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• First time the solar-wind-biogas-VRFB integrated micrgrid is modeled and validated. • The capacity optimization and energy management with lowest LCOE is done by HOMER. • Peak load shaving with optimal sources and grid is shown by PSCAD using real data. • Optimal schedule of renewable sources and VRFB ensures zero LPSP at consumer end. • Financial study of hybrid microgrid demonstrates project viability and up scaling. Uninterrupted access to electric power has become the basic need of today's world. Rural parts of many countries still do not have access to electricity or have electric power access to weak distribution grids with inadequate transmission and distribution system infrastructure. However, the countries where there is an abundance of solar radiation, a good potential of bio-degradable waste and average availability of wind source, access to electricity for those remote areas can be managed by distributed power generation. Considering the fact that the renewable energy sources (Solar, Wind etc.) are intermittent in nature, battery energy storage systems (BESS) and other reservoirs like biogas energy sources are the potential candidates to be integrated with the renewable sources to ensure continuous access to electricity and energy security. In this paper, a unique combination of Solar PV, Wind, Biomass and Vanadium Redox Flow Battery (VRFB) storage integrated hybrid Microgrid has been modeled and implemented practically for the first time. The capacity selection of different renewable sources for satisfying daily energy demand and their techno-commercial optimization has been performed through HOMER simulation. Further, the peak load shaving that is a limitation of HOMER model, has been established through PSCAD simulation by providing the real life data of different renewable sources, VRFB storage and the load profile as input to the model. The simulation model performances have been validated by a practical 10 kW P solar PV, 1 kW wind and 15 kVA Biogas generator integrated with 1 kW 6 h VRFB storage based Microgrid installed at India Institute of Engineering Science and Technology campus, India. In addition to these, zero loss of power supply probability (LPSP) has been ensured by implementing smart scheduling and controller considering the intermittency of the renewable sources. As a part of the financial analysis, project Investment on Return (IRR) and pay back has been calculated considering initial investment, operation and maintenance cost and revenue of generation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an economic and enhanced technological solution for rural electrification of a village Jalalabad, in Ghaziabad District, Uttar Pradesh state, India. The considered system concentrates on optimal sizing of an integrated renewable energy system (IRES) with grid provide a more continuous power supply with respect to the existing system. The different available sources Solar Photo Voltaic (SPV), Battery Energy Storage System (BESS), and a time constrained grid are considered in designing of the system. The system size optimization, sensitivity analysis and techno-economic viability has been done by using a standard software tool HOMER to fulfil the demand of the study area under consideration. A demand response strategy has been applied for the different load profiles. The configuration with the lowest Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) and Total Net Present Cost (TNPC) with maximum value of renewable fraction (RF) has been considered as optimum. This ensures the minimization of the Carbon dioxide (CO 2) emission. A comparative analysis has been presented showing the impact of the demand response on the LCOE and NPC as well as the system size. The economic analysis has been done according to four different cases obtained by varying the fraction (β NELS) of non-essential load shifting. It has been observed that the value of LCOE with the strategy of demand response and optimal resource management under which β NELS = 0.25 is reduced Rs. 11.23/kWh and Rs. 8.36/kWh with the grid tariff Rs.10/kWh and Rs.6/kWh respectively while the value of TNPC Rs. 1.99 × 107 and Rs. 1.48 × 107 respectively with the maximum renewable fraction of 31.06. An exhaustive performance analysis has been done and the obtained results show the effectiveness of proposed resource and demand management to provide 24 × 7 supply with limited, time constrained grid availability. • An economic, enhanced solution for PV & BESS with grid is determined in this study. • Demand response and resource optimization is used to achieve 24 × 7 power supply. • Optimal sizing, sensitivity analysis and energy cost with grid price is analyzed. • Demand response strategy has been used to reduce LCOE & TNPC. • It is found that LCOE & TNPC decrease with fractional non-essential load shift. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with an economic aspect of distributed generation systems which rural energy cooperatives may mainly support, since they can effectively coordinate the different stakeholders within an energy access initiative. Members of a rural energy cooperative would share the costs of deploying a distributed generation system, so that each of them can benefit from it. To minimise the overall investment cost, such a cooperative must consider both technical sizing and cost allocation among its members. For the latter, an important issue to take into account is the so-called willingness-to-pay. For obtaining the design of the distributed generation system we propose to use facility location covering (FALCO) models. The solution of the FALCO model provides both the structure of the distributed generation system and the investment cost to be covered by the members of the cooperative. We take advantage of the structure of the primal and dual optimal solutions of the FALCO model to endogenously determine the minimum and maximum willingness-to-pay of the cooperative members and then to apply rationing techniques to obtain the final allocation of costs to each member. Thus, our approach optimises the generator locations and minimises the total system cost, while assigning to each member at least her minimum willingness-to-pay. From our point of view, this method may help the beneficiaries to accept the investment cost allocation. Finally, a case study based on real data from a rural village in Maharashtra, where a group of farmers wanting to buy and share an energy system to pump water for irrigating their fields, is used to illustrate the working of the proposed cost allocation methodology. • Fair cost allocation methods and game theory can support distributed generation planning. • Each user minimum willingness-to-pay serves as reference for defining fair shares. • Technical and topographical conditions are critical for both system sizing and cost allocation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Decentralised Solar Home Systems (SHSs) are established as an effective strategy to connect the 'last mile' without electricity access and leapfrog communities to clean energy solutions. According to the World Bank, the Pay-As-You-Go (PAYG) model has emerged as one of the effective commercially viable solutions to provide decentralised energy access to rural and remote