Solar Power Cheaper Than Fossile Fuels in 3rd World

[sanman]

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Solar power could supply electricity more cheaply to consumers in the underdeveloped world than even fossil fuels can provide:

In the Developing World, Solar Is Cheaper than Fossil Fuels - Technology Review

[SajeevJino]

I don't accept this...

you are talking about only.small home or office...that is ok ..they are work with a solar power...

Then what about huge machines and Factories..

Solar Plates installed in larger area of Ground...we have not enough place to install that plates...

[Manmohan Yadav]

thats sounds a bit like fantasy.

[sanman]

Still, it could help small rural towns and villages get power when they'd otherwise be too expensive to hook up to the grid. Not that India has much of a grid in the first place.

[RoYaN]

Still, it could help small rural towns and villages get power when they'd otherwise be too expensive to hook up to the grid. Not that India has much of a grid in the first place.

Original Post By sanman

I wouldn't call this nothing!

82,354 Ckt.Km line-135 Substations as on March 31,2011

[Skull and Bones]

Wind power is even cheaper, almost in par with coal powered power stations. But like solar power, wind energy is unstable. Here's a rough estimate of per unit price.

Coal powered: Rs 2.5/unit
Wind powered: Rs 3.5-5/unit (Depending on the efficiency of the generator)
Nuclear powered: Rs >6/unit
Solar powered: Rs 9-12/unit (But the price is subsidized by the govt)

So you see, this article is a stub.

[Leonard]

Solar is getting so cheap and now already cheaper than diesel generating electricity in India. This is not only happening in India but in many countries around the world. Solar power system already reached unsubsidized parity in countries such as India, Italy, Spain and Hawaii. And it is believed that by 2015, there will be around 50% of countries that reach grid-parity.

[Hembo]

Heard of an Israeli company (Zenith Solar or something like that), who makes co-generation plants (solar electricity withe heated Boiler Feed Water for steam turbines) and claims to produce electricity cheaper then anything else. The only problem is availability of sun-light for prolonged period. Butfor places like Rajasthan, Andhra, Gujrat etc. with large area of baren/ un-arable land with 8-9 months of good sunlight, it will be a ideal way to produce some clean & cheap energy.

[Hembo]

Solar energy powers people’s lives
February 23, 2012 By Pramila Krishnan DC chennai

Retired Indian Army major general K.K. Tewari, 89, is a convert now: He is gradually changing from conventional electricity to green, solar energy to operate electronic gadgets in his house.

Interestingly, the catalyst for change was the destructive cyclone Thane. When Thane uprooted power poles throughout Puducherry and neighboring Cuddalore and put the neighbourhoods in darkness, only Auroville, the international spiritual township, had its lights on.

Many families in Auroville carried on with their chores as if nothing had happened thanks to their solar energy installations.

Seeing this, many people in the region are quickly turning to solar energy, not because they are expecting another Thane, but since power cuts have become a regular nuisance in this part of the country.

And General Tewari, whose bedridden wife Dr Kamala Tewari, 85, needs fan and light on all the time, is one among the new converts.


Julie Sauerwern and her daughter with solar panel.

Ms Julie Sauerwern, 42, along with her two daughters — Rearnie, 5 and Nila, 2 — was among scores of Aurovilleans saved by solar energy. Julie works as an outstation designer for children’s books for schools in the South Pacific islands.

After Thane, her neighbours’ solar batteries and panels helped her meet her deadline. So, she is now planning to switch to solar energy.

Pointing to the efficiency of the solar kitchen in the township, Mithran from Germany, a regular visitor to Auroville, said, “I was shaken up after Thane’s destruction.

At the same time, I was in awe of the solar kitchen in Auroville, the oldest working solar bowl model in the world, as it was not affected. We got our well-cooked, tasty food as usual.”

Solar energy experts Jorz Zimmermann and Rishi said solar power provided supply to operate even washing machines and water heaters.

“We hope Thane has taught us a lesson on energy efficiency,” they said. They added that the government could come out with solar farms where panels are fixed to receive energy and excess power would be passed on to the grid. This way even Chennai could be empowered not to depend on other states for electricity.

