Feed in Tariff
June 21, 2011
India's JNNSM on the other hand has seen the first phase marked by a number of teething problems like debt financing,absurdly low bidding by noname companies,poor electricity infrastructure.The Second Phase is supposed to ally these problems but the first plans do not seem to be too great.The support for large solar farms will be increased from the current 5 MW cap to 20-25 MW cap.This will lead to only large investors,utilities and companies being left in the fray and lead to lesser competition.Also there is no support for rooftop solar which will help to broadbase the reach of solar energy.A Policy which helps distributed solar like Germany will do much more to boost solar in the country than supporting massive solar plants that will only help large companies making the most of the taxpayer subsidies.Note Delhi is the only state in India which is giing primacy to rooftop solar systems and is in the process of announcing a capital subsidy soon.The reason may be that Delhi mostly consists of urban homes and they have little option.
June 21, 2011
Japan's Solar Energy Manufacturing Industry is quite large and second only to China which may surprise a lot of readers. Sharp was the largest solar company by revenues and the other six zaibatsus have been present in the solar power manufacturing for a long time.Mitsubishi the Japanese conglomerate with diversified global interests has a big presence in solar and wind energy as well.It has a low profile solar module and system business.The company is known for its high quality panels and has a decent presence in USA and Japan.However like Kyocera it has not been aggressive enough leading to loss in marketshare.
May 31, 2011
India and China are largely dependent on Coal for fueling a majority of their energy needs despite the evident disadvantages of coal.China derives almost 80% of its electricity from coal while India uses Coal for 50% of its Energy Needs.Most of the new power plants being built in India have plans to use thermal power which means that the coal demand is going to skyrocket even as these 2 Asian giants are already suffering from coal shortages.India's Coal Production is falling short as the Environment Ministry makes it tough for the coal miners to dig up virgin forest areas even as private Indian power companies keep on building gargantuan thermal power plants of more than 4,000 MW capacity.Most Indian companies are now racing to acquire coal mines abroad joining the Chinese companies.Seeing the massive potential in coal,international resource giants such as Rio Tinto and others are trying to access coal assets as well.
May 31, 2011
Malaysia is one of the biggest hubs of solar manufacturing in the world through aggressive government support programs and tax holidays.It is home to the biggest manufacturing site for the world's most valued solar company First Solar and has been the preferred choice for solar investment from leading global solar companies .The Reasons behind Malaysia’s Success is government support in the forms of tax breaks,loans,simple regulation and low labor costs.While many of these subsidies have been given by other countries like Singapore,Malaysia has done it with a finesse and dedication that has made it a winner.Many world class companies have started solar manufacturing operations in Malaysia like Flextronics,Q-Cells,Sunpower and First Solar.The country has been planning to implement an ambitious Feed in Tariff program to subsidize Renewable Energy generation.The country has been inspired by Germany whose FIT policy has led it to become the largest solar generating country in the world despite its low solar radiation.
May 31, 2011
Central Energy Regulatory Commission (CERC),India's Electricity Regulator is planning to increase the frequency of compliance of the Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) for states from an annual affair to a bi or quad annual affair.Note Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) Trading in India started in 2011 to facilitate the development of the Renewable Energy Industry in India.According to the RPO,a certain percentage of a state's electricity generation must come from clean energy sources.States and utilities which can't meet their renewable energy requirements can buy REC from Indian Energy Exchanges to meet their needs.Power Exchanges in India have already set the ball rolling in terms of trading in RECs.
May 31, 2011
DuPont Apollo is a wholly-owned subsidiary of DuPont started a 50 MW thin-film photovoltaic module manufacturing facility at Shenzen in 2010. DuPont Apollo is focused on the China domestic market but seems like that they are not getting too much traction in the hyper competitive Chinese market and now trying its hand in the Indian market where solar manufacturing industry is not too competitive.
Indian Solar Energy Market has seen the entry of many foreign companies eager to tap this huge opportunity.This list of foreign solar companies in India keeps growing on a daily basis with both startups like Abound and large companies like First Solar,Suntech making India as an integral part of their global growth strategy.DuPont the global chemicals giant too has entered the solar energy industry in partnership with Wipro EcoEnergy.DuPont Apollo will supply Wipro with its Thin Film Amorphous Silicon Solar Panels which will be used in the grid projects.Note a number of Joint Ventures in Indian solar industry have been recently formed.
