Government agencies were busy in the month of August with two anti-dumping cases decided against Chinese companies for solar glass and castings for wind turbines. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) proposed development of 7.5 GW of solar using domestic content and issued final guidelines for solar auctions with some important changes to attract low bids from developers. MNRE also issued an advisory to state governments to honor wind PPAs.

The state government agency of Andhra Pradesh released new regulations for power deviation settlement of solar and wind generation, while the Madhya Pradesh electricity commission proposed ending the must-run status.

Here are some important highlights from Mercom India’s renewable energy policy roundup from central, state and government agencies in India for the month of August 2017.

Read our previous policy roundup here.

Anti-Dumping Rulings

The office of the Directorate General of Anti-Dumping & Allied Duties (DGAD) has recommended the imposition of an anti-dumping duty on castings for wind-operated electricity generators originating in or exported from China. The duties apply to castings that are machined, raw, in finished or sub-assembled form, are part of a sub-assembly, or part of equipment or component meant for wind-operated electricity generators.

The Indian Ministry of Finance imposed an anti-dumping duty on tempered glass (solar glass) imported from China in the range of $64.04 per metric ton (MT) to $136.21/MT.

New Policy Guidelines

Hoping for low bids, the Ministry of Power issued final guidelines for the tariff-based competitive bidding process for solar projects. The guidelines apply to large-scale projects with a capacity of 5 MW or more.

The MNRE has advised states to extend project commissioning timelines for select solar projects. The extension will be applicable to solar projects that have been delayed due to unforeseen circumstances or when the delay is caused by the state.

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has issued an advisory to state governments and state electricity regulatory commissions (SERCs) asking them to honor wind power purchase agreements (PPAs) for projects commissioned before March 31, 2017.

To facilitate large-scale grid integration of solar and wind power while maintaining grid stability, the Andhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (APERC) has released new regulations for forecasting, scheduling, and deviation settlement of solar and wind generation.

The Madhya Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (MPERC) proposed applying scheduling and merit order dispatch principles to energy generation from co-generating and renewable energy generating units from time to time, implying that it wants to end the must-run status of renewables.

The Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) has proposed 7.5 GW of solar to be developed using domestically manufactured solar cells and modules during the second phase of its CPSU program. The program is designed to help the revival of domestic solar manufacturing, which is facing intense competition from Chinese module manufacturers.

The solar renewable purchase obligation (RPO) for financial year (FY) 2018-19 will be set at 6.75 percent, stated Mr. Piyush Goyal, India’s Minister for Power, Coal, New and Renewable Energy and Mines, in the Lok Sabha. The non-solar RPO for FY 2018-19 will be 10.25 percent.

Other Developments

India is targeting the deployment of five to seven million electric vehicles in the country by 2020 under the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (NEMMP) 2020. The NEMMP’s goal is to reduce carbon emissions and cut down on fossil fuel usage.

The Energy Efficiency Services (EESL) entered into separate memorandum of understandings (MOU) with Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) for the distribution of energy efficient appliances under Unnat Jeevan by Affordable LEDs and Appliances for All (UJALA) program.

The Government of India is close to finalizing a ₹160 billion (~$2.5 billion) hydropower development fund.

Image Credit: By Shahnoor Habib Munmun (Own work) [CC BY 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons