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					</table>The <a href="https://meghalaya.gov.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Government of Meghalaya</a> has issued the Meghalaya Power Policy 2024, which seeks to foster a sustainable, inclusive, and efficient energy environment in the state.
The policy addresses power generation, transmission, and distribution challenges while promoting renewable energy and ensuring sustainable development.
The Meghalaya Power Policy 2024 aims to:
<ul>
<li>Establish a state power trading company to oversee power purchase agreements, short-term transactions, and renewable energy procurement.</li>
<li>Advance renewable energy adoption across hydro, solar, wind, and pumped storage systems.</li>
<li>Minimize Aggregate Technical and Commercial losses in the power distribution network.</li>
</ul>
Solar Energy Expansion 
Targeting a minimum 100 MW solar capacity by 2030, projects are classified into:
Category I: Supplying power within Meghalaya under Power Purchase Agreements.
Category II: Exporting power outside the state.
Category III: State-led projects by Meghalaya Power Generation Corporation or joint ventures.
Developers will benefit from land lease incentives, two-year transmission charge waivers, and exemptions from cross-subsidy surcharges
Exemptions for Solar Projects
<ul>
<li>Land allocated for solar power projects will be considered converted to non-agricultural land by default.</li>
<li>A 100% waiver of transmission and wheeling charges will be granted for the first two years of commercial operation, with a 25% annual increase in charges thereafter. Full transmission and wheeling charges will apply from the 7th year of commercial operation.</li>
<li>Cross-subsidy surcharge and additional surcharge will be fully exempted.</li>
</ul>
Wind Energy Development 
To utilize up to 82 MW of wind energy potential at 80 meters height by 2030, wind projects will follow a similar structure as solar projects, with incentives like land lease concessions and waived transmission charges
Exemptions for Wind Projects 
<ul>
<li>A 100%) waiver of transmission and wheeling charges will be provided for the first two years of commercial operation. These charges will increase by 25% annually thereafter, with full charges applicable from the 7th year of commercial operation.</li>
<li>Cross-subsidy surcharge and additional surcharge will be fully exempted.</li>
</ul>
Electricity duty will be waived for captive consumption, sales to distribution licensees, and third-party sales for all wind power projects established within the state.
Additionally, electricity duty exemptions will apply to new manufacturing facilities and ancillaries associated with wind power projects.
Pumped Storage Hydro Projects 
The policy supports closed-loop and generation-based pumped storage projects to address peak demand. These may be developed by CPSUs, State PSUs, or private entities via joint ventures or competitive bidding.
Hydro Power Development 
With a hydro potential of nearly 3,000 MW—of which only 13% (378 MW) has been utilized—the policy categorizes projects as follows:
Large &amp; Mega Projects (above 100 MW): Allocated through international competitive bidding (ICB).
Medium Projects (25–100 MW): Awarded via ICB or assigned to state/central utilities.
Small Projects (up to 25 MW): Allocated through Memorandum of Agreement, with priority given to local participation for projects under 10 MW.
Developers must pay an upfront premium, provide at least 12% free power to the state, and allocate an additional 1% to a Local Area Development Fund. Projects will operate on a Build-Own-Operate-Transfer (BOOT) model for 40 years before reverting to the state.
Transmission Infrastructure
The policy prioritizes a robust and reliable transmission network:
<ul>
<li>Creation of a State Transmission Utility distinct from Meghalaya Power Transmission Corporation.</li>
<li>Development of a comprehensive transmission master plan with redundancy for enhanced system security.</li>
<li>Private investment in projects over ₹50 crore through Tariff-Based Competitive Bidding</li>
</ul>
Distribution Sector Reforms
To lower the current AT&amp;C losses of 27.76%, the policy focuses on:
<ul>
<li>Replacing conventional meters with smart meters under government schemes.</li>
<li>Enhancing High Tension to Low Tension ratios in urban areas.</li>
<li>Adopting demand-side management measures like Time-of-Day metering.</li>
<li>Expanding EV charging infrastructure in alignment with the Electric Vehicle Policy 2021.</li>
</ul>
RPO Commitments
Meghalaya pledges to meet Renewable Purchase Obligations (RPOs) set by the Ministry of Power, with progressively increasing targets for wind, hydro, distributed renewable energy, and other green sources through 2030.
The DISCOM will explore options for decentralized energy generation in rural areas to provide reliable, high-quality, round-the-clock power supply.
To encourage energy production from non-conventional sources, the Meghalaya government will establish a dedicated fund to support research and development in emerging technologies such as green hydrogen, battery energy storage systems, and biomass power plants.
The government will promote public-private partnerships to develop solar-based EV charging stations and battery energy storage systems in Meghalaya.
Expert consultants will be appointed to assess the feasibility of harnessing green hydrogen potential and to create a roadmap for its development in the state.
Financial Incentives
A State-Level Committee, chaired by the Minister for Power, will oversee approvals, land acquisition, and project progress. Financial incentives include:
<ul>
<li>Up to 7.5% of capital costs for small hydro project</li>
<li>Waivers on electricity duty for renewable energy projects.</li>
</ul>
Meghalaya State Electricity Regulatory Commission&#8217;s (Terms and Conditions of Green Energy Open Access) Regulations, 2023, <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/meghalaya-green-open-access-100-kw" target="_blank" rel="noopener">allowed</a> consumers with a minimum contracted demand or sanctioned load of 100 kW to access Green Energy Open Access.
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.