May 30, 2011
Coal has become the hottest energy topic in the world’s fastest growing economies India and China which depend on Coal for a majority of their Energy […]
May 30, 2011
German utilities have protested against the move as recently they were buoyed by the decision of the Merkel led government to extend the life of the nuclear reactors by more than 10 years.However the weight of public opinion has made the German government go into the damage control phase ( though too late in my opinion.German power companies too know that going against popular opposition will be quite fruitless.Note Germany faces problems as the replacement of the 7 shutdown nuclear reactors will be difficult to replace.Solar Power has been playing an important role but in winter this problem may become acute.According to some analysts,Germany will have to import power (nuclear as well) from other European countries.This will lead to increase in electricity prices.However its a great win for all forms of Green Energy as Germany has no alternative but to go with Green Energy as Germany does not have abundant reserves of Cheap Gas (like USA).Also Coal has its disadvantages which make it very difficult in an environmentally conscious country like Germany.
May 29, 2011
Having good solar radiation data is essential for building solar power plants anywhere.USA and European Union have a well-developed insolation map so that developers and investors in solar energy have no difficulty in getting good data while planning an investment.However Indian developers are at a distinct disadvantage as there is no good primary data to go on.Solar Radiation data makes a huge difference to the economics of a project and no bank will give a loan based on incomplete data.For the inexperienced developers this has become another problem among a host of other problems.With little understanding of the technology and other factors,many of them jumped in and are now in a deep soup.However the prospects of the Indian solar energy are great even with these initial hiccups.The flushing out of the weak hands should help in strengthening the solar energy industry in India in the best traditions of capitalism.
May 28, 2011
Solar Power in India is going to be one of the biggest opportunities in the 21st century with a number of favorable supply and demand factors converging.The Indian government too has supported Solar Energy in India through the ambitious JNNSM which aims for around 20 GW of Solar Capacity by 2020 (which is too low in my view).A Number of Green Companies both domestic and foreign have already made huge plans to capitalize on this oppurtunity.Here are some of the major happenings in India's solar sector in the last month or so.Juwi which is one of the biggest solar energy developers in Germany ( a market which has become saturated) has joined hands with Lanco Solar ( a subsidiary of one of India's biggest private power companies) to set up a 75 MW Solar Plant in Maharashtra winning a contract from the state power generation company Mahagenco.The contract value is Rs 884 crore which works out to be just under Rs 12 crores/MW or $2.6/watt which is extremely low even with the price of solar panels crashing in the international market.At this price the electricity generated won't be too expensive and Mahagenco has a good deal.On the other hand Juwi and Lanco get bragging rights to being the development team for one of India's biggest solar plants.
May 12, 2011
Power Finance Corporation Green Energy has been floated as a subsidiary of one of India's biggest power sector financier Power Finance Corporation.As the name implies the company's mission is to provide loans to India's Green Energy Industry.Note India requires around $10 billion dollars according to the government plans of building 17 GW of Alternative Energy Capacity in India between 2012-2017 which is low in my view.However even this low target will require a massive amount of debt financing to the tune of around $6-7 billion annually.Power Finance Corporation is one India's largest infrastructure financing companies owned by the government.The company which has billions of dollars of loan assets to the Power sector in India has naturally entered the fast growing Green Energy area as well.
May 10, 2011
Solar Power in India is set to be one of the biggest energy industries in the 21st century due to a unique set of favorable converging factors with declining cost the biggest one.The Indian government has recognized this fact and set a 20 GW of solar energy capacity target by 2022 and Indian states are boosting solar energy too through their own set of subsidies and solar supportive policies as well.However a number of problems have cropped up in the initial phases as solar electricity price is still high at Rs 14-16 unit compared to the retail electricity price of around Rs 4-5/unit.Though solar subsidies by the government should provide support till the prices come down.Major Indian solar companies like Moser Baer,Lanco are predicting that the solar electricity costs will fall by 40% or more in the next 3-5 years as technology improves,scale increases and more of the components like glass,solar inverters are manufactured domestically substituting expensive imports from countries like China and Taiwan.
