By As a major shift into sustainable energy has become a global compulsion, Kerala has the potential to emerge as the clean energy powerhouse of India going by its core strengths reinforced by government policy initiatives, experts said at Invest Kerala Global Summit (IKGS) here.
Participating in a session on Empowering Kerala’s Future: Unleashing Opportunities in Clean and Sustainable Energy,’ the panelists said the sustainable transformation into clean energy will yield both economic and environmental benefits down to the local community level.
Delivering the key-note address on the topic, Manoj Gupta, CEO, Tata Power Renewable Microgrid Ltd, said it is important to reduce cost of generation, transmission and distribution through strategic planning to make a profound transformation into clean energy.
Holding that village community can play a critical role in clean energy transition, he said state policies and private participation need to adopt a decentralized approach.
Organic and agricultural wastes abundantly available in villages could be sources of clean energy which will add value to the farming activities of village communities, besides reducing stress on environment, he said.
Setting the tone for the discussion, K G Narendranath, Executive Editor, Financial Express, said when the whole world is talking about clean energy Kerala cannot stay back since it enjoys great scope to be a frontline state in this transition.
He said the surge in energy demand in the country made a compelling case for facilitating a great leap towards clean energy since increased dependence on thermal power is fraught with consequences, especially in the context of climate change.
A major transition into clean energy, however, has challenges like reducing the cost and loss during generation, transmission and distribution stages, Shri Narendranath said.
Dr R Harikumar, Director, Energy Management Centre Ltd, said though Kerala has been a prime-mover advantage in generation and consumption of solar energy, it still remains a small percentage of the state’s total energy consumption.
The state holds a lot of potential in developing Urban Micro Grids tapping renewable energy sources considering the increase in energy needs caused by the building boom. Also, this is vital to make the state energy resilient, considering the recurrence of disasters.
Mr Deepak Ushadevi, MD &CEO, Ciel & Terre India, said Kerala needs to tap floating power potential side by side solar. Since availability of land is a big issue in the state, floating power plants could be leveraged as a sustainable alternative, he said.
Mr Sanjiva De Silva, Counsellor (Industry, Science and Resources), Govt of Australia, Australian High Commission, said the India-Australia Partnership in Renewable Energy is a major initiative from which both the countries benefit.
While making a major transformation into RE it is also important to create a pool of skilled professionals.
Shri Narayanan Thirupathy, Director of REC Ltd, said funds will not be a constraint in making a transition into clean energy. The Government of India has made substantial budgetary allocations to support the clean energy initiatives. Besides private investment, the domain also promises great scope for sustainable public-private partnership for a state like Kerala, he said.
Major General Sharafuddin Sharaf, Vice Chairman, Sharaf Group, UAE, said augmenting clean energy generation is vitally important since the energy consumption has gone up uncontrollably around the world.
He said the Sharaf Group has successfully promoted integrated energy saving systems in its various verticals.
