Even though prices of most energy commodities traded low on bearish sentiments due to continued gloom over global economic outlook, particularly because of persisting euro-zone debt concerns, those of crude oil (WTI) rose. News of reversal of critical Seaway pipeline, which would likely aid reduction of inventories at Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point of NYMEX WTI crude oil futures contract, lent support to an upside in oil prices. The prices of WTI crude oil futures on NYMEX increased by 7.69 per cent in November 2011. In sharp contrast, CER (carbon credit) futures traded on the ICE-ECX platform fell the most at 17.96 per cent.

With growing concerns over the euro-zone debt crisis, alongside a stronger dollar, oil (WTI) futures prices on NYMEX opened the month lower, by more than a percent from the previous month’s close, at US $92.19 a barrel. With oil prices then moving up, the opening day’s low of $89.17 emerged the month low. The prices later recovered on releases of better US jobs data, though a major upswing could not be seen immediately because of more-than-expected build-up in US crude oil inventories. However, positive steps taken in Greece towards resolving its debt crisis and reports of a rise in violence in oil-rich Nigeria later lent support to growth in oil prices. NYMEX WTI oil futures prices received a fillip from the news of reversal of critical Seaway pipeline, as this is expected to ease a year-long oil surplus in the US Midwest and thus help reduce inventories at Cushing, the contract’s delivery point, and zoomed to a month high of $103.37 on November 17. The news, in fact, added momentum to a narrowing trend seen in the WTI-Brent spread, which shrank to below $10 on November 16 from the peak of $28.08 on October 14.

Later, WTI crude oil prices declined on growing concerns over the Europe debt crisis and a strengthening USD. What also added to the fall was releases of a spate of weak economic data worldwide — the US, Europe and China. Chinese manufacturing activity showed a contraction in the month. Further, contrasting factors such as sanctions on Iran and Syria and upcoming winter demand against the prolonged euro-zone debt concerns resulted in a range-bound movement in oil. Finally, NYMEX WTI crude oil futures scaled high to close the month at 100.36, up 7.69 percent, largely on hopes of improved liquidity in the international financial system after central banks around the world took coordinated actions to lower borrowing costs.

Curiously, the rise in WTI oil prices did not reflect in the prices of its derivates. While the prices of gasoline futures on NYMEX fell by 2.85 percent, those of heating oil futures declined by about 0.71 percent on a monthly basis. This was largely due to robust production of oil derivates, coupled with trifle demand chiefly because of a gloomy economic outlook. On the other hand, natural gas futures prices on NYMEX dipped by 9.76 percent mainly on mild weather forecasts and a rise in US gas stockpiles to almost an all-time high aided by unusually warm temperatures.

Of other energy commodities, ICE Rotterdam monthly coal futures prices fell by 5 percent in November on plentiful supplies and weak demand sentiments largely due to poor economic data in China, a significant consumer of coal. Weak sentiments in coal can be gauged from the fact that a strike at Glencore’s 5.2 million tonnes-a-year Calenturitas coal mine in Colombia did not have a major impact on coal prices. The sharpest fall was seen in the emission market. The prices of CER and EUA (European Union Allowances) Futures on the ICE-ECX platform slumped by 17.96 and 17.90 percent, respectively. Mounting concerns over the role of the current carbon market in a future global climate treaty, and falling industrial production making pollution targets easy to meet were some of the key reasons for a slump in carbon prices. Additionally, a record number of CERs issuance this year only strengthened the downtrend.
Views expressed here are personal.

There is lot more of attention towards natural gas as the country is looking at migrating to gas based power production in a fast phased manner, an answer to the coal shortage. However, the pricing, both domestic and international, seems to mar a darker cloud on the process. In the near future we would see a rise in interest for natural gas.