May 10, 2011
Ontario Canada has a comprehensive solar subsidy policy which mandate that a large percentage of solar components be manufactured in Ontario in order to receive the Feed in Tariffs.This has led to a mini manufacturing boom in the province with a number of companies like Conergy,MEMC,Enphase,Canadian Solar putting up factories to take advantage of the FIT.Japan which is also a large manufacturer of solar panels with major Japanese solar companies like Sharp,Kyocera has taken Canada to the WTO citing improper competitive practises.India which has one of the largest potential in solar energy installation too has promulgated a law that requires domestic content requirements.Solar Modules must be produced in India to gain FIT under the JNNSM.This law is expected to become stricter with solar cells also to be produced in the country in the future.This has drawn howls of protest from American officials who too tried domestic content in their subsidies under the Stimulus Act.
May 8, 2011
India has a massive potential in Solar Energy with at least 20 GW of Solar Power to be installed by 2022 according to the JNNSM Plan.This […]
May 7, 2011
Renewable Energy in India has seen decent growth in the past mainly driven by Wind Energy which accounts for almsot 65% of the estimated 20 GW of Green Energy capacity installed in the country.However to meet India's 2020 Green Energy Target of 15% of power to be generated from renewable sources set by CERC,at least 40 GW more would need to be installed (that is a conservative estimate as load factors for green energy are lower).This is assuming that India meets its target of raising the power capacity to 400 GW by 2020 from around 175 GW at present.Solar Energy in India has not got off to a good start despite immense potential as the federal subsidy program JNNSM has seen irrational bidding by bit players and debt financing is difficult.Wind Power in India has seen the most growth amongst the green sources of power but it too faces hurdles as good quality wind sites have all been taken.
May 6, 2011
China has been rewriting its renewable energy plan in the wake of the Fukushima Nuclear Energy Disaster in Japan.Note there has been a strong global backlash against nuclear energy around the world and 7 nuclear plants in Germany have been closed all but in name.Other countries like South Korea,Italy,Switzerland are rethinking of what do about their nuclear reactors giving the massive tail risks with nuclear generation.China had a target of only 20 GW of solar by 2020 has decided to raise the target by 150% to 50 GW according to the country's leading energy planning authority NRDC.Note China installed more than 15 GW of Wind Energy in 2010 alone becoming the world’s largest Wind Energy Market by far.Solar Energy strongly lags Wind in China despite China having the biggest solar panel manufacturing industry in the world.Its Golden Sun and other Solar Subsidy programs have been small in absolute terms compared to its huge electricity capacity.
May 1, 2011
Note Big Oil and Gas has been slowly been retrenching form the solar energy industry despite initial leadership.Shell which was one of the biggest solar players has become almost non-existent while BP has shut down a number of solar factories outsourcing production to China.Other Oil and Gas companies like Exxon,Valero,Chevron and others have concentrated their energies on related green sectors like algae based biofuels rather than on solar and wind energy.So the move by Total comes as a surprise as it acquires one of the top 15 solar panel companies in the world.Sunpower is being acquired at a cheap price considering its world beating solar cell technology and its massive systems business which has gigawatts of solar projects under development.Note Sunpower makes the highest efficiency solar panels on a commercial scale and recently tied up with AUO.It is the 2nd biggest solar plant installer in the US and has a massive presence in the commercial and government sector.Total said it looked at over 200 companies before buying Sunpower.Note M&A has been strong in the Solar Thermal Industry and has now started picking up in the Solar PV Industry as well.With solar company valuations at a historic low,it makes sense for the larger chemical and energy companies to pick up good companies on the cheap.
April 25, 2011
India is a massively energy deficient country with official figures citing around 15% of peak electricity demand deficit due to lack of power generation and distribution.The […]
April 25, 2011
Maharashtra which is the largest power generating state in India but deficient in renewable energy sources of generation will not use the discredited reverse auction bidding mechanism being used in the First Phase of the JNNSM Federal Solar Subsidy Policy.The reverse auction bidding was done due to the massive deluge of applications for setting up solar PV and solar thermal power plants.Based on the Rs 17.91/Kwh Feed in Tariff,developers had bid discounts with the solar project owner offering the biggest discount winning the right to build the solar power plant.This had led to irrationally low bidding for projects and it is all but certain that these solar projects will either be not be built at all or run into heavy losses.
