Too much power, too little grid: Why Adani, NTPC and JSW are forced to cut solar power production
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Top solar power producers in Rajasthan have dialled down production, after a congested grid prompted the regional regulator to step in. According to three people aware of the matter, Adani Group, NTPC Green, KKR-backed Serentica, EQT-backed Zelestra and JSW Group have had to curtail peak-hour production totalling 5GW in the second half of November alone, leading to potential losses and highlighting the slow pace of transmission capacity addition in the face of frenetic solar power growth.
On 14 November, the Northern Region Load Despatch Centre (NRLDC) cited concerns over grid security to curb the evacuation of power from the plants in Rajasthan. NRLDC said it was restricting a mandatory no-objection certificate due to "evacuation constraints" in Rajasthan, the Indian state with the highest solar power production. Out of the above 23GW capacity at five power pooling stations, with only 18.35GW is available for evacuation, the communication said.
The state's total renewable energy capacity stands at over 40GW. Queries sent to NRLDC and the power companies remained unanswered. According to one of the three people cited above, there are similar issues at other pooling stations as well.
"There is curtailing of up to 50-55% in peak solar hours in some instances," the person said. At the heart of the matter is the frenetic pace of India's solar power production, while transmission capacity has lagged. Rahul Mishra, senior vice-president and head of commercial and industrial business, BluPine Energy said: "Rajasthan’s challenge today is that of evacuation.
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