SOLAR, till the EARTH's Last Day!

Solar energy is the most abundant for of energy that is available on the plant, and it will last till the humans don't decide to move away from earth to some other planet in some other solar system. Earth receives 174 petawatts (PW) of incoming solar radiation (insolation) at the upper atmosphere. Approximately 30% is reflected back to space while the rest is absorbed by clouds, oceans and land masses. The spectrum of solar light at the Earth's surface is mostly spread across the visible and near-infrared ranges with a small part in the near-ultraviolet. Most of the world's population live in areas with insolation levels of 150–300 watts/m², or 3.5–7.0 kWh/m² per day. The large magnitude of solar energy available makes it a highly appealing source of electricity. The United Nations Development Program in its 2000 World Energy Assessment found that the annual potential of solar energy was 1,575–49,837 exajoules (EJ). This is several times larger than the total world energy consumption, which was 583.90 EJ in 2018. India's consumption rose 2.3 per cent to 34.06 EJ. The growth was lower than 5.2 per cent in 2018. In absolute terms, India's energy consumption was only behind that of China (141.70 EJ) and US (94.65 EJ).

Solar Energy in India

Solar power in India is a fast developing industry. The country's solar installed capacity reached 37.6 GW as of 30 June 2020. India has the lowest capital cost per MW globally of installing solar power plants. The Indian government had an initial target of 20 GW capacity for 2022, which was achieved four years ahead of schedule. In 2015 the target was raised to 100 GW of solar capacity (including 40 GW from rooftop solar) by 2022, targeting an investment of US$100 billion. India has established nearly 42 solar parks to make land available to the promoters of solar plants. In the decade ending 31 March 2020, India expanded its installed solar power capacity by 233 times from 161 MW to 37,627 MW. Rooftop solar power accounts for 2.1 GW, of which 70% is industrial or commercial.

When comparing the price per unit of electricity produced it is ₹2.36/unit as compared with ₹3.05/unit for energy produced by fossil fuels. It is predicted that it will go down even further to ₹1.90 by 2030 making it the most affordable form of electricity on the entire planet as compared to coal which would cost about ₹6.98/unit. In India Karnataka leads the way in solar energy production producing over 6 GW of energy, Telangana with 3.5 GW, Rajasthan with 3.2 GW, Andhra Pradesh with 3 GW, Tamil Nadu 2.5 GW, Gujarat has 2.4 GW, followed by Madhya Pradesh at 1.8 GW and Chattisgarh at 1.6 GW, the other states are far behind due to multiple reasons ranging from ensufficiat sunlight to not enough willingness by the state government to promoting the solar panel installation schemes launched by the central government.

Government Support for Solar Panel Installation

According to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, the Central Government pays 30% of the benchmarked installation cost for rooftop PV systems. This subsidy is applicable in states that are in the general category. However, a subsidy of up to 70% of the bench marked installation cost is offered in some states that lie in the special category - North MNRE PV Rooftop Cell. This subsidy scheme is applicable for institutional, residential and social sectors. However, it is not applicable to the commercial sector, industrial sector and public sector undertakings. PSUs are eligible to avail incentives on the basis of energy generation.

In June 2015, India began a ₹40 crore project to measure solar radiation with a spatial resolution of 3*3 km. This solar-radiation measuring network will provide the basis for the Indian solar-radiation atlas.

According to National Institute of Wind Energy officials, the Solar Radiation Resource Assessment wing (121 ground stations) would measure solar radiation's three parameters—Global Horizontal Irradiance (GHI), Direct Normal Irradiance (DNI) and Diffuse Horizontal Irradiance (DHI)—to accurately measure a region's solar radiation.

The Indian government has reduced the solar PV power purchase price from the maximum allowed ₹4.43/unit to ₹4.00/unit, reflecting the steep fall in cost of solar power-generation equipment.The applicable tariff is offered after applying viability gap funding (VGF) or accelerated depreciation (AD) incentives. In January 2019, the time period for commissioning the solar power plants was reduced to 18 months for units located outside the solar parks and 15 months for units located inside the solar parks from the date of power purchase agreement.