communities in developing nations. The paying ability of households is a critical challenge for energy enterprises, and PAYG, with its easy payment schemes makes solar units affordable and allows households to gradually own these systems. The model also offers user training, ongoing maintenance, and service blocking functionality that minimises investment risk. The PAYG model has demonstrated huge success in Sub-Saharan Africa where Kenya pioneered the model as a cost competitive modern alternative for kerosene. One in five people in India lack access to electricity, and grid-connected rural communities often face frequent blackouts. With the advancement in distributed solar technologies and growing penetration of the mobile telecommunications network in India, PAYG could advance into a successful model to electrify communities living off the grid. Our analysis involves a two-dimensional approach where a systematic review of PAYG literature including case studies from Kenya and India was performed, followed by three expert interviews to further augment learnings and opportunities to deploy PAYG SHSs in India. This analysis finds that India's socio-political context seems suited for increased PAYG penetration, including utilising the opportunity provided by the country's Unified Payments Interface. This paper offers insights for practitioners and policymakers to consider the PAYG model to deploy clean electricity to households and rural micro-enterprises. Highlights • Lessons for successful implementation of PAYG energy model in India • Superior products and maintenance mechanisms are integrated into PAYG. • PAYG financing appropriate for energy budgets of poor households. • India's Unified Payments Interface presents a unique opportunity for PAYG model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Standal, Karina. Challenges of Gender, Power and Change in Solar Energy Interventions in Rural India: Imagined Beneficiaries and the Making of Women's Empowerment in the Village Electrification Project Standal, Karina. Towards the end of her analysis, Standal discusses and summarizes several reasons why the Village Electrification project was unsuccessful and subsequently collapsed. [Extracted from the article]

This cross-country study estimates the effect of household electrification on labor market outcomes for rural individuals in India and South Africa, two developing countries that have implemented large-scale rural electrification schemes in recent decades. Two identification strategies are used: propensity score matching and panel fixed effects estimation. We focus on three indicators of labor market success: employment, earnings and hours worked. We find that electrification raises the annual incomes earned by those who work in paid employment, for both men and women in both countries. For India, both genders work fewer hours, suggesting that electricity raises productivity. For South Africa, where the labor market has less absorptive capacity, there is no employment benefit of electrification. But women who work benefit the most from the productivity gains of electrification: they have greater increases in earnings than men. Our findings suggest that the benefits of electrification do not accrue universally, but rather depend on gender roles, supporting policies and the labor absorptive capacity of the economy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rural electrification has progressed unevenly across the world since 1945, with some rural communities gaining access to power decades earlier than others. We examine the association between early electrification and the quality of electricity service to households, testing the hypothesis that aging infrastructure compromises the quality of electricity service. Using the 2014–2015 ACCESS survey from rural India, we find that early electrification is associated with improvements in the quality of electricity service, even controlling for village size and distance to nearest town. A possible explanation for the finding is that early electrification generates economic gains that allow the rural community to invest in maintenance and upgrades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Millions of rural households in India lack access to clean basic lighting which hampers the ability of children to study during dark hours. Over 81 million students are likely to be dependent on kerosene lamps for basic lighting. Despite programmes focusing on disseminating solar lanterns since the last three decades, penetration is limited owing to three main barriers: affordability, absence of after-sales services and unavailability in rural markets. This paper presents the localization-affordability-saturation (LAS) model that addresses these main barriers by bringing together three institutional spheres - government, corporate and NGOs for speedy upscaling. This paper illustrates experiences and challenges that have emerged from field testing of the model through Million Solar Urja Lamp Programme while disseminating 1,000,000 solar study lamps to rural school children residing in more than 10,000 villages in India. Though implemented successfully, applicability of LAS model can be hindered due to dependence on subsidies, bottlenecks in local manufacturing infrastructure, absence of market mechanism and its relevance in providing complete lighting solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to model a hybrid energy system for rural India. In this analysis a hybrid renewable system consists of solar-wind-hydrokinetic-bioenergy is proposed. Overall analysis including Optimization and sensitive analysis are evaluated by HOMER software. Optimized results are evaluated considering total net present cost, cost of energy, annual electric generation, renewable fraction and CO 2 emission. The analysis is done in order to increase efficiency of the system with comparatively less cost. From this exercise it is found that, combinations of more varieties of different renewable energy system are better to fulfill futuristic demand. Futuristic demand is calculated by logistic growth model. The value of COEs ($) and total generations (kWh/yr) are 0.3563 and 133045; 0.247 and 170948; 0.242 and 179018; 0.241 and 179303 for the year (2012–2021), (2022–2031), (2032–2041) and (2042–2051) respectively. However some other combinations may produce more power, although in such cases, in order to storage excess power COE will increase. As compared to the year (2012–2021) to (2042–2051) the optimized COE of electricity is minimized, keeping Annual cost nearly constant and amount of electric generation is increased without much effect on environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the determinants of distributed solar technology adoption at the village and household level in India. Using spatial data on insolation, census records, and original surveys, we show that remote and poor but large villages with abundant sunshine have led the wave of solar technology adoption as an alternative to grid electricity. At the household level, however, wealth and financial access are positively associated with solar technology adoption, a result that holds for both solar lanterns and home systems. Moreover, remote villages are more likely to see solar technology adoption when households have access