A competitive bidding mechanism has been devised for PV projects, due to an overwhelming response to the NSM scheme. A second reason given for the lower PV tariff is a demand to that effect by the States, for which they cited efficiency improvements as a reason.  Thus, competition has been...

India's Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC), a code which mandates solar water heaters in residential facilities, hotels and hospitals, has recently updated its list and obligated them in all new governmental buildings too. The secretary of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) announced the next important step towards...

Read earlier today that the Indian VC & PE community are likely to invest $1 billion during the current fiscal into Indian cleantech companies. That's a heck of a lot, considering the total investments in renewable energy / cleantech in 2009 was about $5 billion (with a very large %...

It's fairly old news that many cellphone towers in India are keen on solar PV for their power. What is interesting are the numbers! India currently has more than 250,000 cell phone towers, which consume about 2 billion litres of diesel per year. Each tower consumes an average 5 kilowatts...

Bluestar Silicones is launching a new range of solar application products. The range includes a new high performance adhesive, CAF(R) 530, which optimises the longevity performance of solar modules. Bluestar Silicones is a global supplier of silicones. Its products which will increase the efficiency and longevity of solar modules by...

Solar thermal based heating and drying is a down-to-earth application; but this unassuming concept works, and works pretty well, with payback periods of less than four years in some cases. Planters Energy Network installed almost 300 m2 on the roof of the paint shop belonging to the bicycle factory of...

A summary of Darshan Goswami's views on Solar CSP's role in India's future: Solar energy is an enormous resource readily available in all countries throughout the world. Concentrated solar power plants have been used in California since the 1980s. Pacific Gas & Electric has recently signed contracts to buy 500...

Solar cooking is revolutionizing life at one of India’s most celebrated temples at Shirdi, a holy destination in the western region of India.  Solar cookers have replaced traditional polluting stoves, making it cheaper and greener for the temple to host hundreds of thousands of pilgrims daily. In a remote village...

A versatile, light-weight solar-powered lamp will be launched soon to meet the rural energy requirements for lighting. “Egg Lamp”, as it is called by its Bangalore-based maker Kotak Urja Pvt Ltd, also has new generation features - it can also be used for charging mobile phones and has a provision...

The American company Suniva Inc. commissioned its largest solar power installation ever with Titan Energy Systems Ltd., located in Karnataka, India. The 3 MW ground-mounted system is the largest grid-connected solar project in India, covering more than 12 acres. Titan designed the 3-MW solar project incorporating Suniva’s high-efficiency ARTisun series...