Meghalaya Power Policy to Promote Wind, Solar and Pumped Storage Projects

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					</table><a href="https://bluearthrenewables.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BluEarth</a>, an independent renewable power producer, has acquired a group of seven wind and solar projects in the U.S. from the renewable energy developer <a href="https://www.ozonerenewables.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ozone Renewables</a>.
The projects, with a total capacity of about 1 GW, are located in the states of Ohio, Oklahoma, Washington, and Oregon.
The deal marks BluEarth&#8217;s second acquisition from Ozone.
BluEarth’s growing development pipeline now totals over 7 GW of wind, solar, and storage projects in its expanding development portfolio.
In 2022, BluEarth acquired 2 GW of development projects located in Pennsylvania, Missouri, Ohio, Colorado, and Nevada, in addition to various greenfield projects.
Currently, the company is constructing nearly 200 MW of new projects in Alberta, and the 280 MW Two Rivers Wind Project in Wyoming is expected to begin construction in 2023.
BluEarth will develop the acquired projects through a development services agreement with Pivot Power Management (<a href="https://pivotgen.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pivot</a>) which is expected to bring expertise in these markets.
“We are excited to grow our development portfolio with the addition of these projects, which are well positioned in key markets across four states,” said Grant Arnold, President and CEO of BluEarth.
Arnold added this combination of projects fits well into BluEarth’s strategic growth plans.
“We are happy to expand our partnership with BluEarth through this acquisition and confident that our collaboration will continue to deliver successful projects,” said Nick Henriksen, VP of Greenfield Development for Pivot.
“Ozone is proud to have originated and delivered a meaningful development portfolio to BluEarth…we are aligned with BluEarth’s mission to accelerate the deployment of high-quality renewable energy assets in North America and appreciate the opportunity to play a key role,” said Larry Seiler, Head of Development for Connecticut-Based Ozone Renewables.
In July 2022, BluEarth <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/project-finance-brief-bluearth-acquires-solar-wind-project-us" target="_blank" rel="noopener">acquired</a> the solar and wind project in Colorado from NorthRenew Energy, a US-based renewable and sustainable project developer. The project, located in Kiowa and Cheyenne counties, is expected to be developed in multiple phases of new solar and wind generation.
Last October, Pivot Energy <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/project-finance-brief-pivot-energy-raises" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> $100 million in debt financing for its renewable energy projects from Fundamental Renewables, an investment arm of Fundamental Advisors. Fundamental Renewables provided a $100 million revolving development loan facility to Pivot Energy, funding a diverse range of solar and storage projects across the U.S.

