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					</table><p>India&#8217;s power grids will come under immense pressure as peak electricity demand in cities quadruples by 2050 from 2022 levels, driven by a surging need for air conditioners amid rising temperatures, according to a report by the International Energy Agency (<a href="https://www.iea.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">IEA</a>).</p>
<p>While air conditioner ownership in India remains low, each 1°C rise in the average daily temperature above 24°C will result in a 2% increase in electricity demand, leading to higher strained grids and emissions.</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-66447 size-full" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Picture1333.png" alt="Space cooling demand" width="1504" height="938" srcset="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Picture1333.png 1504w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Picture1333-300x187.png 300w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Picture1333-768x479.png 768w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Picture1333-650x405.png 650w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Picture1333-624x389.png 624w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Picture1333-600x374.png 600w" sizes="(max-width: 1504px) 100vw, 1504px" /></p>
<p>India&#8217;s Central Electricity Authority has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/indias-power-demand-rise-sharply-256-gw-2024-25" target="_blank" rel="noopener">forecast</a> a peak power demand of 256.53 GW in the financial year (FY) 2024-25, rising sharply from FY 2023-24&#8217;s 221.37 GW. Power demand is expected to soar above 256 GW in September 2024.</p>
<p>While extreme temperatures affect rural and urban areas, cities heat up more than the countryside. Dense buildings and paved surfaces, especially with few trees or green spaces, absorb and amplify heat, turning cities into heat islands.</p>
<p>Globally, around 10% of the increase in emissions since 2015 is due to urbanization, which led to a record high of nearly 29 billion tons of CO2 emissions from urban areas.</p>
<p>Meanwhile, over 90% of urban population growth between 2015 and 2020 occurred in emerging countries like India. By 2050, India&#8217;s urban population is projected to increase by over 400 million as rural citizens migrate to cities for economic opportunities, placing additional stress on the power grid.</p>
<p>The report cites the April 2022 crisis when an extreme heatwave <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/peak-power-demand-touches-all-time-high-of-201-gw" target="_blank" rel="noopener">caused</a> India&#8217;s worst electricity shortage in years, with demand outstripping supply by 1.9 billion units, or 1.6%. Some regions were forced to undertake scheduled power cuts to manage the strain on the grid.</p>
<p>In the 19 months leading up to January 2024, 29 million new household connections were added to India&#8217;s existing residential customer base of 267 million from 2022.</p>
<p><strong>Optimizing the Grid</strong></p>
<p>The IEA recommended leveraging bulk procurement to create economies of scale and bring down costs of clean technologies like solar, using smart digital systems and technologies to enhance grid flexibility, efficiency, and renewable integration.</p>
<p>For example, in Lucknow, residents <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/uttar-pradesh-blockchain-rooftop-solar-trading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">participated</a> in a pilot peer-to-peer trading platform, allowing them to buy and sell rooftop solar electricity at rates 43% cheaper than central market prices, according to the report.</p>
<p>Earlier this year, Karnataka <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/karnataka-peer-to-peer-solar-energy-trading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">released</a> a draft proposal to use blockchain technology to allow peer-to-peer solar energy trading in the state. While innovative, the policy was fraught with challenges, such as a lack of clarity around effortless implementation, operation, and dispute resolution.</p>
<p>The IEA report mentioned another pilot led by Panitek Power deploying &#8220;digital twin&#8221; technology to model low-voltage distribution networks in New Delhi. This pilot provides real-time data to optimize grid operations when the increasing penetration of rooftop solar and electric vehicle charging stations poses challenges.</p>
<p>An IEA analysis showed that implementing digitalization and flexible-load strategies for buildings and appliances could reduce peak load by about 13% by 2030 compared to a fixed usage pattern.</p>
<p><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-66449 size-full" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Screenshot-2024-05-21-122045.png" alt="India net load" width="582" height="345" srcset="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Screenshot-2024-05-21-122045.png 582w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Screenshot-2024-05-21-122045-300x178.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 582px) 100vw, 582px" /></p>
<p>The report added that to be on track for net zero emissions, India and other nations must triple annual investment in modernizing and expanding distribution grids to $750 billion by 2030.</p>


Surging Use of Air Conditioners to Strain India’s Power Grids: IEA


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					</table><p>Mercom India will host a webinar on December 12, 2023, where industry experts will discuss the factors involved in optimally sizing solar photovoltaic (PV) inverters for diverse locations and temperatures and achieving higher performance.</p>
<p>The webinar – <strong>Optimal Sizing of PV Inverters for Robust Performance in High Ambient Temperatures</strong> &#8211; will also cover the approaches that must be considered to achieve effective cost, efficiency, and reliability of solar inverters.</p>
<p>As solar power installations continue to grow in the country, the need to address grid stability issues has gained prominence to effectively manage the unpredictable and intermittent nature of renewable energy sources.</p>
<p>According to Mercom’s recently released <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/product/q3-2023-india-solar-market-update" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Q3 2023 India Solar Market Update</a>, the cumulative solar capacity exceeded 69 GW as of September 2023, with nearly 77 GW of utility-scale solar projects in the pipeline.</p>
<p>Solar inverters play a major role in managing power generation in high ambient temperatures. It remains crucial to size the solar photovoltaic inverters optimally to maintain their efficiency and performance.</p>
<p>The panelists in the webinar are Dipak Patel, Director Technical, <a href="https://insolare.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">InSolare Energy</a>; Ashish Upadhyay, COO, <a href="https://essensrenewable.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Essens Renewable</a>; Sunil Panigrahi, Country Manager, <a href="https://en.hopewind.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hopewind</a>; and Anuj Mathur, Regional Manager &#8211; North India, Hopewind.</p>
<p>Priya Sanjay, Managing Director, Mercom India, will moderate the session.</p>
<p>The webinar will be held from 3 pm IST. Viewers can register for the webinar <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/webinars/optimal-sizing-of-pv-inverters-for-robust-performance-in-high-ambient-temperatures" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.</p>
<p>Mercom’s report <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/average-cost-of-large-fell-13-yoy-in-q3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">noted</a> a gradual shift towards central inverters over string inverters for solar projects in the country. Prices for power conditioning units fell 3.8% quarter-over-quarter.</p>
<p>The discussion will cover factors to be considered when choosing the right inverters – string, central, or micro inverters, the relationship between inverter and module capacities, and string configuration to ensure optimized performance in high temperatures.</p>
<p>Mercom’s last webinar <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/smarter-inverters-crucial-from-advanced-solar-modules" target="_blank" rel="noopener">highlighted</a> the pivotal role that PV inverters play in maximizing energy generation from advanced technology modules in the Indian solar market.</p>


How to Optimally Size Solar Inverters to Achieve Higher Performance

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