Distribution companies (discoms) are under increased pressure to begin maintaining an uninterrupted supply of electricity. In her recent annual budget speech, India’s finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman noted that the discoms’ “monopoly behaviour” is a deterrent to the country’s economic growth. As a means of correcting the problems, Sitharaman announced actions were underway to open the…
India’s electricity regulators, at the central and state level, are tasked with setting appropriate regulations and standards that govern grid reliability and protect consumer rights. While the incidence of complete blackout is rare, the reliability of distribution networks — better known as discoms in India — is below par, especially in rural areas. One of…
Not too long ago, electricity consumers across states in India used to suffer long and frequent power outages. Daily or weekly load shedding – pre-defined intervals for planned power supply cut-off – was so prevalent that people used to plan their routine around their distribution company’s (discom’s) load shedding calendar. That changed substantially a couple…
As India looks to “build back better” from the Covid crisis, the country would benefit economically, environmentally and socially by investing in clean technologies. In late 2019, the Indian government announced a $1.4trn National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) to jump-start economic growth. This plan includes a high-profile target for the addition of 75GW of thermal power…
Central and state renewable energy procurement agencies in India cancelled approximately 7,000 MW of tenders for solar and wind capacity addition in 2018. They reason that delaying procurement will lead to savings in purchase costs, since the levelised cost of energy for new projects is generally lower than the cost of old ones. The hidden…
Government actions to facilitate the use of renewable energy certificates (RECs) can improve Indian companies’ ability to compete globally—a major policy objective of the current government. Driven partly by consumer demand, firms are being serious about the “source” of energy they use for operations. According to the Harvard Business Review, firms that approach energy as…