Renewable energy meet from March 12

As Chennai is hosting India’s biggest renewable energy conference and exhibition on March 12-13, 2012, DC interacted with Sudeep Jain, chairman of the Tamil Nadu energy development agency(TEDA), which works under the Union ministry of new and renewable energy, about the achievements of Tamil Nadu in the renewable energy sector.

The programme will have over 150 renewable energy companies showcasing successful models of solar, wind, biomass, and waste-to-energy power, which could be used in households.

TEDA is expecting over 5,000 renewable energy enthusiasts at the event in addition to top government officials from energy/ renewable energy departments of over 10 different states.

What are the major renewable energy equipment/gadgets in use among the public?

Box and dish-type solar cooker, solar lanterns, torchlight, streetlights, education institution campus and garden lights are widely used apart from solar fencing and mobile chargers.


TEDA has been conducting awareness campaigns throughout TN through exhibitions, seminars, workshops, business meets and training programmes. We also produce short films on success stories.

At present, how much do renewable energy technologies contribute to the daily power consumption of TN?

The installed capacity of renewable energy is 7466.10 MW. Renewable and wind energy installed capacity in TN are 36 per cent and 42 per cent, respectively of India’s total renewable and wind energy installed capacity. The percentage of renewable energy penetration in the TN grid is around 14 per cent.

Can you predict any increase in renewable energy usage in the state after the conference?

Renergy 2012 conference will focus on enabling India become an attractive market for renewable energy investors and entrepreneurs.

We would provide forums for the public to understand renewable energy sources and use them to save on electricity bills.

Energy roadmap for state

The World Institute of Sustainable Energy (WISE), Pune, is involved in developing a renewable energy roadmap for Tamil Nadu.

To recommend to the government to tap solar energy in various spots across the state, WISE officials have started identifying the places through GPS (global positioning system) and providing suggestions on successful renewable energy technologies which could be put to use in specific districts.

Green bank

In a first-of-its-kind in the state, a bank is fully operated with solar energy. The Pallavan Grama Bank, at Ammapettai, in Erode, has all computers, scanners, fans and 30 LED lights operated using solar power obtained from eight solar panels fixed on its terrace. The bank administration is now fixing solar panels in four other branches.

Subsidies for solar equipment

The Tamil Nadu energy development agency provides 30 per cent subsidy to individuals for switching to solar energy. Soft loans will be provided up to 50 per cent for domestic users. Officials say it is a one-time investment for solar water heaters and solar dish cookers.

The cost of a 100 lpd (litres per day) solar water heater is around `23,000 and a dish cooker costs around Rs 8,000. The payback time for domestic use is maximum five years and, for industrial use, three years.

Solar potential in India

Minister of new and renewable energy M. Farooq Abdullah said India has good potential for solar power as it receives solar energy equivalent to over 5,000 trillion kWh per year, which is far more than the total energy consumption of the country.

The daily average solar energy incident varies from 4-7 kWh per square metre of the surface area depending upon the location and time of the year. He says that solar radiation is available at most locations in India for about 300 days a year.

Solar helpline

The ministry of new and renewable energy has started a voice call-based national helpline, in English and Hindi, on solar water heater to create awareness and address consumer requirements.

The toll-free helpline 1800-233-4477 functions from 0930 to 1800 hours Monday-Friday and 0930 to 1330 hours on Saturdays. It would guide the consumer choose the right solar energy gadgets. More details at: SOLAR THERMAL FEDERATION OF INDIA

[Anish9500]

Tata Power commissions its 25 MW solar project in Gujarat

Vikram Solar commissions new power plants

INDIA : Gujarat a compatible state for Renewable Energy source - Power Engineering

[Randy]

Because of the innovations, solar power system may be cheaper in the next 10-15 years from now. And since the prices of solar panels aren’t that much cheap these days, we must use it to the fullest to attain the desire benefits of it. Find lots of sunny places to put it all.

[tunguska]

Wind power is even cheaper, almost in par with coal powered power stations. But like solar power, wind energy is unstable. Here's a rough estimate of per unit price.

Coal powered: Rs 2.5/unit
Wind powered: Rs 3.5-5/unit (Depending on the efficiency of the generator)
Nuclear powered: Rs >6/unit
Solar powered: Rs 9-12/unit (But the price is subsidized by the govt)

So you see, this article is a stub.

