It was reported that India will perform a spherical of renewable vitality bidding within the first quarter of 2024, which requires bidders to submit a program should include greater than 50% of the CSP capability. This information bought nice consideration previously weeks on the opportunity of CSP revival in India. However how in regards to the challenges to hinder the event of India’s photo voltaic thermal energy technology previously years, comparable to DNI information, land, financing, grid entry, native provide chain and so forth? Mr. Rajan Varshney, Deputy Managing Director of NTPC, India’s state-owned energy utility, shared his perception to CSP Focus in a current interview.
CSP Focus: Why is CSP catching up curiosity off-late in India particularly when the final expertise round a decade again was not good?
Rajan: I feel at the moment there have been some points which weren’t straight CSP expertise associated however extraneous like associated to coverage, demise of key individual and so on., the tender in 2011 for each for CSP and PV required each to be in-built 3 years and no storage PPA was there thereby plant may run solely throughout daytime and will provide solely infirm energy. The permitted time for CSP was much less particularly when barely 700 MW CSP capability was working throughout globe. At the moment, individuals didn’t consider storage, reasonably they thought, if we put the storage, it would value extra. Thus the inherent benefit of CSP was ignored. With barely extra CAPEX, you possibly can run this plant for twenty-four hours of the day and provides a agency energy. In three years if it’s important to do CSP, it’s important to first establish the expertise, then the expertise supplier, then funding, then monetary closure, then you’ll order, then the availability in months, then you’ll begin erecting, so it was very tough to do it in 3 years, no one of many bidders may do it. it was not a expertise failure reasonably it was a coverage failure.
Now could be the correct time for CSP as a result of already a variety of infirm energy is getting injected into the grid and balancing energy is required for firming it up which as such is meant to be solely coal. As PV & Wind capability will increase, more and more increasingly coal-based energy will probably be required to make it agency and to produce electrical energy when Solar just isn’t there. So by rising PV we can not keep away from coal except we set up CSP plus storage in Gujarat and Rajasthan. Additionally the coal based mostly capability has to run at lowered load and at occasions to keep away from working beneath technically minimal, curtailment of the infirm energy is resorted to or in any other case coal based mostly plant needs to be tripped for a while.
The opposite cause is that now the CSP costs have plummeted loads whereas Capex for coal-based crops and coal value and therefore Opex is rising with time. The electrical energy worth general has elevated 0.71Rs/KWh in final 12 months. So value of recent coal based mostly crops has elevated and is presently round 9 to 10 Cr per MW and OPEX can also be larger than CSP as coal needs to be purchased and burnt to supply warmth. Now CSP may be less expensive each on Capex of round 15 Cr per MW (life being greater than 70 years) and Opex being hardly 1% of Capex. Additional the CSP worth is lowering with China putting in greater than 30 CSP crops with storage, out of which round 20 will probably be operating in 2024. The distributors have constructed provide chains and they’re now bidding aggressively. CSP CAPEX has decreased with time owing to scaling up additionally and with enhancements in expertise. Now extra distributors are developing and bidding aggressively. With time, a lot of the CSP elements may be made even in India, so the CSP value will come down additional.
CSP Focus: Is the Authorities and the associated regulatory ministry additionally shared the identical feedback to CSP?
Rajan: Ministry has additionally agreed that now CSP is viable proposition and it ought to be applied, after my displays to numerous businesses together with MNRE.
CSP Focus: How in regards to the funding drawback? How do the lenders consider CSP?
Rajan: I additionally talked to funding businesses and clarify them how good the applied sciences. and on this proposed tender will probably be IPP based mostly, 30% will probably be introduced by the distributors themselves and 70% would be the mortgage. and the mortgage will probably be disbursed proportionately. So the mortgage businesses may have the arrogance.
CSP Focus: Yet another query is the DNI information, I feel over the last public sale DNI was additionally one of many causes to the failure.
Rajan: This time we suggest to repair the DNI like it’s important to design for mounted DNI of 1700KWh/?. If precise DNI comes larger, you possibly can promote the surplus energy but when precise DNI comes decrease, corresponding rest within the contracted electrical energy to be bought will probably be supplied.
Additionally now lot of knowledge is obtainable and it’s getting repeatedly collected by satellites and a few extra developments are there, now we all know significantly better.
However nonetheless to maintain out the uncertainty we now have stored that margin that distributors can design for 1700 KWh/? DNI though DNI at some areas may be 2000 KWh/? additionally.
Supply: SOLARGIS
CSP Focus: What in regards to the expertise? Do you may have any choice for applied sciences?
Rajan: No, we’re saying you deliver any expertise, so long as you’re comfy in placing your cash. So we aren’t binding them, however we would like the output at the very least 80 p.c of the contracted energy. And we care in regards to the fee of electrical energy. There will probably be a reverse bidding, and the most effective charges will get found by reverse bidding.
CSP Focus: Will there be native content material requirement within the subsequent CSP tender?
Rajan: No native content material requirement for the primary tenders. from wherever you do, you do it in your danger and in your value. Mortgage will probably be there, however it’s important to repay
CSP Focus: The place will this mission be positioned, Gujarat or Rajasthan?
