The Government of India, through its various ministries and departments is actively pursuing the goal of making India a  cleaner and greener country by expanding the usage of renewable energy sources for its increasing energy requirements.

The latest of such efforts comes from the National Institute of Wind Energy (NIWE), an autonomous institution under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), which has installed a remote sensing instrument- LiDAR for assessment of offshore wind resource at Gulf of Khambat, off the Gujarat Coast.  This was announced by the union minister of power and new and renewable energy, R.K. Singh in the Lok Sabha.

The MNRE recently announced the medium-term and long-term targets for offshore wind power capacity additions in India, which are 5 GW by 2022 and 30 GW by 2030. Preliminary studies have indicated good wind potential for offshore wind power both in southern tip of the Indian peninsula and along the country’s western coast.  Two regions where preliminary studies have been conducted are the off coasts of Gujarat and Tamil Nadu.

Singh also informed the House that most of renewable energy projects in the country are being implemented by the private sector developers selected through a transparent bidding process. In order to be competitive, the developers are encouraged to deploy most advanced technologies.

Singh also shared details about Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) conducting various studies with foreign assistance during the last three years and current year.

• Study, surveys and preparation of roadmap on tidal energy projects in India.
• Study on the business models for decentralized systems such as Solar PV and hybrid mini grids, PV irrigation pumps and household lighting systems under access to Clean Energy Program.
• Study for analysis of battery and Solar PV modules recycling processes in India along with development of market outreach strategy for Rooftop Solar PV.
• Study on the investment potential of biofuels in India.

Recently, Mercom also reported that Indian railways, the single largest consumer of electricity with roughly 2 percent share of national energy consumption, is turning green for a cleaner, greener tomorrow.

Image credit: By Ad Meskens [ CC BY-SA 3.0], from Wikimedia Commons