The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission has issued new guidelines to supplement the Deviation Settlement Mechanism (DSM) Regulations 2022 to maintain grid security. The Commission has added a new category of wind-solar generators and introduced charges for DSM. Further, it has also hiked monetary incentives for both generators and procurers to maintain the grid frequency between the safe range of 49.95-50.05 Hz. The Commission said there is an urgent need for the system operator to estimate and procure adequate reserves and deploy them prudently to avoid frequency fluctuations and help maintain grid frequency.

The government may provide relief to solar developers in the country by exempting them from the requirement of procuring solar modules only from the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM), industry sources told Mercom India. The exemption could be effective for up to two years for all solar projects, the sources said.

Bharat Coking Coal, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Coal India, has invited bids for installing and commissioning 2.48 MW of grid-connected rooftop solar systems with net metering arrangements at 44 locations in Dhanbad, Jharkhand. The successful bidder will also have to take care of the project’s operation and maintenance for five years. The last date to submit the bids is February 22, 2023. Bids will be opened the next day. The project’s estimated cost is ₹149.72 million (~$1.81 million).

The South Eastern Railways has issued a tender for the empanelment of developers to implement grid-connected rooftop solar projects of various capacities in West Bengal through the public-private partnership mode. The projects are to be developed in two capacity ranges: i) more than 10 kW and up to 100 kW, and ii) more than 100 kW and up to 500 kW. The scope of work includes the engineering, design, procurement, erection, installation, testing, and commissioning of rooftop solar systems. The selected project developer will also operate and maintain the systems for 25 years after commissioning.

Government-owned power producer SJVN posted a profit of ₹2.87 billion (~$34.7 million) for the third quarter (Q3) of the financial year 2022-23, an increase of 22% year-over-year (YoY). The company reported a total income of ₹7.11 billion ($85.9 million), an increase of 16.3% YoY. The company saw lower power generation and sales in the October-December quarter, but revenue was buoyed on account of interest income against the transfer of equity in its joint venture Kholongchhu Hydro Energy.

Adani Green Energy, the renewable arm of Adani Group, posted a net profit of ₹1.03 billion (~$12.4 million) for the third quarter of the financial year (FY) 2022-23, a surge of 110% year-over-year. The company said its performance was primarily driven by an increase in renewable capacity addition, especially from solar-wind hybrid projects.

Germany installed 7.18 GW of solar capacity in 2022, a growth of 35.47% year-over-year (YoY) from 5.3 GW installed in the last year, according to the latest data released by the Federal Network Agency Bundesnetzagentur. The country’s cumulative solar capacity at the end of the year stood at 66.5 GW. The solar installations during the fourth quarter of 2022 stood at 1.53 GW, a 23.47% YoY increase. The state of Bayern led the solar installations in the country with 2.09 GW installed during the year, followed by Nordrhein-Westfalen with 899 MW and Brandenburg with 794 MW.

The bank of the European Union, European Investment Bank (EIB), said it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with India Hydrogen Alliance (IH2A) to provide €1 billion (~$1.1 billion) to develop large-scale green hydrogen hubs and projects across India. The funding would be subject to approvals from EIB and the Indian government. Further, EIB formally agreed to join the IH2A, a move that is expected to bring the industry, investors, and government agencies together on the green hydrogen hubs and projects.

As the global demand for electricity is expected to grow at an average rate of 3% annually over the next three years, renewables and nuclear power would also increase to meet almost all of the world’s demand by 2025, a new International Energy Agency (IEA) report finds. IEA’s Electricity Market Report 2023 offers an analysis of recent policies, trends, and market developments, including forecasts through 2025 for electricity demand, supply, and CO2 emissions. The robust growth of renewables will lead to an increasing share in the global power generation mix and is expected to rise from 29% in 2022 to 35% in 2025.