to finance through banks. We also find that the use of household solar technology is strongly associated with a household's subjective satisfaction with domestic lighting. These results demonstrate that understanding solar technology adoption requires considering both community and household characteristics. They also underscore the importance of financial access as a precondition for using distributed solar power as an alternative to grid connectivity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper assesses consumer valuation of different attributes of electricity supply to elucidate the conflict between solar microgrids and the centralized utility grid in India, as well as to provide insight into supporting government policies and structures. The study contributes significantly to the understanding of the role of microgrids in complementing a centralized system and its value as a sustainable energy solution for development. Electricity reliability, power, price, and hours availability are studied through a choice experiment, a method uniquely able to disaggregate the willingness to pay for each attribute. Household surveys were carried out in 22 villages across 4 districts in the state and covering a total of 216 households. Results indicate that consumers value (in order of strength of preference) electricity power, reliability, and price. Further, despite 9.4 h of electricity supply per day from the main grid, as compared to an average of only 7.2 h from microgrids, the respondents exposed to both systems were almost twice as satisfied with the microgrid's reliability. Based on these findings, the study provides four policy recommendations for strengthening the rural electricity supply sector and enhancing electricity access in India. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We know surprisingly little about the long-run impacts of household electrification. This paper studies the impacts on consumption in rural India over a 17-year period, allowing for both internal and external (village-level) effects. Under our identifying assumptions, electrification brought significant consumption gains for households who acquired electricity for their own use. We also find evidence of a dynamic effect of village connectivity for households without electricity themselves. This is suggestive of an external effect, which also comes with a shift in consumption spending suggestive of status concerns among those still without electricity. Labor earnings were an important channel of impact. This was mainly through extra work by men. There was no effect on average wage rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary Rural electrification rates in India lag behind government goals, in part due to the inability of distribution companies (discoms) to fund central grid expansion. In the absence of central grid electrification, mini-grids offer significant potential for an immediate pathway toward rural electrification and the attendant gains in economic growth and productivity. Yet private investment in mini-grids has been virtually absent in India. Using a comprehensive life-cycle cost analysis, we find that mini-grids based on solar PV power and storage are more economical than incumbent energy services available to households without central grid connection. Under current law, a prospective entrepreneur in India does not require a license or certification in order to build a mini-grid and subsequently provide electricity services in the area covered by said installation. Conversely, there is no legal or regulatory framework that specifies what is to happen if the central grid were to be extended to an area that is already covered by a mini-grid. We report detailed survey evidence from interviews with entrepreneurs, analysts and policymakers whose assessments converge on the same point: mini-grid investments would be jeopardized in the event of central grid extension, precisely because discoms would, by regulatory order, provide electricity services at highly subsidized rates, well below their full economic cost. Our fieldwork suggests that the threat of central grid extension is a gateway barrier preventing mini-grid development in India. The issues associated with the gateway barrier have common elements with the so-called holdup problem as identified in the economics of organizations. There have been two recent federal policy guidelines and one actual state-level policy addressing the regulatory status of mini-grids. We examine the effectiveness of these policies/proposals in terms of an entrepreneur’s willingness to develop mini-grids in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drawing upon existing theories, this article argues that good policy design requires two enabling conditions-an optimal design space that balances political and technical goals, and policy capacity that includes organizational and analytical capacity to carry out the implementation. The case of Gujarat's unique 'Jyotigram Yojana' (JGY) is used to illustrate how the policy design process operates in the context of a particularly challenging issue of rural electrification. Our analysis suggests that the design process and implementation of JGY were as much problem-driven as it was politically motivated. A top-down approach favored the conception and implementation of JGY and enabled the state government of Gujarat to effectively leverage its financial, technical, and administrative capacity. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lack of access to electricity in rural areas hinders productive activities, which in turn affects sustainable rural development. Off-grid electrification options can offer an alternative but in order to develop productive uses of electricity in off-grid area, a detailed study of livelihoods and potential areas for improvement in the value chain is required. This paper reports such a study where a livelihood baseline survey was undertaken in a cluster of five remote off-grid villages in Dhenkanal district of Odisha (India) and through a series of interviews, focused group meetings and stakeholder interactions, the study finds that value-added services can be developed through an off-grid electrification intervention. Electrification can support productive activities, thereby offering an opportunity for improved income generation and a better quality of life and a transition to cleaner energy sources. The study provides a novel value chain framework for linking off-grid projects with local livelihoods replicable across multiple geographies ensuring sustainability of these projects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents a wind-solar photovoltaic based standalone hybrid energy system (HES) for an un-electrified village for central region of India - Madhya Pradesh. The inputs for the designing of HES are wind speed, solar radiation, temperature and the load demand which are variable with respect to time. In this study, hourly values of meteorological data and hourly load demand are considered over a year. For sizing and performance analysis of this standalone HES, ant colony optimisation technique has been used. The performance analysis of the system is done for the various parameters such as total cost of the system, power generated by various sources, state of charge of battery, contribution of various sources, continuity of supply to the load demand and unmet load. The obtained optimal configuration of the proposed HES is found to provide minimal energy cost with excellent performance and reduced unmet load. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the years, renewable energy based power generation has proven to be a cost-effective solution in stand-alone applications in the regions where grid extension is difficult. The present study focused on the development of models for optimal sizing of integrated renewable energy (IRE) system to satisfy the energy needs in different load sectors of four different zones considered in Chamarajanagar district of Karnataka state in India. The objective of the study is to minimize the total cost of generation and cost of energy using genetic algorithm (GA) based approach. Considering optimization power factor (OPF) and expected energy not supplied (EENS), optimum system feasibility has been investigated. Based on the study, it has been found that IRES is able to provide a feasible solution between 1.0 and 0.8 OPF values. However, power deficit occurs at OPF values less than 0.8 and the proposed model becomes infeasible under such conditions. Customer interruption cost (CIC) and deficit energy (DE) for all zones were also computed to quantify the reliability of the systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The state of Bihar in India has approximately 75 million people with no access to electricity. The government of India has pursued a policy of rural electrification through the provision of centralised coal-fired power which has been unable to resolve the low levels of electrification. Coal supply woes in India have led Indian companies to pursue new coal mines in Australia's Galilee Basin. The costs of these mining ventures will be high due to the mining infrastructure required and long transport distances to rural India. A high level analysis of mining, transport and power station investment to meet rural demand in Bihar shows that the absolute investment requirement using coal, especially coal sourced from Australia, as an expensive option. Pursuing electrification through village level, renewable energy micro-systems provides more flexibility. Pollution costs associated with coal-fired generation, employment benefits associated with many village implementations and a rural load unsupported by industry load, show a benefit associated with decentralised, renewable energy electrification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy deficiency is one of the key enigmas impacting the livelihood of millions of poverty stricken people throughout the world. It is quite evident that electrification of rural areas can improve the standard of education, health conditions, living and empowering the youth of the nearby population. Uttarakhand state of India is mainly encompassing southern periphery of Himalayas. Census of India reveals that about 123 numbers of villages and 1966 numbers of village hamlets are still unelectrified in the state. Electrification of these villages/hamlets of remote hills using renewable energy resources in off-grid mode is a feasible option compared to uneconomical grid extension. State has identified small hydro power potential of 1500 MW, mean annual daily solar radiation of 4.5–5.5 kWh/m 2 with 300 sunny days in a year, enormous forest foliage, crop residue, animal waste and mean annual wind speed of 5–5.5 m/s in some places of the state. The present study comprises the utilization of single technology based system such as small hydro, biomass, biogas, solar and small wind turbines etc. and also aggregated technology, depending on the availability of the resources in the present locality. A methodological framework has been established to avail the demand and resources assessment of the area. Various barriers and issues are finally discussed, which leads to a greater obstacle, in the path of system implementation. In order to address these barriers and issues, suitable solutions are recommended in the present context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

India is blessed with rich solar energy and if exploited efficiently, the country has the potential of producing trillionkilowatts of electricity. Sunlight is converted to electricity directly when made to fall on solar photovoltaic (SPV) modules. Systems/devices are made for various applications based on SPV modules connected with suitably designed power conditioning units for meeting electricity requirements. These systems/devices are designed to work in off-grid mode (usually supported with batteries to allow use when sunlight is low or during night). In recent years solar PV systems became viable and attractive. Utility scale plants are being set up worldwide with promotional mechanisms which are set up on ground surface. Available roof-top area on the buildings can also be used for setting up solar PV power plants, and thus dispensing with the requirement of free land area. The electricity generated from SPV systems can also be fed to the distribution or transmission grid after conditioning to suit grid Integration. Currently, whole world is in the midst of an energy revolution that is fundamentally changing the future of rural electrification. So we present a review in this paper on today's policy and status of grid connected roof top PV system in Punjab. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Roughly 400 million people in India had no access to electricity in 2011. With concerted efforts by the government, the electrification progressed fast to achieve near universal electrification in 2019. Despite the commendable progress, multiple challenges continue to afflict the sector. If policies and actions to sustain electrification and encourage development are to be successful, understanding the nature of drivers and barriers is essential. However, there has not been any systematic attempt to comprehensively identify and analyze the drivers and barriers to rural electrification. This study tried to identify and systematically prioritize the drivers and barriers, based on their strengths, for centralized grid and renewable energy (RE)-based mini-grids using a common analytical framework. The drivers and barriers were first identified through an exhaustive study of literature and consultations with electricity sector experts. Thereafter, their strengths were analyzed based on a perception survey with sector actors. The research provides lessons that despite achieving near-universal electrification, there are barriers to the advancement and sustenance of central grid and mini-grids. The results specify that driver and barrier elements with higher scores are across the political, economic, and financial categories. In contrast, institutional and social categories are ranked lower. The overall ranking indicates that enabling policies and government support to be the most significant driver for grid expansion. For RE-based mini-grids, convergence with livelihood programs and electricity for irrigation are perceived as strong drivers. The high cost of electricity and customers' inability to pay are perceived as barriers for both central grid and mini-grids. • India has achieved near-universal electrification in the year 2019. • No systematic study was