Rajan: Initially these tenders will probably be for Gujarat; we wish to give present greatest circumstances in order that first initiatives run very properly and is engaging, Extra of such tenders will probably be revealed and if the LCOE comes out superb. Will probably be like a series response. When some FDRE tender is out, then corporations will begin discovering distributors in India to develop CSP elements, after which customized obligation and different prices like transportation and so on may be lowered. Most definitely value will probably be lesser when. a lot of the issues will probably be made in India with much less transportation prices.
CSP Focus: What in regards to the timeline, have you ever already mounted the timeline for the following tender?
Rajan: Truly, this plan and timeline is that it needs to be finished quickly however it’s nonetheless work in progress. First, we are going to discover by this tender what’s the response, then we are going to set our targets
CSP Focus: Who would be the celebration to launch the bids, SECI?
Rajan: Will probably be SECI, though there’s inside session occurring in another corporations might also float extra CSP tenders. SECI has already engaged on it.
NTPC could launch the bid on EPC foundation later as NTPC continues to be trying into doing first feasibility report after which observe EPC route and it’s anticipated that will probably be less expensive to order numerous set of elements by separate tenders.
SECI will solely be the customer. Will probably be the tendering company which is able to open and launch the bid and challenge the PPA. Behind the works it would organize the land, get it cleared and signal provide settlement with the Discoms in order that they’ll honor that PPA. They can not maintain this energy with them. and the distributors must construct – personal – function the plant, they don’t must switch. The PPA is generally for 25 years, they’ll run the mission nonetheless if they need as much as lease interval as a result of the land will probably be on 99 years lease. at the very least 80% of the contracted energy will probably be mandatorily equipped by way of SECI and the remainder may be handled as Service provider Energy and thus may be bought by Energy market or on to shoppers.
CSP Focus: With SECI and round 20 corporations within the dialogue assembly together with some massive corporations, who do you assume will probably be taken with these initiatives and want to go for the bidding.
Rajan: Many bidders will probably be there. Already IPPs are doing for Wind and PV, they are going to do their components, however at the very least 51% of the vitality must be injected from the CSP half, so they are going to tie up with the CSP venders, the availability chain, or integrators, and kind consortia who will have the ability to construct it in a correct method. And that’s the reason we now have made it that a lot engaging as a way to promote further electrical energy through the PPA interval additionally with none objection from SECI and with none NOC required.
You may earn from the utility Companies like voltage regulation, frequency regulation, ramping, then you possibly can have the carbon credit additionally with you, then you possibly can proceed to produce even after your Capex is recovered and until you wish to function the plant. Furthermore, you possibly can promote the mission at any stage, you possibly can win the tender after which you possibly can promote it to any individual so long as he abides by the phrases of the contract signed by you. Equally, when you erect, another celebration can are available. Then even after 25 years when the PPA is over you possibly can promote it or in between additionally the mission may be bought many occasions. So, we now have not sure any circumstances on the possession half.
CSP Focus: Does NTPC have any CSP initiatives in pipeline?
Rajan: The pipeline will probably be constructed as soon as the feasibility report is completed. Truly, we now have to nonetheless come out with the tender for feasibility, we now have taken quotations from numerous distributors for doing the feasibility. In CSP what occurs salvage worth will probably be too excessive after a few years, glass will probably be costing very excessive, salt will probably be transformed to fertilizer and it’ll have an enormous worth, so we don’t wish to make investments and let any individual benefit from the returns.
CSP Focus: Do you may have any concept which native corporations are going to bid for the CSP?
Rajan: A number of builders have been contacted and consciousness about CSP was created. And for desirous corporations, go to to CSP crops with storage have been additionally facilitated. Some have given conformation additionally. They’ve mentioned with numerous distributors, they usually have given me what their estimated LCOE will probably be and what capability they are going to bid for.
I’ve mixed this PV and Wind with CSP. As a result of PV and Wind distributors will probably be right here, they already do it, that they are going to discover another associate for CSP Half. however CSP based mostly electrical energy provide needs to be at the very least 51% simply to make it that vendor just isn’t performing some small quantity of CSP and a variety of PV and Wind. If I carry on putting in PV and Wind, then to stabilize it if I don’t have CSP or another renewable agency energy, I must go for coal and different issues.
Most massive and small distributors additionally in dialogue. as a result of they’re massive corporations and should not require any associate at occasions, possibly for the primary mission they are going to associate.
I actually can not touch upon others however sure many distributors are on the lookout for appropriate companions and are in talks.
India’s formidable Nationwide Photo voltaic Mission (JNNSM) a decade in the past included a young for 470MW of photo voltaic thermal energy initiatives. In the long run, the 470MW of photo voltaic thermal energy initiatives have been awarded to the seven lowest bidders by reverse bidding. However resulting from numerous causes, regardless of the federal government granted extension, solely three initiatives, with a complete capability of 200MW have been into operation, the remainder of the mission stay undeveloped until as we speak.
However over the previous decade, India’s PV initiatives have been creating very quick. At current, India’s PV and Wind technology has accounted for greater than 10% of whole electrical energy technology of the nation, which causes large influence to the grid system, raises the pressing want for numerous clear and secure energy. The federal government presently reconsiders the CSP, which can also be in step with the development of the occasions. Trying ahead to India’s 2024 Q1 renewable vitality tender may be launched quickly.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed right here by the interviewee are solely his present opinions and don’t essentially replicate the official coverage or place of any institute, group or firm.
