In Exclusive Talk With Mr. Himanshu Pandit (COO {Chief Operating Officer}, Hitachi Hi-Rel Power Electronics Pvt. Ltd., Ahmedabad, India)
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How many Solar Inverters have you supplied to India till now and what is the next target.
Hitachi Hi-Rel Power Electronics started solar inverter business in 2012 here in India and has supplied more than 2 GW Solar Inverters and targeting 8 GW by March 2020.
- The recent aggressive bidding by various developers keeping Solar Tariffs in the price range of Rs.3.3 – 4.34 per kWh in various Solar Tenders…Whats your view on the viability, Costs & timeline pressures, Resource Challenges (Materials, ManPower, Execution, Grid Connection, Land Possession) etc…
This is a competitive world and solar field cannot be an exception. However, for tariff falling down, it is necessary to maintain the quality of the product, which is the way of life of company like Hitachi.
- Kindly enlighten our readers on the performance of your Inverters in India at various geographic locations.
The Performance of our Solar Inverters is extremely good. With 3 level IGBT technology and wider MPPT range, Hitachi Solar Inverters are delivering considerably high reliability and maximum power generation.
In fact Hitachi Solar Inverters are among the most popular Grid Tied Solar Inverters currently in India for its various technical advantages and major saving in EBOP (Electrical Balance of Plant). It is also suitable for high ambient temperature.
We have maintained more than 99% uptime for all our Solar Inverter Installations. We also offer highly reliable after-sales-service-support from our dedicated & decentralized service centers located at strategic locations across the country.
- Present some noteworthy projects, case studies of solar plants built using your solar Inverters
Through our social innovation business, we have been actively participating in providing renewable energy solutions to NTPC, Adani, Tata Power and many other well known companies through our highly advanced and high performance Solar Inverters.
- Please describe in brief about your company, directors, promoters, investors, its vision & mission
With more than 3 decades of power electronics industry experience, we have garnered a significant level of trust in our market segment. As 100% owned subsidiary and with direct control of Hitachi management, we continue to offer world class power electronics products, value added services & customized solutions at Hitachi Quality.
Our vision is to be recognized as the most trusted power electronics company by supplying superior products and services. Led by a visionary management at the helm, we have a team with deep technical and marketing strengths and knowledge of the industry. With expertise, experience and an efficient product line, we will always try to be the preferred power electronics partner.
We target to lead all our current market segment be it grid tied solar inverters, UPS for industrial (non-IT) and IT applications or medium & low voltage variable frequency drives.
- Enlighten our readers about your manufacturing set up, capacities, future expansion plans, etc.
Our company is a key hub, for both “Manufacturing” as well as “Research & Development”, within the power electronics division of Hitachi Group and we will leverage it to drive Innovation and Growth.
Sprawling across an area of 26,000 square meters and modelled on Hitachi’s Omika Works in Japan, our Sanand manufacturing facility is one of the most modern and state-of-the-art power electronics manufacturing facilities in India. All aspects of manufacturing, testing and quality assurance are overseen by highly experienced Japanese expats stationed at this facility. It employs Omika Works based software tools for engineering and manufacturing and has one of the most advanced in-house product testing facilities in the country.
We manufacture grid tied solar inverters locally in India at this Sanand manufacturing facility, based on the contemporary technology of Hitachi Ltd, Japan. For Solar, presently, we are operating on our maximum manufacturing capacity – 200 MW per month.
We have an expansion plan in place and our production capacity for Solar Inverters would be double in next year.
- Tell us about your plan for research and development centre.
Innovation through research & development has been rooted in our DNA.
We have an in-house R&D (Research & Development) facility; set up in 1984, which is recognized by DSIR (Department of Scientific & Industrial Research), Ministry of Science & Technology, Government of India. It has enabled us to develop and market products that have become industry standards.
Besides offering greater energy efficiency & lower carbon footprint, each of our product streams bears the hallmark of excellence with company accreditations.
Product development is a continuous process at Hitachi Hi-Rel to assist customers in increasing their productivity & profitability.