Solar PV generation cost fell to ₹2.97/unit for the 750 MW Rewa Ultra Mega Solar power project, India's lowest electricity-generation cost. In first quarter of calendar year 2020, large scale ground mounted solar power installations cost fell to ₹3.5crores/MW by 12% in a year. Solar panel prices are lower than those of mirrors by unit area

In May 2020, the discovered first year tariff was ₹2.90/unit with ₹3.60/unit levelized tariff for round the clock hybrid renewable power supply. In June 2020, Solar PV power tariff had fallen to ₹2.36/unit.

Other perks offered by the government for installing a rooftop PV system

In addition to the subsidy, people can avail various other benefits by installing a rooftop solar system:

• Those planning to install rooftop PV systems can avail priority sector loans of up to 10 lakhs from nationalized banks. This loan shall fall under the category of home loan or home improvement loan.

• Consumers will be eligible for generation-based incentives and will receive ₹2/unit of electricity generated.

• Furthermore, people can sell the excess of electricity. For this, they’d receive a regulated cost per unit as per tariffs set by the government.

Specifications of rooftop PV system for the subsidy scheme

• Approximately 100 square feet of space is required for the installation of the rooftop PV system.

• The average cost of installation of rooftop PV system without subsidy is around ₹60,000 - ₹70,000.

• After leveraging 30% subsidy, people just have to pay ₹42,000 - ₹49,000 for installing a rooftop PV system.

• In order to avail generation-based incentive, the customer should generate 1100 units - 1500 units/year.

• Under the scheme, a customer can earn up to ₹2000 to ₹3000/year as generation-based incentive.

Steps Taken by India

In spite of having one of the lowest per-capita carbon emissions in the world, India has pressed ahead with the deployment of renewable energy at a fast pace for lowering carbon footprints.

India has enhanced its installed renewable capacity by 2.5 times and increased the solar installed capacity by more than 13 times.

Globally, India ranks 4th in terms of renewable power.

India has scaled non-fossil fuel-based power generations to 134GW, which is about 35% of the total power generation and it is expected to increase it to 220 GW by 2022.

India is providing capacity-building support to ISA member countries through its Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme.

Project Preparation Facility has been set up to develop bankable Solar Energy projects in ISA member countries with the help of Export-Import (EXIM) Bank of India.

In 2018, India announced about USD 1.4 billion worth of lines of credit (LOCs) for covering 27 solar projects across 15 countries. These projects are in various stages of implementation.

Solar Energy related Schemes

Solar energy has taken a central place in India's National Action Plan on Climate Change with the National Solar Mission as one of the key Missions.

National Solar Mission (NSM) was launched on 11th January 2010 and is in line with India’s Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs).

Its objective is to establish India as a global leader in solar energy by creating the policy conditions for solar technology diffusion across the country as quickly as possible.

One Sun, One World, One Grid (OSOWOG): India’s ambitious cross-border power grid plan which seeks to transfer solar power generated in one region to feed the electricity demands of others.

KUSUM Scheme: It aims to replace the use of diesel in the farm sector with solar energy with the target of solarisation of 2.8 million irrigation pumps.

Solar Charkha Mission: It is an enterprise driven scheme and envisages setting up of ‘Solar Charkha Clusters’ which will have 200 to 2042 beneficiaries. These solar charkhas are operated using solar power, keeping the environment clean and generating sustainable employment for the artisans.

750 megawatt (MW) solar project which has been inaugurated in Rewa, Madhya Pradesh.

International Solar Alliance

It is a treaty-based international intergovernmental organisation which was jointly launched by India and France on 30th November 2015 during the 21st session of the United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP-21) in Paris, France.

It was conceived as a coalition of solar-resource-rich countries (which lie either completely or partly between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn) to address their special energy needs.

Aim: To lower the cost of technology and finance and thereby facilitate deployment of over 1,000 GW of solar energy and mobilize more than USD 1,000 billion into solar power by 2030 in member countries.

Solar energy is a key source of affordable and reliable energy, thus it could play a significant role in achieving the universal energy access goal (SDG 7).

