Sustainability Outlook Headlines

Self-cooling solar cells to last longer

What if a solar cell could keep itself cool even in the blistering heat of the sun? 

By adding a specially patterned layer of silica glass to the surface of ordinary solar cells, a team of researchers has found a way to let solar cells cool themselves by shedding unwanted thermal radiation. 

This paves the way for developing high-efficiency, long-lasting solar cells. 

For every one-degree Celsius increase in temperature, the efficiency of a solar cell declines by about half a percent. 

"That decline is very significant. The solar cell industry invests... Read more..

Higher power rates not to hit state utilities

Consumers of Tata's ultra mega power project (UMPP) and Adani's power plant at Mundra in Gujarat might not see a major escalation in their procurement price after the Appellate Tribunal for Electricity (APTEL) gave its nod to include compensatory rate in the final rate of sale of power.

The beneficiary utilities in Gujarat, Haryana, Rajasthan, Punjab and Maharashtra are already buying power for Rs 3.61 to Rs 3.7 a unit, according to the annual revenue requirement reports submitted to state regulators.

The levelised tarifforiginally offered by Tata's imported coal-based UMPP... Read more..

Green dreams: judging the BRICS bank climate ambitions

Does the new development bank launched by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa last week herald a new age in low carbon financing? It is a question leading economists and civil society observers have been asking for some time, with few answers emerging from the five “BRICS” members. And it’s critical given the way this coalition, representing 20% of the world economy and 3 billion people, will shape the planet over the coming century. Based in Shanghai, the bank’s governing body has been neatly divided between Brazil, Russia and India, with a regional centre in... Read more..

Andhra Pradesh capital to herald a green revolution

The new proposed capital city for Andhra Pradesh will have all the major government buildings to be developed as green buildings to make for a model green city. Apart from increasing the green cover in the capital city, extensive landscaping, green buildings and usage of renewable energy like solar and wind will be taken up, said the municipal administration minister for AP, P. Narayana.

As per the plans, the state government will consult CII and Indian Green Buildings Council for building the new eco-friendly Secretariat, Assembly, High Court and other major government buildings.... Read more..

Rethink on land use: A crucial necessity now

India may be the seventh-largest country in the world in terms of land mass, but it constitutes only 2.2% of the total land mass of the world. In population density, we are in the top 15 countries in the world. (Barring Bangladesh, all other nations are small countries, their size explaining their highdensity populations.) Our population density is close to 350 persons per sq km, putting tremendous pressure on our land. To put it in perspective, China's population density is just 136 persons per sq km, despite having a population a little more than India.

What we need to do is... Read more..

Algae.Tec wins vote of confidence from Reliance Group

Australian algae fuel developer Algae.Tec has received a significant vote of investor confidence from one of India’s industrial giants, Reliance Group, which agreed on Tuesday to purchase nearly $30 million worth of shares in Algae.Tec as part of a funding deal struck between the two companies in January.

Algae.Tec announced today that Reliance Group confirmed the conversion of 1,833,740 options at an exercise price of 16.36 cents per share – twice the market price – after “positive progress” on a joint algae plant project. Reliance hold a second tranche of 28,728,607 options... Read more..

India may install more wind capacity after tax incentive revived

India may add an additional 1,000 megawatts of wind energy a year after the government revived a tax incentive. “Small manufacturers dependent on diesel power will now find it viable to invest in wind projects with 2 megawatts to 3 megawatts of capacity,” said Madhusudan Khemka, chairman of Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers Association. “Without the credit, some wind projects that depend on accelerated depreciation were not viable,” Khemka said in a phone interview from Chennai. “This gives a huge fillip to the sector,” Khemka said. “As manufacturers we are keen to have it.” Finance... Read more..

Gamesa secures 220MW of turbine orders for five Indian wind farms

Spain-based Gamesa has secured three new contracts to deliver 220MW of its turbines for five wind farms in three Indian states.

The orders, which were received from three independent power firms, require Gamesa to install 110 G97-2MW turbines at five wind farms in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Karnataka.

Gamesa will manufacture the turbines at its local factories and the agreements also include long-term operations and maintenance (O&M) provision at the wind farms.

The company expects to deliver the wind turbines in March 2015.

Gamesa chairman... Read more..

MNRE bats for strict renewable power obligation compliance

The ministry of new and renewable energy sources (MNRE), headed by Piyush Goyal, has pleaded the state electricity regulatory commissions (SERCs) to consider exercising their statutory authority and issue directions to state distribution companies (discoms) for ensuring renewable power obligation (RPO) compliance.

This can be done either through purchase of renewable power or renewable energy certificates (RECs) and enforce the same by invoking penal provisions of the regulations against default22222ing entities.

The ministry has suggested SERCs consider directing discoms to... Read more..

Suzlon Energy rallies on restoration of depreciation rules

Shares in wind turbine maker Suzlon Energy Ltd(SUZL.NS) surged nearly 5 percent, its daily limit, on Monday following the government's move to re-introduce the acceleraed depreciation scheme for the wind energy sector.

The gains add to Suzlon's 3.6 percent gain in the previous session. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on late Friday that the government would amend the Finance Bill in this regard.

Accelerated depreciation allows companies to claim a bigger deduction during the initial years after the purchase of an asset compared with other depreciation accounting methods,... Read more..

ENERGY SHOT- India's Nuclear Power Future

The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor is an experimental fusion reactor being constructed at Cadarache in the south of France. It is the most challenging of all the research and development taking place in science and technology in the world today, and promises to go a long way in solving the world’s energy problems. This is an instance when Homi Bhabha was quite wrong; he had predicted in the 1950s that fusion power was just round the corner, but we are still thinking of uncertain dates at least 10 to 20 years hence.

The atomic nucleus holds the key to both nuclear... Read more..

Reliance pitches for linking gas prices to market rate for boosting domestic output

Energy conglomerate Reliance Industries believes that linking gas prices to market rate would be key to boosting domestic production. "Significant demand can be met by new indigenous production if market linked prices for gas is available," stated in a presentation to its investors. 

The company, along with partners BP of UK and Niko Resources of Canada, has initiated two separate arbitration cases against the government. In the first of these the company has challenged the government's decision to impose penalties for not meeting production targets from the KG-D6 block. The company... Read more..