Will Wind-Solar hybrid projects take off?

In the run-up leading to a record installation of wind and solar projects in India 2016 saw a slew of major announcements from the Government. One of the policies that received much fanfare was the announcement of Wind-Solar Hybrid policy. However, its been well over an year and yet there seems to be no final regulation on that front.

Highlights from draft national wind-solar hybrid policy (2016)

• Wind-solar hybrid capacity target of 10GW.
• The policy envisages wind-solar hybrid integration at both the DC and AC side.
• Hybridization of existing wind/solar project permitted provided the total capacity is within the evacuation limit.
• Tariff for power generated could be FiT fixed by state regulators or discovered through competitive tariff.
• All fiscal incentives available for wind/solar to be provided for hybrid projects.

Following up on the announcement at the national level, Andhra Pradesh (AP) released its draft wind-solar hybrid policy in 2016. AP govt. went ahead with finer definitions of capacities and other functional modalities but, there is no update on the final policy yet.

• Target of 3000MW of wind-solar hybrid capacity by 2019-20.
• System integration permitted in pooling sub-station or co-injection after inverter.
• The hybrid policy also to look at other emerging technologies like energy storage systems.
• At locations where wind density is higher, solar capacity to be lower and vice versa.
• APTRANSCO to consider evacuation based on ampacity rather than MVA/MW connectivity.
• No additional charges to be levied if additional wind/solar capacity is below the sanctioned transmission capacity.
• Policy envisages both DC and AC integration. Also supports existing/allotted projects to be integrated as hybrid project.
• Capacity split between wind and solar to be in the ratio 1:0.6 to 1:1.5
• Wind and solar generation to be metered separately and paid based on the tariff set by state regulator for different voltage levels at project site.
• 25 year exemption of transmission, distribution and cross subsidy charges for captive/ open access.
• Must run status for hybrid projects. (Read more about the latest issue with must-run status)

Another state, Gujarat,  released a draft version of wind-solar hybrid policy in early 2017 but is yet to be finalized. Gujarat, unlike AP lacked clarity even in the draft policy. The basic requirement of allowing wind and solar to use the same evacuation system was being challenged with metering allowed only at the pooled sub-station level. Globally, wind-solar hybrid projects have taken off pretty well (read more about a project by juwi). In India, NTPC has taken the lead role with a project ongoing near its thermal plant in Karnataka which was won by Siemens-Gamesa, 2MW wind and 1.37MW of solar. (Read more)

In order to enable large scale development of wind-solar hybrid projects, there is a need for clarity on the tariff (and metering) considering the recent low tariffs in India (More on solar tariffs in India). Power evacuation has to be on a common transmission line unlike the one proposed by Gujarat state. Its high time the regulators open up the forums for discussion on the draft policies and finalise the regulations, until then the hybrid projects are likely to stay grounded.

 

 

 

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Karnataka solar rooftop PV regulation

Electricity markets have always witnessed a tussle between the utilities and the regulators, Karnataka state is no different. The electricity regulator has always been among the first in the country in implementing progressive policies in the Renewable Energy (RE) sector. However, the progress of all the plans has been disheartening and in most cases it is due to lack of co-operation from the utility in the state. A case in point is the solar rooftop projects, in spite of having the highest Feed-in Tariff (FiT) of ₹ 9.56/kWh in the country in 2013, there was a lack of adoption for well over a year. The reason, Distribution Companies (DISCOMs) came up with an implementation plan nearly a year after the order.

Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) has recently drafted a regulation to address the concerns of domestic residents living in apartment complexes with shared roofs and electrical connections. The proposed regulation intends to offer existing solar rooftop owners in shared roofs an option to increase their capacity and also new residents who wish to install a bigger system by aggregating the contract demand of multiple households in the building.

The proposed regulation aims to fill all the gaps existing in the current system which hinders adoption of solar rooftop system in residential complexes. The proposed tariff at Average Pooled Power Purchase cost (APPC) which is currently at ₹ 3.97/kWh for BESCOM will raise eyebrows considering the FiT is at ₹ 7.08/kWh for domestic consumers.

Will the regulations have a positive impact?

• The regulation is likely to have a positive impact because it removes the regulatory hurdle currently preventing residential complexes in implementing the system.
• Residential complexes tend to install solar as a way to reduce their energy bills and hence the type of metering or tariffs wouldn’t matter much.
• The regulation would however impact early adopters who will have to surrender their individual Power Purchase Agreements (PPA) if the complex as a whole is going for a bigger system in the common roof.

Overall, the regulation is definitely a good step but I believe there are technical challenges like metering involved in the implementation phase which only the DISCOMs can solve. I had a conversation with a regulator in KERC prior to the drafting of this regulation discussing issues related to solar rooftop in the state. He clearly admitted that at their level they can only bring in the best-fit regulation considering all stakeholders in mind but the final implementation is out of their purview. The comments to this draft regulation are open till 5^th July post that there could be a revised regulation coming up.

Check the proposed regulation:Here

Forecasting and scheduling of renewable energy in India

Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) has mandated Forecasting and Scheduling (F&S) for wind and solar assets in the state with penalties for deviation from the 1st of this month. The current regulations are applicable to all wind generators with a cumulative capacity of 10MW and above and all solar generators with an installed capacity of 5MW and above.

Why need F&S?

The concern raised by the lobby of wind developers might seem justified against penalties for deviations which add to the cost of energy, but a stringent F&S mechanism will only enable the grid to accept more Renewable Energy (RE).

F&S could reduce RE curtailment

Increasing RE will lead to local and system level congestion in the existing Indian grid and it will be essential to curtail wind and solar during those periods. Curtailment generally is attributed to the grid’s inability to absorb RE generation but what goes unnoticed is the surplus generation from RE that is beyond what is forecast and scheduled leading to a shortage of grid transfer capability. A significant part of RE curtailment is in fact considered economic in that case.

Adding flexibility to the system in the long run

• Accurate F&S will lead to creating an economic system where utilities could offer tariff incentives to increase consumption during peak wind/solar generation periods.
• It could also lead to efficient use of traditional power assets.
• A better inter-state coordination in managing power demand and delivering other grid ancillary services will become a possibility. Regional co-ordination has been a key to the success of RE integration in US.

Regulatory dimension

The regulator’s objective of delivering energy at the lowest possible cost shall always remain. At times, the intermittent nature of RE has caused the thermal power plants to provide flexibility by operating at a lower PLF thereby adding to the cost of energy and not to mention associated emissions (which is against the climate commitments). The F&S regulation will enable to enforce a better grid discipline by managing congestion which will provide value to the generators in the long run.  The next step for the regulators at state level would be to narrow the deviations by reducing the band and increasing the penalties. There is also a need for synchronisation of intrastate and interstate F&S regulations for better accounting and settlement.

The F&S regulations are not new for RE in India, Indian Electricity Grid Code made provisions in 2010. The current regulations based on the proposal from CERC in 2015 have been under draft across a few states. Rajasthan, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu have even implemented F&S on a voluntary basis. Karnataka has once again led the way in official implementing a timely regulation (with penalties) although it is likely to lose again on the market to other states that come up with a better regulation like Tamil Nadu’s proposal of a narrow band of ±10% for wind and ±5% for solar. One thing for sure can be guaranteed, a better grid discipline.