April 15, 2011
Spain has started cracking down on Solar Power Plants which are making huge profits through illegal Feed in Tariffs which they should not get.Note Spain had seen a massive boom in solar installations in 2008 due to unusually large ROI driven by high Feed in Tariffs.FIT are electricity rates which are higher than wholesale electricity rates paid to renewable energy power plants in order to make them competitive with cheaper fossil fuel power plants.Seeing a huge increase in the subsidy burden Spain has pretty much killed the solar market in 2009,however the problems of Fiscal Deficit has made Spain reconsider the tariffs being given to even older solar power plants.After a lot of controversy,Spain changed the FIT rules in the middle of the game through a retroactive FIT Law drawing howls of protest from solar investors like pension funds which have sued the government
April 12, 2011
Solar Power Plants have mushroomed in different parts of the world as Global Solar Demand has increased by more than 150% in 2010.Solar Power Plants built on the Ground differ from that put on the Roofs of Houses as they require to go through feasibility,environmental assessment,grid connection,siting etc. which is typical for a large industrial project.The time taken to build a solar power plant project is also much more than a rooftop residential solar installation.Solar Farms are being mainly being built in countries which have subsidy program like tax rebates,feed in tariffs etc.However building a solar plant has become quite easy unlike in the past as solar panel,solar inverters and installation expertise is more easily available.The regulations and permits for building a solar plant or a solar farm on the other hand differ from country to country and region to region depending on federal and state laws.For a Large Solar Plant like the Aqua Caliente,there are a number of permitting steps that have to be passed before the plant can be built.For smaller power plants in the 5 MW range the requirements are less.In general the smaller the size of the solar installation,the lower the number of regulations required.Here are the steps required in building a Solar Power Plant
April 12, 2011
Type of Renewable Energy have been increasing with development in Technology and the imperative of using Alternative Energy as Fossil Fuels deplete and increase in costs.Besides Global Warming has made the benefits of Renewable Energy seem more attractive with each passing year.Note though there are many niches Renewable Energy types,the Three Major Forms of Renewable Energy are Solar Energy,Wind Energy and Biomass Energy (Biofuels).Nuclear and Hydro Energy are not considered as Renewable Energy according to the strict definition of Renewable Energy.However Hydro and Nuclear Energy both are responsible for more than 15% of global electricity production each.The clean energy industry saw a 30% increase in investments to $243 billion in 2010 which was another record year for Renewable Energy Capacity addition.Around 18 GW of Solar Energy and 38 GW of Wind Energy were installed with Solar Energy Capacity increasing by a whopping 150% from 2009.\wind power continued to lead at $95 billion. The solar sector is experiencing significant growth, with investments growing at 53% to $79 billion (source Pew).
April 12, 2011
A study of soil samples conducted by a team of experts from Kyoto University and Hiroshima University has revealed that as much as 400 times the normal levels of radiation could remain in communities beyond a 30-kilometer radius from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant.The study found cesium-137 at levels between about 590,000 and 2.19 million becquerels per cubic meter.After the Chernobyl nuclear accident in the former Soviet Union in 1986, residents who lived in areas where cesium-137 levels exceeded 555,000 becquerels were forced to move elsewhere.
April 11, 2011
Market Vectors KOL ETF provides a good well diversified way to invest in Coal which is seeing a massive upsurge in demand driven by India and China.For investors looking for individual stocks here is a list of US Solar Companies and Stocks and Indian Coal Stocks.China with around 3 Billion Tons of Coal Consumption and India with another 500 million Tons depend on King Coal for majority of their Energy Needs.While China generates 80% of its Electricity from Coal,India generates around 65%.While both countries have Huge Reserves and Production of Coal,their voracious demand is leading to surging imports.These Imports are being sourced from countries like Australia,Canada and USA which are going through Coal Mining Booms.Ports are getting congested as Infrastructure failed to meet the growing coal needs of India and China..The Biggest Advantages of Coal its Abundance and Cheapness of Coal has made it the Fossil Fuel of Choice for Electricity Companies building power plants in developing countries despite its Drawbacks.This has led to a fight to secure Coal Supplies through vertical integration into buying up of coal mines,building ports and railways to transport Coal.Though India too faces some environmental opposition,massive ultra mega power plants with capacity of 4000 MW are getting built by new Indian private utilities.
