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					</table><p><a href="https://finmin.nic.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Union Finance Minister</a> Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled key measures during the presentation of the 2024 interim budget, signaling a significant push towards sustainable energy and electric mobility.</p>
<p>One of the standout announcements involves providing up to 300 units of free electricity every month to 10 million households through rooftop solarization. This move aims not only to make clean energy accessible to a large segment of the population but also to encourage the widespread adoption of solar power.</p>
<p>The announcement follows the recent Pradhan Mantri Suryodaya Yojana initiative, which <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/modi-announces-new-rooftop-solar-on-10-million-homes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">aims</a> to reduce the electricity expenditure of poor and middle-class households while enabling India’s self-reliance in the field of energy.</p>
<p>Sitharaman also said the program would lead to the accruing of multiple benefits, including savings of up to ₹15,000 ($180) -₹18,000 ($216) annually for households from free electricity and selling the surplus to the DISCOMs.</p>
<p>In a bid to harness the potential of offshore wind energy, the Finance Minister announced viability gap funding for offshore wind projects with a cumulative capacity of 1 GW. This financial support is expected to propel the development of offshore wind projects, contributing to India&#8217;s renewable energy goals.</p>
<p>The budget also saw revision of estimates for various programs such as solar power (on grid) from ₹49.7 billion (~$598.92 million) to ₹85 billion (~$1.02 billion), National Green Hydrogen Mission from ₹2.97 billion (~$35.79 million) to ₹6 billion (~$72.31 million), and Green Energy Corridor from ₹5 billion (~$60.26 million) to ₹6 billion (~$72.31 million).</p>
<p>The revisions, however reduced the budget estimate outlay for wind power (on grid) from ₹12.14 billion (~$146.3 million) to ₹8 billion (~$96.41 million) and Program for Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid and) Electric Vehicle in India &#8211; (FAME &#8211; India) from ₹51.72 billion (~$623.28 million) to ₹26.71 billion (~$321.88 million).</p>
<p><a href="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Budget-2024-25-Renewable-Energy-Programs-Outlay.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-62841 size-full" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Budget-2024-25-Renewable-Energy-Programs-Outlay.png" alt="Budget 2024-25 Renewable Energy Programs Outlay" width="912" height="622" srcset="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Budget-2024-25-Renewable-Energy-Programs-Outlay.png 912w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Budget-2024-25-Renewable-Energy-Programs-Outlay-300x205.png 300w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Budget-2024-25-Renewable-Energy-Programs-Outlay-768x524.png 768w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Budget-2024-25-Renewable-Energy-Programs-Outlay-650x443.png 650w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Budget-2024-25-Renewable-Energy-Programs-Outlay-624x426.png 624w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Budget-2024-25-Renewable-Energy-Programs-Outlay-600x409.png 600w" sizes="(max-width: 912px) 100vw, 912px" /></a></p>
<p>The government is set to expand and fortify the electric vehicle ecosystem by providing support for manufacturing and charging infrastructure. The focus will be on promoting greater adoption of electric buses (e-buses) for public transport networks through the implementation of a robust payment security mechanism. This is expected to enhance public transport networks, contributing to a more sustainable and eco-friendly urban mobility landscape.</p>
<p>A noteworthy move towards sustainable fuel sources includes the mandatory blending of compressed biogas into compressed natural gas and piped natural gas for transportation. This initiative aligns with the government&#8217;s commitment to promoting cleaner and greener alternatives in the transportation sector.</p>
<p>The government is set to launch a Biomanufacturing and Bio Foundry Program, a pioneering initiative aimed at providing environmentally friendly alternatives for bio-degradable production. This program underscores the commitment to fostering sustainable practices and reducing the environmental impact of industrial processes.</p>
<p>Subscribe to Mercom’s real-time <a href="https://mercomindia.com/product/mercoms-renewable-energy-regulatory-updates/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Regulatory Updates</a> to ensure you don’t miss any critical updates from the renewable industry.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>(The article updates with the budget outlay for major renewable energy programs)</p>


Budget 2024 Highlights: Free Electricity Via Rooftop Solar, VGF for Offshore Wind


