparently, all of this would require an investment of Rs. 52 crores and a payback time of two years.
“Why can’t we develop a low-carbon growth path for every state in India? Imagine, what it can do for the other states,” Subramanya highlighted. “If the power sector does not do well, it will hit the country’s GDP!” Quite rightly so!!
Subramanya cited another example of solar water heaters in Karnataka. There are 32 lakh homes, of which about 5 lakh homes have solar water heaters. If more houses were to adopt these, it would result in a saving of 4,000MW of electricity! The Tata BP Solar CEO also called upon financial institutions to have a closer look at solar. Even the tariffs structure for solar/PV in India is not favorable enough.
He also touched upon US President Barack Obama’s energy plan and the actions taken, since his coming to power, and drew a parallel with India’s national action plan, which includes a solar mssion. This was released last June, but hardly any action has happened on the ground. So, there needs be changes on this front as well.
Four key aspects for solar/PV in India
Dr. Madhusudan V. Atre, president, Applied Materials India and vice chairman SEMI India PV Advisory Committee, highlighted four major aspects while presenting his perspective on the solar/PV industry. These are:
* See the advantage SEMI India brings to India. It can help bring costs down, due to the involvement of the PV Group.
* A point Dr. Atre had highlighted to me about a year back — that solar/PV is a great way to trigger manufacturing in India. He said that the solar/PV ecosystem will be a very important step in setting up a semiconductor manufacturing ecosystem in the country.
* What wireless did to telecom — perhaps, solar/PV has a similar aim! It can get rid of transmission lines and actually take power to the people!
* The Indian government-academia-industry w
ould need to work hand-in-hand.
Solar sunburn likely in 2009? India, are you listening?
iSuppli’s just issued a warning that 2009 could well see the coming of a solar market eclipse!
Come to think of it! Just last week, in the Semiconductor International webcast, the analysts did mention that there could be tough times ahead for solar! In fact, Aida Jebens, Senior Economist, VLSI Research Inc., did indicate that solar/PV would pick up in the next two years and that 2009 could be a tough year.
If you look at the India situation, I have been getting the feeling all the time that all of a sudden, too many companies were entering this market segment, as though it is a land of promised gold! Perhaps, it is, and one sincerely wishes that all of those investments proposed for solar do not come unstuck.
This August, following the announcement of the national semiconductor policy (the Special Incentive Package Scheme, or SIPS), the government of India received 12 proposals amounting to a total investment of Rs. 92,915.38 crore. Ten of these proposals were for solar/PV, from: KSK Surya (Rs. 3,211 crore), Lanco Solar (Rs. 12,938 crore), PV Technologies India (Rs. 6,000 crore), Phoenix Solar India (Rs.1,200 crore), Reliance Industries (Rs.11,631 crore), Signet Solar (Rs. 9,672 crore), Solar Semiconductor (Rs.11,821 crore), TF Solar Power (Rs. 2,348 crore), Tata BP Solar India (Rs. 1,692.80 crore), and Titan Energy System (Rs. 5,880.58 crore).
Then, late September, Vavasi Telegence (Rs. 39,000 crore), EPV Solar (Rs. 4,000 crore), and Lanco Solar (Rs. 12,938 crore), also announced major investments.
Now, given the quite ruthless kind of financial crisis the world is currently engulfed in, several have raised doubts whether solar players would be able to get the credit they need. Or, would they run into rough weather?
On paper, some of these companies are big corporate houses, with several years of standing. However, reality can be quite different, and can bite! I’ve yet to hear whether all of these companies have managed to raise the requisite capital. One sure wishes that they have all been busy and will be successful!
Otherwise, all one needs to look at is iSuppli’s warning. According to iSuppli, ‘Bringing an end to eight consecutive years of growth, global revenue for photovoltaic (PV), panels is expected to plunge by nearly 20 percent in 2009, as a massive oversupply causes prices to drop.’
Will it be a case of massive oversupply in India? We haven’t exactly started. Hence, perhaps, we will come to deal with oversupply later. The key thing is to get all of these solar/PV projects off the ground!
The India Semiconductor Association (ISA), and now, SEMI India, have been promoting the solar/PV industry very aggressively. The work they’ve done so far has been commendable, and I’ve been witness to all of their activities. However, keep in mind that these are only industry associations, who can only advice, guide, debate and promote the industry, and also provide industry statistics for everyone to consume.
The real action can only happen once the proposals have been cleared by the Indian government and the players have managed to arrange for the requisite capital for their projects. The Indian fab story with SemIndia is all to familiar, and there should not be a repitition with solar/PV projects.
Therefore, the role of the government of India will be extremely critical and crucial. The good health of the Indian solar/PV industry is entirely in its hands, and not in the hands of the industry associations.
Perhaps, the Indian government could do well to look at how the Taiwan government is playing a critical role in reviving the hard hit DRAM industry and also at the German free state of Saxony, which has played a key role in financing the ailing Qimonda.
Otherwise, the Indian solar/PV industry could get hit, even before it takes off the ground! And, as a nation, we cannot afford that to happen!
India has so far has had a good story going in solar. There are hopes that solar/PV will trigger off a spate of manufacturing activities in India, besides creating lots of jobs. Don’t think we can afford to spoil all of this!
The industry in India is still very much in its infancy. Let the baby play happily in the water (solar) tub, instead of throwing the water out! This baby needs a lot of hand-holding to get stronger in the years to come.
Pradeep Chakraborty 