Headquarter: Gurugram in Haryana, India.

As of June 2020, the ISA Framework Agreement has been signed by 86 countries, with 68 having also deposited instruments of ratification.

Solar Energy related Schemes

Solar energy has taken a central place in India's National Action Plan on Climate Change with the National Solar Mission as one of the key Missions.

National Solar Mission (NSM) was launched on 11th January 2010 and is in line with India’s Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs).

Its objective is to establish India as a global leader in solar energy by creating the policy conditions for solar technology diffusion across the country as quickly as possible.

One Sun, One World, One Grid (OSOWOG): India’s ambitious cross-border power grid plan which seeks to transfer solar power generated in one region to feed the electricity demands of others.

KUSUM Scheme: It aims to replace the use of diesel in the farm sector with solar energy with the target of solarisation of 2.8 million irrigation pumps.

Solar Charkha Mission: It is an enterprise driven scheme and envisages setting up of ‘Solar Charkha Clusters’ which will have 200 to 2042 beneficiaries. These solar charkhas are operated using solar power, keeping the environment clean and generating sustainable employment for the artisans.

750 megawatt (MW) solar project which has been inaugurated in Rewa, Madhya Pradesh.

International Solar Alliance

It is a treaty-based international intergovernmental organisation which was jointly launched by India and France on 30th November 2015 during the 21st session of the United Nations Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP-21) in Paris, France.

It was conceived as a coalition of solar-resource-rich countries (which lie either completely or partly between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn) to address their special energy needs.

Aim: To lower the cost of technology and finance and thereby facilitate deployment of over 1,000 GW of solar energy and mobilize more than USD 1 trillion into solar power by 2030 in member countries.

Solar energy is a key source of affordable and reliable energy, thus it could play a significant role in achieving the universal energy access goal (SDG 7).

Headquarter: Gurugram in Haryana, India.

As of June 2020, the ISA Framework Agreement has been signed by 86 countries, with 68 having also deposited instruments of ratification.

Biggest Solar Power Plant on the Planet

Bhadla solar park near Jodhpur, Spread over 4500 hactare, has a capacity of 2245 MW which is set to be online in December 2019

Tengger Desert Solar Park in China produces 1547MW solar power was installed in Zhongwei, Ningxia is the world’s largest solar array by far. Know as the “Great Wall of Solar” in China. The Tengger Desert is an arid natural region that covers about 36,700 km and is mostly in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in China. The solar field itself covers 1,200 Km (3.2%) of land.

Pavagada solar park is a 2GW solar complex being developed in Pavagada, Tumkur district, approximately 180km from Bengaluru, Karnataka, India. It is expected to become the world’s biggest solar farm when completed.

Ouarzazate Solar Power Station (OSPS), also called Noor Power Station is a solar power complex located in the Drâa-Tafilalet region in Morocco, 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from Ouarzazate town, in Ghessat rural council area. At 1,117 MW, it is the world’s largest concentrated solar power plant. With an additional 72 MW photovoltaic system the entire project is planned to produce 1,117 MW at peak when finished and is being built in three phases and in four parts. The total project is expected to cost $9 billion.

With 1GW Phase I completed and a Total capacity is 3GW in 3 phases. Datong Solar Power plant in China has the potential to be the largest solar plant in the world once completed. According to government statistics, from July 2016 to January 2017 , Datong generated a total of 870 million watts of electricity, equivalent to more than 120 million watts per month of power generation.

With 900 MW of the 1,000 MW already commissioned at the Kurnool Ultra Solar Park, and the remaining to be fully operational next month, it has already become the largest such park outpacing 648 MWsolar park developed by Adani in Tamil Nadu and Topaz Solar Park of 550 MW in California.

Energy of the Future

In the coming years, technology improvements will ensure that solar becomes even cheaper. It could well be that by 2030, solar will have become the most important source of energy for electricity production in a large part of the world. This will also have a positive impact on the environment and climate change.

