Solar Energy : Present and Future

Source-McKinsey

Since time immemorial, people have been fascinated by the Sun. Ancient civilisations personified the Sun, worshipping it as holy. The ability to utilise and harness the energy generated by the sun has been long-thought and researched upon. When people think about alternatives to primitive energy sources like coal, petroleum, hydro power etc. the first image that comes to the mind is solar energy. Solar energy is the best source of renewable, pollution-free and eco-friendly source of energy. Solar power is a fast developing industry across the globe.

Historical context of solar energy:

Since the start of the mankind, natural resources like sun, land, water etc. have been at the service of nurturing living being. The recorded history in the process of harnessing this energy is dated back towhen the first solar collector was developed by Swiss scientist named Horace-Benedict de Saussure in 1767; he created the first solar oven, which was made from an insulated box enclosed with three layers of glass which absorbed heat energy. In in 1891, the first solar heater was created. In 1893, the first solar cell was introduced. In 1956, the first solar cells were commercially available. The cost was however far away from the reach of the common man. Less cost manufacturing process of solar panel became the major milestone in the history of solar energy. In 1981, Paul Macready produced the first solar powered aircraft. In 1982, the first solar powered car was developed in Australia. In 1999, the largest plant was developed producing more than 20kW of power.

Present and future prospects in India:

Source-huffingtonpost

Solar power is a fast developing industry in India. With about 300 clear and sunny days in a year, the calculated solar energy incidence on India’s land area is about 5000 trillion kilowatt-hours per year. The solar energy available in a year exceeds output of all fossil fuel energy reserves in India. As of September, 2017 the country’s solar grid had a cumulative capacity of 16.20 GW. India quadrupled its solar-generation capacity from 2,650MW to 12,289MW in four years from 2014 to 2017. India’s initiative of 100GW of solar energy by 2022 is a highly ambitious target; since the world’s installed solar-power capacity in 2014 was 181GW. The improvements in solar thermal storage power technology in recent years has made this task achievable as the cheaper solar power need not depend on gas/coal fired power generation for ensuring stable grid operation.

In addition to its large-scale grid connected solar PV initiative, India is developing off-grid solar power for local energy needs. Solar products have increasingly helped to meet rural needs. In 2015, nearly 1 million solar lanterns were sold in the country, reducing the need of kerosene. Solar cookers were distributed and solar home lighting systems and solar street lighting installations were provided under a national programme.In January 2016, Prime Minister NarendraModi and French president Francois Hollande laid the foundation stone for the headquarters of the International Solar Alliance (ISA) in GwalPahari, Gurugram. The ISA will focus onpromoting and developing solar energy and solar products for countries lying wholly or partially between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. The hope of the ISA is that a wider development of solar technologies to poor and remote regions.

Challenges and opportunities:

Land is scarce in India, and per-capita land availability is low. The area of land required for the utility-scale solar power plants is about 1 (250 acres) for every 40-60 MW generated. Hence, the best architecture for India would be rooftop power-generation systems connected via local grid.

India could make renewable resources the backbone of its economy by 2030, curtailing carbon emissions without compromising its economic –growth potential. 51 solar radiation resource assessment stations have been installed across India by the Ministry of Newand Renewable Energy to create a database of solar energy potential. The government has initiated a Renewable Energy Certificate(REC) scheme designed to drive investment in low carbon energy projects. Some of the largest solar power plants in the country that have largely contributed in the channelizing of solar energy are namely: Bhadla Solar Park Rajasthan, Kamuthi Solar Power Project Tamil Nadu, Charanka Solar Park Gujarat, Welspun Solar MP Project Madhya Pradesh. Solar capacity in India is expected to grow at a rapid pace in the coming years. With the power tariff increasing every year and to keep pace with the rising power demand the opportunities in solar energy will see manifold rise despite challenges. Local design and engineering will play a major role in solar market and this will reduce the cost of installation.  It is aptly stated that:

“Solar energy is the most sustainable and economically sensible source of energy for mankind.”