April 11, 2011
Coal is the biggest source of Energy for Electricity Production in the world and its use is expected to continue to grow to 44% of the Electricity Production by 2030 (IEA).Despite Coal having many dangerous disadvantages,its Advantages of cheapness and abundance have made it the Fossil Fuel of choice.With global reserves estimated to be around 200 years,it does not have the "peak oil" characteristics as well.Though not a Coal Fan,nonetheless Coal stocks are a great investment choice due to the fact of its growing demand which is outstripping supply.China and India are massively growing their electricity,steel and cement production which requires billions of tons of coal.China consumers almost 45% of the global coal production while Indian demand is growing by leaps and demands as well.Indian Power Utilities are grabbing up Coal Mines in Africa,Australia and Asia to secure feedstock for their gigawatt thermal power plants.Despite its growing importance Coal does not have a lot of choice in terms of investment unlike Fossil Fuels like Oil and Gas.Here is a list of Coal Stocks which one can invest in and the sole Coal ETF - Market Vectors Coal ETF (KOL).
April 11, 2011
Coal is one of the most important sources of energy for mankind providing an easy way to generate energy in a cheap manner.The relative abundance and low costs of using Coal has made it the the first choice of Fuel for building Power Plants in the world.Coal has huge importance as an Energy source and forms the most important raw material for Cement and Steel.Coal is also used in a variety of other industries like Paper,Aluminium,Chemical,Transportation and Pharma.However Coal also has huge negative consequences as it is the largest source of Carbon Emissions which happen during Coal Combustion.Coal Mining despite two hundred years remain as hazardous as ever resulting in thousands of deaths in India and China.Mercury,Arsenic and pollution of other harmful substances into the environment causes diseases and many deaths as well.However for countries like India and China there are little other alternatives and there is no conviction amongst policymakers to change their energy strategies as well.So the advantages of Coal are currently overpowering those of the Cons of Coal.This despite Coal being the dirtiest form of Energy and causing many deaths globally.The main reason for the cheapness of Coal is that the societal costs are not added on explicitly to the Price of Coal making it seem artificially cheap.
April 9, 2011
Coal is one of the cheapest and most important sources of energy, responsible for 41% of electricity productionworldwide. In many important countries like India,China,Germany,USA,Coal is the primary source of electricity and energy.Other smaller countries also heavily rely on coal for example Poland 94% , South Africa 92%, China for 77% and Australia for 76%.Coal has played this a pivotal role in the development of mankind and his progress into the Industrial Age.Coal is an essential raw material and fuel for important global industries like Cement and Steel.Different qualities of Coal are used for different purposes.For example coking coal with higher carbon percentage is used in Steel Production while Thermal Coal is used in Production of Electricity.It was during the Industrial Revolution in the 18th and 19th centuries that demand for coal surged. Coal is responsible for almost a quarter of the global energy production,41% of the Electricity Production and more than 60% for Steel Making.Here is a list of the Major Uses of Coal
April 9, 2011
Coal is one of the most abundant fossil fuels available on earth and is a major supplier of energy.Coal is the largest producer of electricity in the world accounting for more than 40% of the global electricity production.This is expected to rise to 44% according to IEA.In the last decade global coal consumption has grown faster than any other fuel.Coal has many other important uses as well such as steel production, cement manufacturing 6 billon tonnes of hard coal and 909 million tonnes of brown coal were used with China accounting for almost 45% of the global coal consumption.Coal is also one of the largest sources of Carbon Dioxide Emissions as well responsible for double the GHG emissions from Oil.Coal is regarded as the dirtiest form of Energy due to high Carbon Emissions,Pollution,Hazardous Substances such as Mercury,Deaths due to Coal Mining etc.However the cheapness of coal,its established industrial base and abundance makes Coal indispensable in the Short Term just like Nuclear Energy.Here are the main Advantages of Coal
April 8, 2011
USA has been one of the worst countries in the world in regards to climate change and global warming issues.While countries have pledged to cut down […]
April 8, 2011
TEPCO the owner and operator of the Damaged Fukushima Nuclear Plant reproted that its Onagawa Nuclear Power Plant in the Miyage Prefeture also leaked very small amounts of radioactive water.About 3.8 kgs of radiated water from one of the spent fuel rod pools spilled as three out of four external power supply units in Onagawa shut down leaving only one power source to cool the spent fuel. at the Nuclear Plant failed after the 7.4 Richter Scale Earthquake off the seas near Fukushima.The cooling systems have been restored and there is no more damage at the Nuclear Plant like Fukushima.Note the workers at the Damaged Dai-ichi were evacuated due to the Tsunami Warning issued in the aftermath of the Earthquake.These workers have again returned in their radiation fighting work at the Plant.USA said that it seems that the worst scenario of serious contamination from the Fukushima Nuclear Accident has probably passed.