BluEarth Acquires Seven Solar and Wind Projects of 1 GW Capacity in the US

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					</table>India-based independent power producer <a href="https://renewpower.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ReNew Power</a> has announced it has signed an agreement with <a href="https://news.microsoft.com/en-in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Microsoft India</a> to supply 150 MW of solar power from its recently commissioned project near Bikaner in Rajasthan.
With an aim to remove carbon in its energy purchases by 2030, Microsoft plans to contract green energy for 100% of carbon-emitting consumption by all its data centers, buildings, and campuses worldwide. The partnership is expected to help drive this transition further.
Renewable power procurement through open access has been the driving force behind the rise in installations across India. According to the recently released <a href="https://mercomindia.com/product/india-solar-open-access-market-report-q3-2022/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mercom India Solar Open Access Market report Q3 2022</a>, open access solar installations increased by 96% year-over-year, given the rising demand amongst large corporates.
“For its part, ReNew is committed to being a catalyst for global energy transition and will continue to offer innovative solutions to companies to support their climate goals,” Sumant Sinha, Chairman, and CEO of ReNew Power.
Rohini Srivathsa, National Technology Officer, Microsoft India, said, “We are happy to partner with ReNew Power to meet our sustainability targets and help our customers and partners on their sustainability journey.”
ReNew develops, builds, owns, and operates wind, solar and hydro projects for the supply of power to utilities as well as to corporates. The company said the deal signifies that corporates across the globe are integrating renewable energy into their operations.
ReNew has a total gross portfolio of ~13.4 GW of renewable energy projects across India, including commissioned and committed projects, as of September 30, 2022.
Jindal Stainless recently <a href="https://mercomindia.com/jindal-stainless-pact-renew-power-300-mw-renewable-project/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">signed</a> a contract with ReNew Power to develop an approximately 300 MW utility-scale captive renewable project to power its facilities in Jajpur, Odisha. The project would use a mix of solar and wind technologies and is expected to generate 700 million units of energy annually.
In August, the power producer <a href="https://mercomindia.com/renew-power-1-1-billion-loan-1-3-gw-round-the-clock-renewable/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> a partnership with twelve international lenders for what is deemed to be the largest External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) project finance loan totaling $1.1 billion in India’s renewables sector for any single project.
Microsoft had previously <a href="https://mercomindia.com/microsoft-buy-power-from-amplus-solar-project/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">signe</a>d a long-term renewable energy agreement with Amplus Solar for a 100 MW solar project developed in Rajasthan.

ReNew to Supply 150 MW Solar Power to Microsoft India

The Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission (<a href="https://karunadu.karnataka.gov.in/kerc/Pages/home.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">KERC</a>) has approved a request to carry forward the banked energy from mini-hydropower generators as of May 31, 2020, to July 31, 2020.
Any banked energy which remains unutilized as on July 31, 2020, will be supplied to the electricity supply companies (ESCOMs) at no cost. It further said that such a facility would not be provided to renewable projects other than mini-hydro projects. The Commission further noted that to carry forward the banked energy, the hydro generators should have executed the wheeling and banking agreement.
Earlier, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (<a href="https://mnre.gov.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">MNRE</a>) had <a href="https://mercomindia.com/mnre-directs-rollover-banked-energy-lockdown/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">issued</a> an advisory for the states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu that they may consider permitting roll-over of banked electricity for the financial year (FY) 2019-20 and FY 2020-21 to FY 2021-22. The advisory was valid for renewable projects under the captive and third-party sale.
Citing the above advisory, several generators approached the Commission asking for its permission to carry forward their banked energy. Later, the Government of Karnataka, after consultation with the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited (<a href="https://kptcl.karnataka.gov.in/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">KPTCL</a>) and ESCOMs, requested the Commission to extend the banking period for two months from the date of the opening of the lockdown.
The Commission noted that concerning the renewable energy certificate (REC)-based renewable projects, the banking is done on a monthly basis, and the banked power cannot be carried forward. Considering the case of non-REC based renewable projects, the Commission stated that there is a provision for annual banking, which starts on April 01 of a calendar year and ends on March 31 of the following calendar year. The Commission further noted that as the lockdown started from March 25, 2020, the projects were affected for only seven days, and the impact was very marginal, and there was no need for the roll-over of banked energy.
Now, for non-REC mini-hydro projects, the year starts on June 01 of the calendar year and ends on May 31 of the following year. The Commission said that since these projects were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent lockdown for about two months, the roll-over of banked energy will be allowed for two months ending on July 31, 2020. The Commission further noted that any banked energy that remains unutilized at the end of two months would be supplied to the ESCOMs for free.
The Commission further stated that as per the standard agreement, PTCL and ESCOMs are not obligated to bank and wheel energy in case of force majeure events. If normalcy is not restored within thirty days, the agreement will be temporarily suspended. Further, the KPTCL and ESCOMs will not be liable to pay any damage or compensation to the generating company. However, considering the COVID-19 pandemic as a special case, the Commission allowed the mini-hydro generators to carry forward the banked energy for two months.
Meanwhile, recently, the Government of Karnataka <a href="https://mercomindia.com/karnataka-wheeling-banking-captive-solar-projects/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">held</a> a meeting to discuss the banking and wheeling charges for grid-connected renewable projects in the state. In the meeting, the government decided that for grid-connected captive solar projects, the consumer will be required to enter into an agreement for the wheeling and banking charges.