done to analyze drivers & barriers to electrification. • The study made a novel attempt to identify & prioritize the drivers & barriers. • Despite near-universal access, there are still barriers to electricity supply. • Study provides lessons for access-deficit countries to expand electrification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work describes the design optimisation and techno-economic analysis of an off-grid Integrated Renewable Energy System (IRES) designed to meet the electrical demand of a rural village location in West Bengal – India with an overall electrical requirement equivalent to 22 MWh year −1 . The investigation involved the modelling of seven scenarios, each containing a different combination of electricity generation (anaerobic digestion with biogas combined heat and power (CHP) and photovoltaics) and storage elements (Vanadium redox batteries, water electrolyser and hydrogen storage with fuel cell). Micro-grid modelling software HOMER, was combined with additional modelling of anaerobic digestion, to scale each component in each scenario considering the systems' ability to give a good quality electricity supply to a rural community. The integrated system which contained all of the possible elements – except hydrogen production and storage presented the lowest capital ($US 71 k) and energy cost ($US 0.289 kWh −1 ) compared to the scenarios with a single energy source. The biogas CHP was able to meet the electrical load peaks and variations and produced 61% of the total electricity in the optimised system, while the photovoltaics met the daytime load and allowed the charging of the battery which was subsequently used to meet base load at night. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While solar home systems hold considerable promise for improving access to electricity in developing countries in tropical regions, scholars and practitioners argue that the lack of awareness, interest, and ability to pay for the technology undermines the growth of the market. We describe and explain patterns of awareness and interest in solar home systems (SHS) in a survey of 760 respondents in rural Uttar Pradesh, India. We conducted the surveys in collaboration with a local solar enterprise, Boond, and chose villages that are prime locations for the installation of solar home systems. We found that high household income and education levels, as well as young age, predict awareness of SHS products. In addition to wealthy and educated households, willingness to pay is higher in households that have electricity. The findings can help policymakers identify and target households with low levels of awareness and solar entrepreneurs identify suitable customers for their products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper estimates the returns to household income due to improved access to electricity in rural India. We examine the effect of connecting a household to the grid and of the quality of electricity, defined as hours of daily supply. The analysis is based on two rounds of a representative panel of more than 10,000 households. We use the district-level density of transmission cables as instrument for the electrification status of the household. We find that a grid connection increases non-agricultural incomes of rural households by about 9% during the study period (1994–2005). However, a grid connection and a higher quality of electricity (in terms of fewer outages and more hours per day) increases non-agricultural incomes by about 28.6% in the same period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines whether adequate opportunities exist for full decarbonisation of the Indian energy sector and highlights where enough choices for full decarbonisation by 2050 do not exist. The study suggests transformative levels of electrification, energy efficiency improvements, and a switch towards decarbonised fuels (largely green hydrogen, decarbonised electricity, and bioenergy) as the three mainstays of India's decarbonisation strategy that could plausibly shift the energy sector towards a net-zero emissions future. The study also indicates that the heavy freight and industrial sectors face challenges in achieving full decarbonisation because of a lack of adequate technological solutions. Accordingly, residual emissions of about 1.3 gigatonnes in the system would require carbon sequestration options, including both technological and nature-based solutions, to achieve net-zero emissions. This study is expected to encourage further deliberations and deep dives into energy sub-sectors, which would benefit planners and policymakers in delineating India's sustainable energy transition strategy. • Analysis of decarbonisation potential of Indian energy sector. • Transformative electrification, EE improvements & decarbonised fuels would be needed. • Bio-energy, Green hydrogen, and decarbonised electricity as key decarbonising fuels. • Despite pushing technological limits, around 1.3 Gt of CO 2 e emissions remain. • Sequestration options needed to enable energy sector's NZE transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work presents a case study for powering energy poor remote rural communities of Eastern India with locally available solar, biomass, diesel energy resources using Hybrid Optimization Model for Electric Renewables tool to identify the optimized system architecture. The selection of the energy resources has been based on the performance assessment of the resources. The software tool brings four different categorized optimized hybrid configurations using different architectures of resources mentioned above with battery bank. The study exposed that cost of electricity, and net present cost of the most suitable low cost optimized hybrid configuration (600 kW solar photo-voltaic/10 kW biomass generator/50 kW diesel generator/1000 kWh battery/200 kW bidirectional converter) is $0.222/kWh and $0.922 M. The system benefits in terms of reduced emissions and improved system economics. The use of solar energy resource in optimal system modelling provides 45.5% return of investment, 49.4% internal rate of return, payback period of 2.04 years, and discounted payback of 2.25 years from the system without solar photo-voltaic component. Additionally, variation of cost of electricity is analyzed by interpreting sensitivity variables affecting load, system economics, and power production of energy sources using one-dimensional and distinguished multi-dimensional approaches. Eventually, the proposed configuration suitability is justified by comparing with the esteemed works from existing literature. • Performance analysis of local renewable energy sources for the remote Eastern India. • Optimal sizing of off-grid solar photo-voltaic/biomass/diesel/battery hybrid system. • Exclusive self-sustained power supply modeling approach. • Impact assessment of hybrid system after inclusion of solar photo-voltaic resource. • Sensitivity analysis of hybrid system using an unique three-dimensional approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to bridge the gaps to produce sustainable energy cost-effectively and technically efficient. The paper explores the techno-economic-environmental viability of photovoltaic (PV)/biomass energy potential for a rural village, Sidhwanbet, Punjab, India. The data