Delhi Govt Makes Ambitious Solar Plans, Again

The Delhi government has announced an ambition to increase the solar power generation to 50% of the total energy demand by the end of this decade and also make the city rooftop solar capital of India. On the same lines, the Delhi government hosted a National Consultation with several stakeholders on the Solar Policy of Delhi to find opportunities in solar energy. All this comes even as the state’s previous attempt to reach a 2762 MW solar capacity target by this year end has fallen woefully short, at barely 220 MW by the end of 2021.

Delhi minister for power, Satyendra Jain said that the policy consultations organised regularly by the Delhi government have enabled his government to gather a lot of valuable feedback from the stakeholders. He said that the novel initiative will help the Delhi Government in formulating a new, effective, exemplary and robust solar policy in Delhi.

Jain stated, “Through rooftop solar installation, the city government will explore innovative mechanisms to effectively manage peak load, which is also complementary to the growth of electric vehicles in the city. The customer must be provided with continuous maintenance and proper functioning of the solar panels through the promotion of the RESCO model.”

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Delhi has earned a bad name as far as rooftop solar power generation is concerned.

Jasmine Shah, the Vice Chairperson of Delhi Dialogue Committee, held that in the last five years, Delhi has emerged as an environmental leader by becoming the only state to shut down all its thermal power stations. He said that Delhi has also become an undisputed national leader for EV adoption as the state is transitioning its entire industry to clean fuels (PNG). He claimed that sustainability is a key aspect of the Chief Minister’s vision for the future of Delhi.

Shah held, “Delhi’s last Solar Policy of 2016 has laid the foundation for rooftop solar adoption in the city with 83 per cent of total rooftop solar capacity installed since 2016. The new solar policy will make Delhi the solar capital of India and hopefully, a global case study for how cities can lead the rooftop solar movement.” He stated that the solar policy will also create thousands of new green jobs.

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Hopefully, this time round, the city will see some real progress, as most of its’s biggest moves on the environmental front, be it by the present government or the previous Congress government, were taken on judicial pressure. With a high dependence on thermal power, the city’s claims on shutting down or seeking to shut down plants around Delhi do not make for good reading when we see it’s internal generation.

Even the EV push is of limited utility without a much higher share of renewable energy to power the EV’s.