Karnataka Mini-Hydro Projects Can Carry Forward Banked Energy for 2 Months

The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) has <a href="http://www.cercind.gov.in/2018/orders/02.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">issued</a> a set of levelized generic tariffs for the purchase of electricity from a host of renewable power generation sources during financial year (FY) 2018-19.
The levelized generic tariffs will apply to small hydro projects, biomass with Rankine cycle projects, non-fossil fuel-based co-generation projects, biomass gasifiers, and biogas-based projects.
Excluded from the levelized generic tariff list are “solar photovoltaic, solar thermal, wind (onshore and offshore), municipal solid waste (MSW)/refuse-derived fuel (RDF), and other emerging renewable energy technologies,” the CERC order stated. For these types of generation, CERC said the tariff will be specific to each project, and not generic.
In determining the levelized generic tariff structure, CERC used a formula that took into account the expected useful life of each project. In its order, CERC considered the useful life of small hydro projects to be 35 years, whereas the useful life for biomass with Rankine cycle, non-fossil fuel-based co-generation, biomass gasifiers, and biogas-based projects was set at 20 years each.
<a href="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/cerc.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-9286 size-full" src="https://mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/cerc.png" alt="CERC Issues Generic Tariffs for Select Renewables in FY 2018-19" width="595" height="302" srcset="https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/cerc.png 595w, https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/cerc-300x152.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 595px) 100vw, 595px" /></a>
The tariffs set by CERC will apply during FY 2018-19. After that, CERC may or may not review them and propose changes.
Levelized tariffs are calculated by CERC using a system that determines the useful life of each technology and takes into account the post-tax weighted average cost of capital as a discount factor.
As of December 31, 2017, Bio-Power which includes various types of biomass and biogas <a href="https://mercomindia.com/solar-top-renewable-source-india-2017/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">made up</a> 2.5 percent of renewable energy installations in India, small hydro accounted for 1.32 percent.
To tackle air pollution issues the Ministry of Power released an <a href="https://mercomindia.com/cea-biomass-pellets-power-generation-thermal-plants/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">order</a> last month calling for 5-10 percent usage of biomass pellets alongside coal power generation across the country. In 2017, electricity <a href="https://mercomindia.com/solar-power-generation-india/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">generated</a> by biomass fell by 11 percent year-over-year.
Mercom previously <a href="https://mercomindia.com/cerc-issues-levelized-generic-tariff-select-renewables-fy2017-18/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> on the fixed generic tariff proposed by CERC for select renewables for FY 2017-18.
Image credit: Tomasz Sienicki (Own work), <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=16676223" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CC BY 3.0</a> via Wikimedia Commons
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