investigation was performed by HOMER Pro v3.14 software. A hybrid renewable energy system (HRES) was designed, simulated and modelled to ensure the continuous energy supply for 770 households. The proposed optimal HRES consists of a PV module, biomass generator, converter and battery with the static specification and further improved by optimization. The optimal HRES out of the best five configurations was elected with Technique for Order Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) based on net present cost (NPC), cost of energy generation (COE), operating cost (ƠƇ), initial capital cost (ƗƇƇ), energy generation (ĖƓ), and a renewable fraction (Ȓϯ). The selected optimal HRES has been analyzed for economic, renewable energy and environmental aspects. The sensitivity study had performed while considering the discount and inflation rate. A simulation was performed for a 10-kW biomass generator, 1.1 kW solar array, five lithium-ion batteries, and a 3.96 kW converter. Results revealed that the PV's payback period (PBP) was 1.58 years, less than the useful life of optimal HRES. The cost of constructing an HRES for 25 years was equivalent to $21087, including initial cost, operating, replacement, and project costs. Thus, 35.6% of the necessary electricity is generated with PV and 64.4% biomass under optimal conditions for a 100% renewable energy integration. The CO 2 /year emission performance of optimal HRES is much better than Grid-only and PV-diesel generators. This technique may be used in rural regions in every other developing nation. [Display omitted] • Study of hybrid PV/Biomass/Battery energy for India rural area. • Design and optimization for off-grid electricity generation system using HOMER. • Technically and financially viable optimal configuration costs 0.0362 $/kWh. • System performance economically and environmentally analyzed by sensitivity analysis. • HRES reduced GHG compared to conventional grid and PV-biogas generator only. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the state of electric infrastructure of rural India, vernacular use of the word 'current' for movement of electricity from networks of pylons and wires in everyday life and electrification of rural India, with example of failure of power grids in North India.

ABSTRACT Micro-grids in developing countries present a significant application opportunity for photovoltaics (PV) as an energy-enabling technology. The authors project 10 GW for this application in the next decade. The growth of this sector will be enhanced by shared learning of the best practices. The authors are part of a team that successfully installed 1/3 MW in micro-grids and presented the lessons learned and a useful methodology for determining key metrics. The PV is part of the rural electrification in India and is representative of current global PV micro-grids. This project provides basic lighting and electricity for 57 villages in Visakhapatnam in India. The project was carried out with a goal of optimizing power against cost. Various metrics are presented: costs, time, operations and maintenance, and performance. Also discussed are implementation strategies for cost containment, stakeholder considerations, and post-install support and user payment collection. Learning points are presented on project execution, engagement of local people, and challenges addressed. The aspect of demand capacity level (hours of availability) is examined in more detail, with modeling being performed to identify an optimal approach to increasing the level given the cost constraints. The combination of real data and modeling is a useful approach for PV and micro-grid optimization. This case study quantitatively supports the value of the use of PV for rural electrification. Beyond this example in India, where the federal government is planning an increase to more than 2000 sites, there is a significant opportunity for PV in the global micro-grid electrification context. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper applies an econometric analysis to estimate the average and distribu-tion benefits of rural electrification using rich household survey data from India. The results support that rural electrification helps reduce time allocated to fuel wood collection by household members and increases time allocated to studying by boys and girls. Rural electrification also increases labor supply of men and women, schooling of boys and girls, household per capita income and expendi-ture. Electrification also helps reduce poverty. But the larger share of benefits accrues to wealthier rural households, with poorer ones having a more limited use of electricity. The analysis also shows that restricted supply of electricity, due to frequent power outages, negatively affects both household electricity connec-tion and its consumption, thereby reducing the expected benefits of rural electri-fication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: In many developing countries, the national electricity grid fails to provide rural communities with a reliable supply of electricity. Given the high socio-economic cost of this policy failure, both scholars and policymakers have recently become interested in off-grid electrification programs. However, the relationship between national grid expansion and off-grid electrification remains unclear. Are these two approaches independent of each other, or perhaps even competitors? This article develops a taxonomy that allows grid expansion and off-grid electrification to complement each other. Explicit policy integration is necessary to encourage investment in off-grid electrification and avoid duplication of effort. Otherwise, there is a danger that the poorest and geographically most remote segments of the rural population could be left outside electrification efforts. As an illustration, the article offers a case study of India. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Distributed power generation based on renewable energy sources brings new life and hope to electrify remote villagers. The proposed work suggests the techno-economic feasibility of three different energy-supplying alternatives namely the solar photovoltaic (SPV) system, diesel generator system and extending the grid connection for energy supply to a remote village located around 15 km away from the place where grid supply is available. Design of all the above three systems along with their economic analysis is carried out in this paper. A comparison on the basis of economic indicators like unit cost of electricity, net present value and payback period among the three systems is also discussed. The results show that the SPV system is economically more viable among the three options apart from environment benefits. This study may provide a new direction for energy planners to supply energy in remote non-electrified areas of India through SPV systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a study on the involvement of power lines in rural India on avian electrocution to determine at-risk species. It discusses how the researchers identified problematic configurations and developed a predictive model. The results show that carcasses were found under poles that supported jumpers and tangent poles. It suggests that electric poles must be retrofitted to reduce the risk of electrocution.