Original Post By Skull and Bones

How solar power are unstable? of Course for wind it is true

[olivers]

How solar power are unstable? of Course for wind it is true

Original Post By tunguska

For most of India solar power isn't a problem with stability. The problem is with the 12 hour daily supply and the need for storage. Lead acid batteries are not a very good solution for this storage problem. The ideal solution is an adaptable energy distribution system with net metering. You pay for the difference in consumption or get paid if you contribute more than you take out of the electricity grid. Once we have such a system in place it will be just great. Pondicherry seems to be experimenting with such systems. On wind power, it really isn't possible to have these in a single dwelling unit in India.

[tunguska]

For most of India solar power isn't a problem with stability. The problem is with the 12 hour daily supply and the need for storage. Lead acid batteries are not a very good solution for this storage problem. The ideal solution is an adaptable energy distribution system with net metering. You pay for the difference in consumption or get paid if you contribute more than you take out of the electricity grid. Once we have such a system in place it will be just great. Pondicherry seems to be experimenting with such systems. On wind power, it really isn't possible to have these in a single dwelling unit in India.

Original Post By olivers

Sorry here I slightly differ from you. Lead acid batteries (mean deep drawn battery) are not good i know that but they needed to be used in solar Photovoltaic technology bydefault whenever you want to utilize the electricity for night. there is no option for that.

However if you go for the solar thermal energy then now day you have very efficient salt based molten storage technology available and plant can be operated for 24 hours. Or you can directly connect the any plant to the Power grid system for further uitilzation.Further you can combine the solar thermal energy with bio mass plant. So here options are available.

More I would like to say that solar thermal energy is economically viable but plant size has to be more and minimum built array capacity should be 50 MWe.

For Solar PV plant, price is very high due to following main reasons.

1.There is shortage of silicon in world market. If you order to silicon today to certain firm (which is 99.999999% Pure) then they will deliver you after 2 year.
2.Solar cell (PV) is quite in efficient system for electricity generation and it is about 15% conversion efficiency.
3.Large concentrator area required for Solar PV plant.

Wind energy is cheaper but certain limitations are there as certain areas are acceible for wind power generation where you can have constant wind speed.

In conclusion, for energy sector now day solar thermal is more mature technology in renewable energy.

[olivers]

Sorry here I slightly differ from you. Lead acid batteries (mean deep drawn battery) are not good i know that but they needed to be used in solar Photovoltaic technology bydefault whenever you want to utilize the electricity for night. there is no option for that.

However if you go for the solar thermal energy then now day you have very efficient salt based molten storage technology available and plant can be operated for 24 hours. Or you can directly connect the any plant to the Power grid system for further uitilzation.Further you can combine the solar thermal energy with bio mass plant. So here options are available.

More I would like to say that solar thermal energy is economically viable but plant size has to be more and minimum built array capacity should be 50 MWe.

For Solar PV plant, price is very high due to following main reasons.

1.There is shortage of silicon in world market. If you order to silicon today to certain firm (which is 99.999999% Pure) then they will deliver you after 2 year.
2.Solar cell (PV) is quite in efficient system for electricity generation and it is about 15% conversion efficiency.
3.Large concentrator area required for Solar PV plant.

Wind energy is cheaper but certain limitations are there as certain areas are acceible for wind power generation where you can have constant wind speed.

In conclusion, for energy sector now day solar thermal is more mature technology in renewable energy.

Original Post By tunguska

The problem is with the 12 hour daily supply and the need for storage. Lead acid batteries are not a very good solution for this storage problem.

Well please search for "grid connect" or "grid interactive" approach.This eliminates the need for batteries or a large part of it. This is being tested in pondicherry. So I don't agree with you on this.

Aside from this search, there is another technical detail on delivery of constant power even during the day:

For the short term fluctuation issues in solar radiation, it might use a smaller lead acid battery or one instead of 30 for a house of three, or use other power storage technology like capacitors or lithium ion to tide over the fluctuations caused by intensity variation of incident solar radiation. Lead-acid storage is not necessary, it's just a matter of cost. Environmentally it's not very sound and it's a pain to maintain.