Next-Gen Solar Energy Hub : Gujarat, India

After the conventional uses of solar energy, Gujarat government has taken a step forward with an initiative to power the billboards with solar power. This would obviously be a low compared to total energy consumption. But as one likely said, a drop each time fills up the ocean!

On the initiative, the government is likely to set-up a state-level steering committee to lay down guidelines with the help of Departments of Forest, Energy and Urban Development. It will be implemented in seven big cities namely, Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Surat, Rajkot, Jamnagar, Junagadh and Bhavnagar. This has come up live in the moment of IPL which has gone into huge level of billboard advertising. With many such events coming up, the outdoor advertising has again come up in the limelight. Other reality-based shows/ events such as Indian Idol (Singing) and Dance India Dance (Dancing) have been the major driver of billboard advertising on a regular basis.

Currently the solar powered billboards come with an ability to operate 4, 6, 8 or 10 hours a night based on the battery storage capability. The PV panels can illuminate from one/ two sides of a 30-feet wide billboard depending upon the requirements. The current price of a sample billboard is approximately INR 2, 10,000 for a 2 panel, 318 AHR battery back-up, two-side lighting, solar-powered billboard system.

Some of the benefits of a solar-powered bill-board system are:

·         do not need to run underground wire from the nearest electrical transformer to the billboard

·         do not need to pay the additional costs of digging trenches for underground wiring

·         allows the outdoor advertiser to provide consistent, affordable lighting to billboard locations without the need to negotiate with property owners to use their property for underground wiring and landscaping

·         no need to meter and bill the Billboard Lighting System.

All Indians are religious at some or the other level. Have you ever imagined how much energy is consumed at these pilgrimage sites? I am in the process of calculating the same through some model. But that will follow in subsequent entries.

We have already seen a world's largest solar cooking system being installed at Shirdi, Maharashtra. Solar lights are already put up in Somnath, Gujarat. The point was reiterated at a recent announcement by Ambaji Temple Trust in Gujarat. Ambaji Temple Trust is planning to go fully solar with all the electricity being produced from the solar sources. I was fortunate to visit there few months back. The lights at night use the power generated through solar generators. The striking thing over here is that few private solar energy players are helping the temple trust.

Now to bring the case in point, imagine the number of people coming to these sites everyday. Maybe 1000s. And on special occasions such as "full moon day"(Poonam) this rises to 10,000s. If we consider the people segmentation, then it consists from average income to Ultra High Net worth Individuals UHNIs. I don't want to play the name game, but religion is closely linked to money in India. (All in the good sense). We have some of the richest and biggest temples in India just by the sheer number of visitors per day. People in India are firm believers in atleast one "Deity" and do their pilgrimage visits atleast once in a year. Now, solar energy companies can target such temple trust for promoting their companies. There are multiple benefits attached:

·         Larger range of audience to showcase your products and services

·         Brand recognition

·         New project opportunity

·         Broadening your network

This strategy can be very important for international companies which are planning to enter or have already entered in India and especially Gujarat market. Some other temples are:

You can include some more benefit points and names of temples through comments.

God Bless All!!!

(Image Courtesy: www.mustmast.com)

After mulling over past few days on what the budget may bring in for renewable energy, the government has announced an allocation of INR 10 billion towards the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission and the establishment of a Clean Energy Fund. It's an increase of INR 3.8 billion from the previous budget. I am sure this would encourage more companies setting up their offices in India. Government is also giving a boost to more public-private partnerships in the sector.

Also as very few might know that budget has also encouraged private solar companies by reducing customs duty on solar panels by 5 percent and exempting excise duty on solar photovoltaic panels. This is expected to reduce the roof-top solar panel installation by 15- 20 percent. Currently it cost around INR 1.2- 1.5 million for installation solar energy panel on a roof-top.

The budget also proposed a coal tax of USD 1 per metric ton on domestic and imported coal used for power generation. According to the sources, the tax could raise about USD 543 million which can again be used for investments in solar and other renewable energies.

In an international update of the industry, Google has claimed that it is working on a prototype of mirrors used in concentrated solar energy which can reduce the cost by 2-X. If that comes to commercial applicability then it would obviously make a huge impact on the solar energy market. The search-engine giant has lately been investing in solar energy and green business. It has already invested in two solar companies: eSolar and BrightSource.

What is to be noted over here is that this highly innovative company is focusing more on solar thermal energy. Can this be the answer to the long fought battle between PV and CSP? It's for you to answer.