A record for an abysmally high number of lightning discharges in a single day occurred on 16 April 2019, where almost 58,066 flashes (cloud to ground + inter cloud) with a maximum of 179 flashes/min were observed over India. Researchers have hypothesized that an intense Western Disturbance (WD) caused these high numbers of lightning flashes, which prevailed in the northwestern part of India and spread over much of the country. Instead, in this paper, it is suggested and shown through multiple datasets that a dust intrusion into the storm altered cloud characteristics at the microphysical level, most likely favouring charge separation in cloud particles. The back trajectory calculation indicated that there was a south-westerly transport of dust/ aerosol which converged within the secondary flow associated with the WD and lofted into the higher levels. It is hypothesized that the entrainment of dust acting as cloud condensation nuclei as well as ice nuclei induced a favourable condition for charge separation. Also a dust-boosting feedback loop was set up due to the prevailing intense WD which further accelerated the electrification process and led to the catastrophic lightning. • Intense lightning activity accelerated due to dust entrainment into WD. • Aerosol indirect effect as observed from multiple satellite observations. • Evidence indicate dust boosting feedback loop led to catastrophic lightning. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: There are many advantages of solar photovoltaic technology in providing lighting for rural homes—scalability, minimal maintenance and well developed business models. This study seeks to study the impact of the transition from Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) to Light Emitting Diodes based lights (LED) on the solar home lighting system market. Changing the lighting fixtures from CFL to LED would lead to the requirement of smaller panels and batteries and consequently, a reduction in prices. Would this reduction significantly increase the adoption of these systems? Would the requirement for financing or government support change? To understand this changing landscape of the rural solar lighting industry, this study analyses the current products, distribution network, and operations of seven diverse solar firms operating in different parts of India. Four of these firms exclusively make LED based products – lanterns and small home lighting systems – and the rest have some LED based systems in their portfolio. There are several factors to be considered, product configuration, luminosity, price effects and service and maintenance. While the price reduction is found to be significant (about 20%), affordability may still remain an issue for poorer households. LED lighting allows for the introduction of plug and play systems, and reduces institutional requirements for installation and maintenance. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Despite the considerable efforts spent on village electrification schemes in India, there is a general lack of evaluation of impacts, successes and of failures. A case study in Chhattisgarh state in India has been carried out to assess what effect village electrification through solar power has had for the beneficiaries and whether technical and maintenance factors provide for the desired results set by Indian rural electrification policy. Consequences for the beneficiaries have been investigated through a field survey conducted in eleven villages with 158 respondents, maintenance factors have been investigated through interviews with engineers and operators, and technical factors through analysis of electricity output from micro-grids. In villages where the systems had been installed in the past two years, children studied on average 41min more in the evenings, more than twice as much as before electrification. Dinner cooking commenced on average 36min later, a sign of higher flexibility of time use and thus of women''s empowerment. Furthermore, the median household monthly kerosene use decreased by 2l, or 67%, but commercial productive activities were found to be limited. 75% of the 69 micro-grid power plants evaluated were found to have too little output to supply for the stated 6h of daily light per household, and the capacity installed per household decreased with village size. Plant capacity factors were found to vary greatly, most likely an effect of poor installation and/or inferior components. A tendency to replace energy-saving lights with incandescent lights requiring more power per lumen was found, leading to a decrease in obtainable light output. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: This paper has analyzed the case of Moushuni Island at Sundarban of 24 Parganas South of West Bengal, India. The proposition is to find out the possibility of grid-connectivity of Isolated Remote Island which is under rural electrification scheme by hybrid renewable energies under Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission of India. In these rural electrification program, grid extension can be the best option if the grid is reliable, the rural community rather big and in proximity to the grid. In many circumstances, a strong case for mini-grids based on hybrid systems can be made. Scattered communities and isolated houses are well served by solar and small hydro (where available) or small wind energy systems. By feeding renewable electricity to the utility grid through the grid-connected hybrid renewable energy system, during time of peak demand, sufficient electrical loads can be shed to prevent turning on a coal or natural gas-fired plant and therefore save CO2 emissions and potentially energy import costs, replacing fossil fuels. The Social, Economic, and Environmental Benefits can be achieved through this proposition. Also, the Grid Interactive Operation of SPV System at Moushuni Island is tested. Malda district of West Bengal, India is a vision towards smart-grid city towards sustainable future, where rural consumers can upgrade their quality of life through solar energy resource. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: Attractive economic performance of energy systems is important for their long term sustainability. In this paper, a cost benefit analysis (CBA), standard thermoeconomic analysis, and a new method that combines the two was applied to seven modelled candidate decentralised energy systems for small Indian rural villages. By including elements of CBA in standard thermoeconomics, economic inefficiencies at the component level and revenue adjusted costs of exergy for each stream were ascertained. The analysed systems all produced household and irrigation electricity as well as a secondary product or service, which in some cases utilised waste heat from the electricity generation process. The system that produced distilled water as a secondary product was the most economically sustainable out of those modelled. While the standard thermoeconomic electricity cost remained around 0.5 USD/kWh for all analysed systems, the benefit to cost ratios varied from 0.29 to 0.97, demonstrating differing appeal to outside investment. By incorporating CBA into standard thermoeconomics the accounted revenue produced a larger spread in exergetic costs than standard thermoeconomics (for example, an electricity cost range of 0.217–0.507 USD/kWh), thus providing a better comparison of systems with different energy end uses. