(a) whether the Government proposes to introduce new policies to boost the generation of hydropower and electricity from bio-mass and bio-fuel;
(b) if so, the details thereof;
(c) the steps being taken by the Government to check the transmission bottlenecks and losses incurred thereby; and
(d) the reforms being brought in distribution and transmission of energy to achieve capacity utilisation of power grids?
THE MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) FOR POWER, NEW & RENEWABLE ENERGY AND THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR SKILL DEVELOPMENT & ENTREPRENEURSHIP
( SHRI R.K. SINGH)
(a) & (b) : Yes, Sir.
(I) For boosting the generation of Hydro Power, the Govt. of India on 8th March, 2019, approved a number of measures for promoting hydropower sector in the country which are as under:
i. Declaring Large Hydro Power (LHPs) (>25 MW projects) as Renewable Energy source.
ii. Hydro Purchase Obligation (HPO) as a separate entity within Non-Solar Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO).
iii. Tariff rationalization measures for bringing down hydro power tariff.
iv. Budgetary Support for Flood Moderation/Storage Hydro Electric Projects (HEPs).
v. Budgetary Support to Cost of Enabling Infrastructure, i.e. roads/bridges.
(a) Rs. 1.5 crore per MW for projects upto 200 MW.
(b) Rs. 1.0 crore per MW for projects above 200 MW.
(II) For promotion of Biomass based generation, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy notified a new biomass scheme on 11.05.2018 under the name “Scheme to Support Promotion of Biomass Based Cogeneration in Sugar Mills and Other Industries in the Country (up to March 2020). The scheme supports biomass cogeneration projects with Central Financial Assistance (CFA) @ Rs.25 Lakhs/MW of surplus exportable capacity and Rs.50 Lakhs/MW of installed capacity depending on the type of fuel used.
(c) : The Inter State Transmission System (ISTS) in the country has been planned to facilitate smooth transfer of power across state and regional boundaries all over the country. In this process, robust National Grid has been established leading to One Nation – One Grid – One Frequency, facilitating power transfer from the resource rich areas to major load centers of the country with reliability and security. The Cumulative inter-regional power transfer capacity of the National Grid is expected to increase from the present level of 1,00,550 MW to about 1,18,050 MW by 2022. As such, there is no constraint envisaged in transfer of power through ISTS network on long term basis.
To fulfill targets of RE capacity (175 GW) by 2022, various initiatives has been taken like Green Energy Corridors Scheme, Transmission for Ultra Mega Solar Power parks, Transmission planning for Renewable Energy Zones (66.5 GW) by 2022 etc.
The transmission losses in Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS) are of the order of 2.5 – 3% which are due to inherent design of the system and technical in nature. Hhigh capacity transmission corridors of Extra High Voltage level as well as energy efficient devices are installed to maintain the ISTS losses to minimum level.
(d) : Electricity is a concurrent subject and distribution of electricity falls under the purview of the respective State Government / State Power Utility. It is the responsibility of distribution licensees to plan their distribution system so as to provide 24x7 reliable power to all the consumers and to achieve capacity utilization of their power Distribution Grids.
Government of India has launched several schemes such as Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS), Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY) and Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana (UDAY) to enable States to improve their distribution infrastructure systems and management of Discoms. Under IPDS/DDUGJY Schemes, projects involving creation / augmentation of sub-transmission & distribution infrastructure, metering of distribution transformers/feeders/consumers, provision of underground and aerial bunched cables including IT enablement of distribution infrastructures etc. have been taken up.
In order to achieve the target of 24 X 7 “Power for All”, a well-knit network of Inter State Transmission System integrated with high capacity HVDC and 765kV interconnecting links has been developed which has facilitated seamless power transfer from the resource rich areas to major load centers of the country with reliability and security. In addition, the National Grid has facilitated access of power from cheaper energy sources to the load centers as well as development of vibrant power from market.
The Government has constituted Regional Power Committees – Transmission Planning (RPC-TPs) and reconstituted National Committee on Transmission (NCT) for fast track planning and approval of transmission system. These committees would meet on quarterly basis to assess the requirement of transmission system in the country.
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