India's Clean Power Revolution Report | UPSC

India’s Clean Power Revolution Report | UPSC

HEADLINES:

India’s coal power fleets under-utilised, says report, amid auctions

WHY IN NEWS:

Performance of coal power fleets declined by 21 per cent from 78 per cent in 2010 — a historical low

MINISTRY? :-Ministry of Coal

SYLLABUS COVERED: GS 3:Natural resources

LEARNING:

For PRELIMS remember the report title and the publisher . Significance of this report is important . It shows steady decline of the black gold !

For MAINS this is the report which will help you while addressing issues related to coal vs renewable energy. Let us dive in !

ISSUE:

The performance of coal power fleets declined by 21 per cent from 78 per cent in 2010 — a historical low — according to the India’s Clean Power Revolution report published June 26, 2020 by BloombergNEF.

INDIA’S CLEAN POWER REVOLUTION REPORT

TITLE

India’s Clean Power Revolution report.

PUBLISHED BY

BloombergNEF.

BloombergNEF is a leading provider of primary research on clean energy, advanced transport, digital industry, innovative materials, and commodities
It forecasts that frame the financial, economic and policy implications of industry-transforming trends and technologies.

REPORT ANALYSIS

As the Union government prepares to auction 41 coal blocks across India, data from a report has shown the country’s coal power fleets to be under-utilised.

“India’s coal power fleet delivered just over half its maximum generation output in the fiscal year ending March 2020,” .

UTLISIATION RATES OF COAL POWER PLANTS

Source: BloombergNEF, Central Electricity Authority.

ARBITRARY USAGE : Coal power plants managed by the Centre were utilised more than those owned by state governments and private players.

The plants managed by the Centre were more utilised because they were located closer to coal mines.

OVER ESTIMATED DEMAND : The Centre had over-estimated the growth of the countrywide power demand, leading to over-investment in new coal capacity.

Coal plants of 96 gigawatts (GW) were added to the grid between 2011 and 2016 alone.

RENEWABLE ENERGY VS COAL

Renewable energy will displace coal in the future in terms of storage.

CHALLENGES : New onshore wind and new solar combined with battery storage will out-compete new coal power plants on a levelised basis by 2023 and 2029 respectively.

IASbhai WINDUP:

Financers across the world have been withdrawing their investments in coal.
Renewables in India as well have been outperforming coal.
If the mines are auctioned this year, production will commence in 2023 or 2024.

There is, however, uncertainty over how much potential coal will have in the country five years down the line

SUGGESTED READING : https://about.bnef.com/about/

SOURCES:DownToEarth| India’s Clean Power Revolution Report | UPSC

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