New sources of energy

The Delhi government's reported move to make it mandatory for commercial establishments to use solar power for heating, and compact fluorescent lamps (CFL) for lighting, may have been triggered by the public outcry against the power shortage, but it has an obvious message for the managers of the country's energy sector. Dependence on fossil fuels for energy, estimated at 65 per cent of the total at present, is unlikely to be viable for long. In fact, it is becoming unsustainable even today due to depleting sources of fossil fuels and rising costs. Besides, the ecological costs cannot be ignored for much longer. Waste avoidance and more efficient use of the available energy are crucial tasks. The replacement of 50 per cent of Delhi's ordinary electric bulbs with CFLs, for instance, can help save 51 Mw power. The saving in the whole country would be very substantial indeed. But such a measure alone cannot is not enough. Greater use of alternative, notably renewable, sources of energy is indispensable for ensuring energy security.

Fortunately, the opportunities in this sector are plentiful. India is fortunate in being endowed with ample sunshine, wind, biomass, flowing water and other sources for generating energy. Though conditions in most parts of the country are suitable for solar power production, these are ideal in the sprawling arid tracts where cloud cover lasts only for a limited period. The average value of solar energy in the desert region is reckoned at around 6 kilowatts per square km per day. At present, only a tiny fraction of this is being exploited. These tracts, as also the entire coastline, usually experience winds with speed in excess of 15 km an hour, sufficient to generate power for commercial and domestic use. The ministry of non-conventional energy sources has already scaled up its estimate of the country's wind power generation potential from 20,000 Mw to 45,000 Mw. Notably, a significant part of this potential, almost one-third, is deemed amenable for linking with the electricity grid.

However, the exploitation of alternative energy sources is not free of constraints. The biggest and most obvious block is the low efficiency and high initial cost of the technology and equipment needed, making them commercially unviable in most situations. But efforts are on globally to overcome this handicap, especially now that oil prices have reached stratospheric levels. In fact, some significant breakthroughs have been achieved in enhancing the efficiency of photo-voltaic cells, to convert sunlight into solar power, and the technology for converting solar heat into thermal power. Though much of this technology has been developed abroad, that does not bar the country from acquiring it. Where wind-based energy production is concerned, India has already made perceptible progress in technology generation as well as its gainful deployment, thanks largely to the interest taken by the private sector in this field. But a good deal still remains to be done. What is disquieting is that the draft of the national policy statement on renewable energy, released last year, does not convey the urgency that the situation merits. Most of the measures mooted in the draft are targeted to show results in the distant future. It is imperative that the goals are re-visited and targets brought forward.