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Biomass based hybrid energy system is utilized for the electrification of villages, especially in developing countries like India. Hybrid Energy System (HES) components, feasibility study, and cost analysis are presented in this paper for a remote area Kakkavayal, a forest region in Kerala, India. A water stream at 25 m height has been identified at Kakkavayal by the Forest Department of Kerala. The village has been marked to study hourly measured meteorological and load data for a period of time. The performance of the proposed hybrid system is determined on hourly basis and optimum configuration, which can meet the energy demand with minimum cost using the hybrid system design tool HOMER. Parametric analysis indicates that with 2 kW solar PV, 15 kW pico-hydel, and 5 kW biomass gasifier generator together with five numbers of 12 V, 200 Ah of battery storage to meet the primary load demand of 56 kWh/d and 17 kWh/d (scaled annual average) of deferrable load. From the simulation, the cost of energy is found to be Rs 7.274 (US$ 0.164) per kWhr. The cost of energy of the proposed HES is also compared with the diesel-based HES. It is found that economically, the proposed HES is a very good alternative for present pico-hydel/diesel system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Rural area electrification in developing countries helps to improve the quality of life of the people. It increases productivity and supports education. It also discourages people from migrating towards urban areas. In India about 70% of the population lives in rural area, hence it is necessary to electrify these villages to achieve inclusive economic growth. Transmission and distribution of power to this less densely populated areas which are located far away from the power generating stations is the major reason for not able to achieve 100% electrification in the country. Hence it is necessary to find out an energy source which can be decentralized to supply power to these hamlets. As India is blessed with solar energy which is omnipresent in almost all parts of the country, micro grid system which uses solar photo voltaic panels seems as the finest option. The solar photo voltaic system converts light energy into direct current power using photovoltaic effect. Battery is used to store the extra power generated during the day and used during nights. Inverters and power conditioning devices are used to convert direct current power generated by solar photo voltaic systems to alternative current, which is supplied to the load using power distribution network which adds to system cost. At present the capital cost and the land requirement for this system is higher than all other renewable energy power generation system. But it has very less operation and maintenance cost which makes it superior to other system. Moreover additional modules can be added to it when the power demand increases. This paper says about how rural area electrification can be achieved in India by solar photo voltaic system micro grid system and the challenges which has to be over come during implementation. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Rural electrification is an integral component of poverty alleviation and rural growth of a nation. In India, GDP is increasing with 8 percent where as contribution of agriculture sector is 1.9 percent. Government of India has ambitious target of providing electricity to all villages by 2008 and all rural households by 2012. Steps are already initiated by Government of India with Electricity Act 2003, Deregulation, Unbundling of State Electricity Boards (SEB), Independent Power Producers (IPP),Electricity Regulatory Commissions, Rural Electric Corporation (REC),Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidyutikaran Yojana(RGGVY),Accelerated Power Development and Reform Program (APDRP), etc. Electricity has not played effective role in the socio-economic growth of village. An attempt has been made in this paper to assess the progress of power sector reforms and its impact on rural electrification in India. Challenges faced by SEBin this process are also identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The provision of electricity is a key component in the development of a country’s health care facilities. This study was performed to estimate the cost of powering a rural primary health centre, in India with a decentralised renewable energy system. The costs were also compared between a decentralised renewable energy system and providing electricity from a grid source. The critical or break-even distance that makes electricity from a decentralised renewable energy system cost effective over that from a grid source was determined. The decentralised renewable energy system considered was a hydrogen-based fuel cell for the generation of electricity with hydrogen extracted from biogas obtained from biomass. The software program HOMER was used for the simulation analysis. The cost of a decentralised renewable energy system was found to be between seven times and less than half that of conventional energy, and the break-even distance was between 43.8 km to a negative distance for varying ranges of input component costs. The results of this study indicated that the use of a decentralised renewable energy system to power a rural primary health centre is both feasible and cost effective, and may even be cheaper than using electricity from a grid source. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: An Integrated Renewable Energy Optimization Model (IREOM) model has been developed for sizing and optimization of renewable energy systems based on seasonal variation in the load profiles of the study area. An attempt has been made to develop correlations between renewable energy system sizes and their capital cost for the user specified system sizes. The developed correlations were used for the analysis of IREOM model using user specified system sizes and compared with manufacturer specified system sizes. The cluster of seven unelectrified villages having micro-hydro power, biomass, wind and solar energy resources in the state of Uttarakhand, India has been considered for the implementation of IREOM model. Based on the results obtained from the proposed model, suitable sizes of renewable energy systems have been suggested. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Renewable hybrid energy systems have great potential to provide high quality and more reliable power. This offers the advantage that the strengths of each type of sources can be used to complement one another. Renewable hybrid energy systems are mainly recognized for remote area power applications and are nowadays cost-effective where extension of grid supply is expensive. Biomass gasifier-based power generation has a lot of potential for power generation in India. In this article, optimal sizing and operation of a wind-biomass gasifier-based hybrid energy system is proposed. A case study is done using real-time load demand data collected from a site. Economic analysis of wind-biomass gasifier hybrid energy system is also presented. The cost of energy is found to be Rs 3.499 (US$0.078). The cost of energy of the wind-biomass system is also compared with the wind-diesel system. It is found that economically, the wind-gasifier system is a very good alternative for wind-diesel system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]