Sustainability Outlook Headlines

India Provided $10 million for Rural Solar Energy Projects in 2010

The Indian government provided subsidies worth $10 million for projects aimed at promoting the use of solar energy in rural areas. The subsidies went to projects which distributed solar lanterns and installed solar home-lighting systems in villages across the country. In a statement released by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, the government provided subsidies worth about $53 (or Rs. 2400) on various solar lanterns models costing between $55.5 and $192 (Rs. 2500 and Rs. 8660). The Indian government has been pushing for promotion of solar energy use in rural and remote areas of the... Read more..

Green construction gaining traction in India

 The overgrowth of reeds at Good Earth Orchard, a colony of 60 homes in Bangalore, is actually part of a labyrinthine water-treatment system. Gallons of used water from the colony enter it every day to be pumped out for reuse a week later, good enough at least to water the bushes.

The system recovers about 80% of wastewater without using power or chemicals. A chamber skims off lightweight waste and settles the heavy parts. Another sealed chamber uses bacteria to break down organic waste. Finally, plants such as canna at the surface aerate the water through nitrogen fixation. All... Read more..

Surat Municipal Corporation to ink MoU with Japan for drafting waste mgmt plan

The Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) is all set to sign a MoU with Japan on drafting a master plan for developing safe and eco-friendly waste treatment modules.

Japan had evinced keen interest in Surat Municipal Corporation's eco drive and for developing the plan. The master plan will be provided to SMC for free.

Japan had agreed to prepare the master-plan after conducting a thorough study of the work done by the civic body in areas of solid and liquid waste management.

A team of civic engineers had presented the civic work module during a conference held in the city... Read more..

Japan postpones launch of emission trading system

Japan on Tuesday postponed the creation of a greenhouse gas emission trading system by a year until after April 2014 in the face of strong resistance from the business lobby, news reports said.
The centre-left government of Prime Minister Naoto Kan had planned to launch the system -- in which companies would essentially buy and sell 'licences to pollute' -- in the fiscal year starting in April 2013.

But his environment and other ministers decided to postpone the plan, saying the country will first "carefully consider it," Jiji Press and Kyodo News reported. Immediate... Read more..

India Paid at least $10 Million in Subsidies for Solar Projects This Year

India paid at least 459 million rupees ($10 million) in subsidies to help rural homes and villages install solar-powered lights in 2010.

A government program promoting the use of lights powered by photovoltaic cells installed 78,408 portable lanterns and 108,599 home-lighting systems, the Ministry of Renewable Energy said in a statement today.

The ministry provided a subsidy of 2,400 rupees for each solar lantern, which typically runs off batteries, and anywhere from 2,500 rupees to 8,660 rupees for each home-lighting system depending on the model installed and the type of... Read more..

Azure Power to raise its Solar Power Capacity

Azure Power India Pvt. plans to raise its solar energy generation capacity to 100 megawatts by 2013 with an investment of 15 billion rupees ($ 332 million), Chief Executive Inderpreet Wadhwa said in a recent interview, as the South Asian nation ramps up electricity supply from renewable sources.

The company designs, finances, owns, and operates solar power plants and is one of the 37 companies the Indian government selected earlier in December to supply 5 MW of solar power each to the national grid.

Mr. Wadhwa said the investment would come from a mix of debt and equity from... Read more..

TN to come out with action plan on climate change

The Tamil Nadu government plans to come out with an action plan on climate change on the lines of the National Action Plan for Climate Change (NAPCC) to promote renewable energy in the state. Besides, Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission (TNERC) has set up a renewable energy purchase obligation (RPO) at 14 percent for 2010-2011.

In his address at the valedictory session of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII)-Tamil Nadu Solar Convention, deputy chief minister M K Stalin said that power generation through renewable sources in Tamil Nadu touched 5,500 MW representing 33 per... Read more..

ADB Considering Loans for 580-Megawatt Solar Power Project in India

The Asian Development Bank may provide loans to a 580-megawatt solar power park in India’s Gujarat state as the country aims to increase its solar power capacity to meet growing demand.

The solar power park is being developed in Charanka village by the Gujarat state government, Naoki Sakai, a senior climate change official from the bank, said in a Dec. 22 telephone interview from Manila, where the lender is located. The project will use both solar photovoltaic and solar thermal power, he said.

For solar photovoltaic projects, energy from the sun is converted directly to... Read more..

2011 fossil fuel use expected to drop, carbon emissions to stay the same

November’s Short Term Energy Outlook predicts a decrease in the use of fossil fuels in 2011, while carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions will remain the same.

As of November 2010, natural gas in storage measured at 3,814 bcf, slightly below November 2009’s total. By next March 31, considered the end of the winter heating season, EIA expects 1,833 bcf to remain in storage, about 171 bcf higher than at the end of March 2010.

November’s Henry Hub average natural gas spot price was $3.71 per million Btu. Over the 2011 winter heating season, the average spot price is expected to peak at... Read more..

Govt not to set CSR floor for India Inc

The government has watered down its proposal on corporate social responsibility (CSR) by not including a provision in the Companies Bill that would have mandated firms to spend 2% of their profit on social causes. 

The final proposal only requires a company to have a policy that targets to spend 2% of its profit on CSR. The bill, however, seeks to make it compulsory for a company to give details of the money it has spent on CSR in its annual report. 

“Companies will have to have a policy as to how they will spend 2% of their profit on CSR and there must be a disclosure if the... Read more..

BHEL bags 3 orders to set up solar power plants

Public sector giant BHEL has bagged three orders for setting up solar photovoltaic power plants with a capacity of 2 MW each.

The plants will be operationalised as per the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd scheme under Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM).
The orders have been placed by Citra Real Estate, New Delhi & Sepset Constructions Ltd, New Delhi for their sites at Katol, Nagpur in Maharashtra.

The other order is from Priapus Infrastructure Pvt Ltd, New Delhi for its site at Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh.

The three orders are valued... Read more..

New solar cells could even work at nigh

U.S. researchers say they've developed a new kind of solar cell that can generate energy even at night, promising a new form of renewable energy.

The key is their ability to harvest infrared radiation as well as visible light, Steven Novack at the U.S. Department of Energy's Idaho National Laboratory in Idaho Falls says.

Almost half of the available energy in the spectrum of solar radiation resides in the infrared band, and infrared is re-emitted as heat by the Earth's surface after the sun has gone down, meaning the cells can even capture some energy during the night, he... Read more..