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					</table><p>A group of researchers at the <a href="https://www.cam.ac.uk/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">University of Cambridge</a> successfully manipulated the initial steps of photosynthesis and uncovered a novel approach to harnessing its energy.</p>
<p>As identified by the researchers, the reconfiguration of photosynthesis could enhance its capacity to manage surplus energy and establish novel and more effective techniques for utilizing its potential.</p>
<p>“We didn’t know as much about photosynthesis as we thought we did, and the new electron transfer pathway we found here is completely surprising,” said Jenny Zhang from Cambridge’s Yusuf Hamied Department of Chemistry.</p>
<p>Zhang and her team initially aimed to comprehend how a circular molecule known as a quinone can &#8220;capture&#8221; electrons from photosynthesis.</p>
<p>Quinones are prevalent in nature and can effortlessly accept and donate electrons.</p>
<p>The outcomes of this study have been published in the scientific journal <em>Nature</em>.</p>
<p>While photosynthesis is an inherent biological process, scientists have been investigating its potential role in mitigating the climate crisis by imitating photosynthetic mechanisms to produce clean fuels from sunlight and water, among other possibilities.</p>
<p>The scientists employed an ultrafast transient absorption spectroscopy method to investigate the behavior of quinones in photosynthetic cyanobacteria.</p>
<p>The scientists discovered that the protein framework where the first chemical reactions of photosynthesis transpire is &#8220;porous,&#8221; enabling electrons to flee.</p>
<p>This porosity could help plants safeguard themselves from harm caused by intense or swiftly fluctuating illumination.</p>
<p>“The physics of photosynthesis is seriously impressive,” said co-first author Tomi Baikie, from Cambridge’s Cavendish Laboratory “Normally, we work on highly ordered materials, but observing charge transport through cells opens up remarkable opportunities for new discoveries on how nature operates.”</p>
<p>“Since the electrons from photosynthesis are dispersed through the whole system, that means we can access them,” said co-first author Laura Wey, based at the University of Turku, Finland.</p>
<p>The scientists contend that the capability to extract charges at an earlier stage in the photosynthesis process could heighten the efficiency of photosynthetic pathways when manipulating them to generate clean energy from sunlight.</p>
<p>Additionally, the capacity to regulate photosynthesis could lead to the creation of crops that are more tolerant of intense light.</p>
<p>Zhang noted that many scientists have attempted to extract electrons from an earlier point in photosynthesis but considered it unattainable due to the energy being deeply embedded in the protein scaffold.</p>
<p>She further added that the fact that they were able to capture electrons in an earlier phase was remarkable. At first, the team was skeptical and thought they had made an error, but they were eventually able to convince themselves that they had succeeded.</p>
<p>The utilization of ultrafast spectroscopy was critical to this discovery since it allowed the team to track the energy flow in live photosynthetic cells on a femtosecond scale – a millionth of a billionth of a second.</p>
<p>In January 2023, researchers at the École Polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/researchers-produce-hydrogen-air-using-solar-power" target="_blank" rel="noopener">invented</a> a solar-powered device that is capable of harvesting water from the air for conversion into hydrogen fuel.</p>
<p>Last September, researchers at the University of Melbourne <a href="https://mercomindia.com/melbourne-university-researchers-build-device-to-generate-hydrogen-from-air/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">developed</a> a way to generate hydrogen directly from the air, eliminating the dependency on freshwater resources.</p>


Photosynthesis ‘Hack’ Could Lead to New Ways of Generating Renewable Energy

<p>Here are some noteworthy cleantech announcements of the day from around the world:</p>
<p><strong>Flipkart announced that it has partnered with Mahindra Logistics Limited, one of its key logistics partners, to help fast-track the deployment of electric vehicles across its logistics fleet in the country.</strong> Flipkart has committed to 100% electric mobility in its logistics fleet and will deploy more than 25,000 EVs by 2030. Mahindra Logistics will play a significant role in working with various original equipment manufacturers and help Flipkart’s sustainable transition to EVs.</p>
<p><strong>Alfa Laval has </strong><a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/alfa-laval-becomes-partner-in-unique-power-to-x-consortium-to-produce-renewable-clean-fuels-301262640.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>become</strong></a><strong> a partner in the Swedish company Liquid Wind, which develops electro-fuel facilities to produce renewable clean fuels.</strong> Alfa Laval will be part of the Liquid Wind board and contribute with its heat transfer expertise to improve the process efficiency and the overall heat and energy integration. Liquid Wind is a Power-to-Fuel company that develops and finances commercial-scale eMethanol facilities.</p>
<p><strong>The London-listed investment company Aquila European Renewables Income Fund PLC, which is advised by Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft mbh, </strong><a href="https://polaris.brighterir.com/public/aquila_european/news/rns/story/xo4lo2r" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>announced</strong></a> that it has entered into a sale and purchase agreement to acquire 50% of the equity in an unlevered Portuguese solar operating asset (Ourique). The closing of the transaction is expected to occur in April 2021. Ourique is located in Alentejo, Portugal, and has an installed capacity of c.60 MWp.</p>
<p><strong>Global energy and industrial majors have come together to </strong><a href="https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2021/04/06/2204880/9318/en/Energy-transition-coalition-India-H2-Alliance-formed-by-industry-majors.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>form</strong></a><strong> a new energy transition coalition, the India H2 Alliance (IH2A), focusing on commercializing hydrogen technologies </strong>and systems to build net-zero carbon pathways in India. The India H2 Alliance will work together to build the hydrogen economy and supply chain in India and help develop blue and green hydrogen production and storage and build hydrogen-use industrial clusters and transport use-cases with hydrogen-powered fuel cells.</p>


Daily News Wrap-Up: Flipkart Ties Up with Mahindra Logistics to Accelerate EV Deployment

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