Going forward the solar industry has very clear cost-reduction roadmaps, which should see solar costs halving by 2030. There is already a move in place towards higher-efficiency modules, which can generate 1.5 times more power than existing, similarly sized modules today using a technology called tandem silicon cells. These are going to have a large impact going forward.

In addition, there are production innovations coming down the pipeline that will reduce the amounts of costly materials such as silver and silicon used in the manufacture of solar cells, as well as innovations such as bifacial modules which allow panels to capture solar energy from both sides. The other important innovation is around how best to integrate solar into our homes, businesses and power systems. This means better power electronics and a greater use of low-cost digital technologies.

Following types of solar panels will be a common practice everywhere in the near future-

#1 Floating solar farms(Floatovoltaics)

Silicon panels are becoming cheaper and more efficient day-by-day. According to experts, if photovoltaic panels are placed on reservoirs and other water bodies, they offer even greater efficiency as well as a plethora of other benefits.

“Floatovoltaics” are photovoltaic solar power systems created for floating on reservoirs, dams, and other water bodies.In the coming years, technology improvements will ensure that solar becomes even cheaper. It could well be that by 2030, solar will have become the most important source of energy for electricity production in a large part of the world. This will also have a positive impact on the environment and climate change. Floating solar farms can generate huge amounts of electricity without using valuable land or real estate. The installation costs of floating photovoltaic panels are less than land-based photovoltaic panels. Also, research showed that the power production of floating solar panels is greater by up to 10% due to the cooling effect of water.

Besides producing clean solar power, floating solar farms can help with water management. They reduce the loss of water to evaporation as they limit air circulation and block sunlight from the surface of the water. Also, floating solar farms prevent noxious algae production, lowering water treatment costs. Furthermore, the water beneath keeps solar panels clean and minimizes energy waste.

#2 BIPV solar technology

Building-integrated photovoltaics, as the name suggests, seamlessly blend into building architecture in the form of roofs, canopies, curtain walls, facades, and skylight systems. Unlike traditional solar PV panels, BIPV can be aesthetically appealing rather than a compromise to a building’s design. Of course, aesthetics alone is not enough for solar buyers; economics matters too. The good news is that the BIPV solar panel systems enable homeowners to save on building materials and electric power costs. By substituting BIPV for standard building materials, you can cut down on the additional cost of solar panel mounting systems.

The photovoltaic PV glasses installed as building materials act as an energy-generating device, allowing natural light inside homes and offices, just as conventional architectural glasses.

#3 Solar skins

Solar skins are a novel PV technology to integrate custom designs into solar panel systems. The solar skin technology is similar to the ad wraps displayed on bus windows. Solar thin-film skins maintain high efficiency due to its selective light filtration advancements. The sunlight falling on solar skins is filtered to reach the solar cells beneath it. As a result, it simultaneously displays the custom image and provides solar energy.

#4 Solar fabric

Solar radiation is available all over the planet, so why not generate your own energy, wherever required? Imagine that besides producing solar power at a fixed location, you could also do it while on the move through your own clothing.

Researchers are developing solar fabrics with a vision of including solar power in each fiber. These solar filaments can be embedded into your t-shirts, winter coats, or any other clothing to help you keep warmer, power your phone, and provide energy for other needs while you’re on the go.

There are several areas where researchers have attempted to combine solar fabric and solar panels, which include:

Building facades that provide both shade and power

Awnings that lighten up streetlights, and

Curtains that eliminate power consumption from the grid

Solar fabricated household clothing can help you save on solar panel mounting and installation costs.

#5 Photovoltaic solar noise barriers (PVNB)

Highway traffic noise in the US has always been a concern for everyone. To overcome this issue, 48 states have built nearly 3,000 miles of traffic noise barriers. Noise barriers were always constructed with the single aim of designing cost-effective barriers that efficiently perform noise abatement functions. However, the goal of the US Department of Energy has now evolved to merge noise abatement with sustainable power generation.

The future of solar looks bright

Solar power was earlier generated only by means of ground-mounted or rooftop panels. But thanks to all the advancements mentioned above, solar is set to become lighter, more flexible, and applicable everywhere.