‘Renewables Integration in India 2021’

On 22nd July, 2021, a report on ‘Renewables Integration in India 2021’ was jointly launched by NITI Aayog & International Energy Agency (IEA). The report highlights specific energy transition challenges faced by the renewables-rich States of India. It uses IEA modelling results to show the effects of different flexibility options on the power system.

Key Highlights of the Report

India’s Growing Demand for Energy

  • India is the third largest energy-consuming country in the world and has made significant progress towards universal electrification targets for residential users.
  • 100 million people in India gained electricity access in 2018. Per capita electricity consumption across 28 Indian States and 8 Union Territories is still around a third of the world average and is expected to continue increasing in future.

Renewable Energy Penetration in India

  • Renewable energy penetration is highly variable among the States in India.
  • The share of solar and wind energy in India’s ten renewables-rich States (Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Punjab and Kerala) is significantly higher than the national average of 8.2%.

Renewable Energy Integration: Future Prospects and Way Ahead for India

  • The report highlights that India’s power system can efficiently integrate renewables (175 GW by 2022 and 450 GW by 2030) but it would require identification of resources and proper planning, regulatory, policy and institutional support, energy storage and advance technology initiatives.
  • In order to successfully transition to cleaner electricity systems, a wide range of flexible options may be adopted. These include:
    • Time of Use tariffs (effective tool to incentivise demand-side management and encourage flexible consumption);
    • More flexible operation of coal-based power plants;
    • Larger shares of renewables can be better managed by shifting the time of use in agriculture;
    • Proper resources planning and better implementation of technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), base power system management and smart grid intervention.

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