In Q1 2020, the solar and wind installations dropped significantly with addition of only 720 MW of solar and 188 MW of wind projects. This is about 60-70 per cent lower than new solar and wind installations, which were about 2-3 GW in the previous four quarters
New Delhi: Rajasthan and Maharashtra added maximum utility-scale solar installations in the first quarter (Q1) of 2020 with 250 MW and 135 MW capacity additions, respectively, according to a recent study.
Whereas, Gujarat saw maximum wind installations with 132 MW in the same period.
State-wise RE capacity addition in Q1 2020
The study added that the renewable energy installations in Q1 of 2020 dropped by 60-70 per cent as compared to the previous quarters.
It added that in March 2020, only 222 MW of solar capacity and 25 MW of wind capacity was installed as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown, which led to falling power demand, poor health of discoms, supply chain disruption for under construction projects, and shortfall of labour.
“In Q1 2020, the solar and wind installations dropped significantly with addition of only 720 MW of solar and 188 MW of wind projects. This is about 60-70 per cent lower than new solar and wind installations, which were about 2-3 GW in the previous four quarters,” JMK Research and Analytics said in its study.
Quarter-wise utility scale-solar and wind installations
It said that the pace in capacity installations was expected to pick up from Q3 2020 onwards with commissioning of about 1,700-2,000 MW of new solar capacity in the next two quarters likely.
According to the study, because of the current crisis, about 3 GW of solar and 2.5 GW of wind projects whose scheduled commissioning timeline was 2020 are likely to be delayed.
“In 2020, only about 5.5 GW of new solar capacity and 1.5 GW of wind might be added. While in the financial year 2020-21, about 6.5 GW of new solar capacity and 2.2 GW of new wind capacity is expected to be installed,” it added.
The study further said that 2021 is expected to have 1 GW of new rooftop solar installations which would grow to 1.5 GW by the end of FY2021. It also added that in Q1 2020, $1.8 billion of investments were done in India’s renewable energy sector.
The government has set an installation target of 175 GW of grid-connected renewable power capacity by 2020. Of this, 100 GW will come from solar, 60 GW from wind, 5 GW from small hydro and 10 GW from bioenergy.
Source: energy.economictimes.indiatimes
