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IRENA

1 GW Auction Yields India’s Cheapest Wind Power At 5.2¢/kWh

written by saurabh

Four developers secured rights to develop a cumulative of 1,000 megawatts in first-ever wind energy auction held in India.

According to media reports, the four project developers were allocated 250 megawatts capacity each at a tariff of Rs 3.46/kWh (5.2¢/kWh) in the auction organised by the Solar Energy Corporation of India. Mytrah Energy, Green Infra, Inox Wind and Ostro Energy were the successful bidders.

Mytrah Energy and Green Infra are expected to set up projects in the state of Tamil Nadu while Inox Wind and Ostro Energy would likely set up projects in the state of Gujarat. The companies shall sell electricity generated to Power Trading Corporation of India which will in turn sign power sale agreements with interested utilities across the country.

All companies except Inox Wind are project developers while Inox Wind is a turbine manufacturer. Another project developer Adani Enterprises also placed a bid of Rs 3.46/kWh (5.2¢/kWh) but could not get any capacity allocation.

The tariff discovered in the auction is lower than feed-in tariff offered by any state. The lowest tariff offered is Rs 4.16/kWh (6.2¢/kWh) in Tamil Nadu, although Rs 3.82/kWh (5.7¢/kWh) is also offered in the state of Maharashtra at sites with low wind speeds.

Apart from Inox Wind, another turbine manufacturer participated in the auction. Gamesa India quoted a tariff of Rs 3.68/kWh (5.5¢/kWh) and failed to make the cut. ReNew Power Ventures, one of the leading project developers in India, also failed to grab any capacity as it quote a tariff of Rs 3.47/kWh.

Wind follows solar’s trend

The sharp correction in the price of wind power comes just days after India saw its lowest ever solar power tariff in an auction of 750 megawatts capacity. Solar power tariffs in the auction for Rewa solar power park collapsed from previous low of Rs 4.34/kWh (6.5¢/kWh) to Rs 2.97/kWh (4.5¢/kWh) although the levellised tariff for 25 years period will be Rs 3.30/kWh (4.9¢/kWh).

Indian bids in-line with global trends

The tariff bids seen in India’s first-ever auction are in-line with those prevalent in other markets. According to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), tariff bids for wind energy projects have converged around 4.0¢/kWh. Auctions held in Mexico, Egypt, Chile and Morocco were around the 4.0¢/kWh mark. Interestingly, tariff bids in developed countries – United Kingdom, Italy, Australia and Canada – were above 6.0¢/kWh.

February 25, 2017 0 comment

Half A Million Green Jobs Expected In Morocco By 2040

written by saurabh

Morocco’s thrust in the renewable energy sector could yield additional benefits of creating numerous green jobs.

A new report published by the Mediterranean Forum of Institute of Economic Sciences claims that Morocco could have up to half a million jobs in the renewable energy sector by 2040. Most of the renewable energy jobs are expected to originate from the Noor-Ouarzazate solar power complex which will host a number of projects based on different solar power technologies.

The Moroccan Agency for Solar Energy (Masen) recently enhanced its target to set up 4 gigawatts renewable energy capacity by 2020 to 10 gigawatts by 2030. The Noor-Ouarzazate solar power complex will likely be the backbone of such large-scale expansion.

Saudi Arabia-based ACWA Power is aggressively working on several power projects that will form part of the solar power complex. The company has already commissioned a 160 megawatts concentrated solar power project based on parabolic trough reflectors – Noor I – and is working on Noor II (also based on parabolic trough reflectors) and Noor III (based on power tower technology).

Additionally, ACWA Power is also working on a 120 megawatts wind energy project. The company signed an agreement with Vestas for supply of 40 units of V90-3.0 turbine for Khalladi wind park being developed in Tangiers.

Morocco’s enormous investment in renewable energy is completely justified as the country is almost entirely dependent on imported fuel. Morocco spends 10-12% of its gross domestic product to import energy. The possibility that Morocco could have half a million renewable energy jobs by 2040 is remarkable as, according to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), globally around 8.1 million renewable energy jobs existed in 2015.

January 15, 2017 0 comment

Egypt Signs Solar PPAs For 125 MW Capacity

written by saurabh

Three companies have signed agreements for project development and sale of solar power with the Egyptian authorities.

According to media reports, Nubian, ARC and Irena have signed agreements with the Egyptian Electricity Transmission Company (EETC) to develop solar power projects with cumulative capacity of 125 MW. Two of these projects will likely be the part of Aswan solar power park.

All three projects shall be developed under the first phase of feed-in tariff scheme wherein the tariffs have been set at US¢14.32/kWh. Nubian and ARC will set up projects of 50 MW each at Aswan while Irena, an Egyptian-Iraqi joint venture, will set up a 25 MW project in the West Nile region.

According to the requirements under phase I of the feed-in tariff scheme, project developers ought to bring in 85% of the project investment in foreign currency while the balance 15% shall be Egyptian Pounds.

A number of international project developers are working on a large-scale solar power park at Aswan. Companies that signed project developer agreements include Enel Green, EDF, Access Building Energy, and Building Energy Alliance. Companies that had signed the agreement earlier included TAQA Arabia, Cairo Solar, Orascom, Lekela Power (a joint venture between Mainstream Renewable Power and Actis).

Egypt plans to set up 2 GW wind energy and 2.3 GW solar power capacity by 2022. It also plans to increase the share of renewable energy in the electricity market to 20% by the same year.

The Ministry of Electricity and Energy recently announced that it will reduced the feed-in tariffs for solar power projects as part of the phase II of the feed-in tariff program. Projects with size of 500 kW to 20 MW will now have feed-in tariffs of US¢7.8/kWh, down from US¢13.6/kWh while projects of size 20-50 MW will see feed-in tariffs fall from US¢14.0/kWh to US¢8.4/kWh. These tariffs will be applicable to the second phase solar power projects implementation.

Image by vectoropenstock.com for Cleantechies

October 30, 2016 0 comment

Sunlabob Delivers by Bringing Energy and Light to the Developing World

written by Walter Wang

Picture this. You’re living in a rural area of a developing country. The nearest major town or city is a couple hours away. The community that you are living in does not have electricity. Proper sanitation might also be lacking. Once the sun goes down, that’s it. No more lights. For billions of people around the world, this is a reality. Makes you think.

February 8, 2014 0 comment

IRENA Announces Funding for Renewable Energy Projects in Developing World

written by Walter Wang

The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the Abu Dhabi Fund for Development announced yesterday funding totaling $41 million in concessional loans for renewable energy projects in six developing countries: Ecuador, Sierra Leone, the Maldives, Mauritania, Samoa, and Mali.

January 19, 2014 4 comments