- What are your plans for India, your view on the GOI target of 100 GW Solar Power by 2022
We are suitably equipped to co-partner our clients and the government for the nation to achieve targeted 100 GW from solar energy by 2022 to mitigate climate change impacts and promote energy security leading to healthier and happier societies.
As informed earlier, we started solar inverter business in 2012 here in India and has supplied more than 2 GW Solar Inverters and targeting 8 GW by March 2020.
- Briefly describe about your Hitachi Solar Inverter and the containerized solution.
HITACHI SOLAR INVERTER
Hitachi’s HIVERTER NP 201i Model Solar Inverter is among the best available Grid Tied Solar Inverters that is suitable for multi-megawatt and utility-scale PV power plants. It is a critical balance of system (BOS) component in a solar photovoltaic system. With 3 level IGBT technology and wider MPPT range, Hitachi Solar Inverter delivers considerably maximum power generation. It is available from 250 KW to 2.5 MW capacities.
Hitachi Solar Inverters offer maximum ROI (return on investment) over the lifetime of the plant. With proper maintenance and parts replacement on schedule, it has an operating life up to 25 years.
PRODUCTS HIGHLIGHTS
- World class quality product
- High performance product
- High reliability
- High efficiency
- Advanced product
- Compact product design
- Proven components
- Simple, safe and fast installation
- After-sales service and support through extensive service network
- Prompt availability of spares and components locally in India
- Easy to maintain
- Long operating life
HITACHI PV POWER STATION
We also offer Hitachi PV Power Station which is an advanced containerized solution for large-scale and commercial PV (photovoltaic) power plants, which contains Solar Inverters and optional equipments for auxiliaries, serves to protect electric equipments from environmental influence. It has been developed to fulfill the objective of faster commissioning, helps developers/EPC to significantly reduce the planning and execution time of the PV project.
To ensure long lifetime in the most challenging Indian environmental condition, Hitachi PV Power Station is designed & developed with highest structural stability which is water proof, weather resistant, termite proof and easy to install. It achieves an excellent performance with IP protection class mechanism design. Its design life is up to 25 years.
- What are the top 5 markets for your company in the past, present and future
We have manufacturing and R&D facilities at Gandhinagar and Sanand near Ahmedabad in Gujarat and so primarily we are targeting India. Our sales & service network expands out to the world with the ability to reach out to clients across South Africa, Australia and Middle East market.
- Technology road map in terms of 1500V , micro inverters, upcoming game changes technologies
We are at the advance stage of launching 2.5 MW indoor type Solar Inverter and 2.5 MW containerized solution with plug and play feature.
- Share the details on certifications or compliance report for Hitachi inverters.
Hitachi Solar Inverters complying ;
| STANDARD | DETAILS |
| IEC 62109 | PV Inverter General & PV Inverter safety requirements |
| IEC 62116 | Islanding system |
| IEC 60529 | IP protection |
| IEC 61683 | Efficiency calculations |
| IEC 61000-6-2/604 | EMC Emission /Immunity requirements |
| 60068 | Environmental testing |
| UL 1741 | Inverters, Converters, Controllers and Interconnection System-safety |
| EN 50530 | MPPT Efficiency |
| IEEE 929 | Recommended practice for utility interface of PV systems |
| CEA guidelines ( Amendment 2013) | Grid connectivity |
| IEEE 1547 | Harmonics and DC injection |
- What will be the cost, technology trends in solar inverters
This will be always cost competitive & challenging market.
- What’s your commitment towards the solar sector in India
India’s growing with tremendous speed and its energy demand is increasing accordingly. At Hitachi Hi-Rel, we envision a very sunny future. To address India’s surging demand for power, we are offering renewable energy solutions through our HIGH PERFORMANCE – HIGHLY RELIABLE – NEXT GENERATION grid tied Solar Inverters.
Hitachi Solar Inverters are available with highly efficient conversion technology, manufactured at our Sanand Facility, near Ahmedabad, help to reduce dependency on traditional resources depleting and polluting electric power systems.
Hitachi Hi-Rel Power Electronics continues to help India meet the present and future energy requirements in a cleaner and greener way.