At the international front, the prices have fallen drastically from US $13 to US $2.34, due to surplus accumulation during the year 2008. For the past two months, 10:30 am on Thursdays have been celebratory times for natural gas bears — this is when the weekly natural gas storage data is released. Nine straight inventory injections above estimates have built total gas in storage to 3.831 trillion cubic feet (Tcf), this is just below last year’s all-time record of 3.84 Tcf. It is expected that this Thursday’s data to yield a figure around 3.864 Tcf, surpassing the record high.  The prices which are drifting down is not a good sign, as the country is not able to take advantage of massive resources of natural gas,  the country is forced to swing through the political, volatile crude oil market and fear of OPEC.

According to EAI estimates, the working gas in storage was 3,831 Bcf as on Friday, November 4, 2011. A net increase of 37 Bcf from the previous week’s stocks. In last year at the same period stocks were 6 Bcf less and 215 Bcf above the 5-year average of 3,616 Bcf. In the East Region, stocks were 48 Bcf above the 5-year average following net injections of 16 Bcf. Stocks in the Producing Region were 144 Bcf above the 5-year average of 1,091 Bcf after a net injection of 15 Bcf. Stocks in the West Region were 23 Bcf above the 5-year average after a net addition of 6 Bcf. At 3,831 Bcf, total working gas is within the 5-year historical range.

As for conventional demand, in the United States, about 25 per cent of electricity is generated by burning natural gas in the power plants. Despite summer being at record high, the demand for the gas was not strong enough.  The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) official considered Blackout which also did not help the price to rise substantially. With the demand from the household with the record high in summer and record low in winter the requirement to heat and cool is also not supporting the demand where the supply side is getting built up.

Now let us see from where the actual demand is getting build up, it is expected that the Export will  shift towards China in the near future. The price of natural gas is almost more than 4 times at US $16 per mmbtu than the US price of US $3.4 /mmbtu, having huge gap to fill the supply gap. In fact, Cheniere Energy (LNG) recently secured a deal with BG Group (BGL), allowing it to export LNG out of the United States. But the process is moving at slower manner — it may be 2015 before the terminal at Sabine Pass in Louisiana is ready for delivery. The government must swiftly approve the six remaining export proposals and also encourage future proposals in order to increase the volume of exports. As of now, LNG exports are the only viable option to prevent natural gas prices from slipping even further towards the US$3 per mmbtu level.

In respect to the domestic demand within the US some strict regulation need to be enforced where the reliability on the energy sources which generate higher level of pollution should be reduced and force to use eco-friendly energy sources, which in-turn will reduce the country’s reliability on conventional power generation with oil and coal. This invites the need to shift the power plants turn to natural gas.

But, it is noticed that the natural gas demand is currently going through lean period – with the end of the peak cooling load for the summer and ahead of the winter heating season, coupled with the lower industrial demand with the slower growth in the economy. As a result commodity prices will remain under pressure with the sustain supply side with stronger production side.  Prices are expected to remain down and may trade in the range of US $1.5/mmbtu to US $4/mmbtu for year 2012 & 2013.

Coming to the Indian scenario, country has two operational LNG terminals both in Gujarat. Country’s first terminal Dahej is operated by Petronet LNG and the second by Shell in Hazira. Two more projects are also expected be operational in couple of years. The first one to go on stream will be the LNG project in Kochi by the first half of 2012. BPCL-Kochi Refinery planned investments to the tune of Rs 20,000 crore in the near future and this would involve between 20 and 30 ancillary units, which would need LNG as its source of power supply and feedstock.

The Second key project will be at Sabhol in Maharashtra. This ambitious project will connect the south Indian states to the national gas grid. The Dabhol- Bangalore Natural Gas Pipe line  with a length of 1,370 km with commissioning scheduled by mid-2012, will represents a significant development for the south Asian pipeline industry.

After conversion to LNG and regasification, Petronet sells gas to at a price bit over US $4/mmbtu. This is far higher than the US $ 1.2/mmbtu price at which the ONGC traditionally supplied Indian users. But with changing times and demand scaling up the new industrial users have been willing to pay this price.

Alongside some upbeat US and China economic data, unveiling of a new enhanced plan by European leaders to tide over the debt crisis helped prices of crude oil and other energy commodities such as natural gas, heating oil and gasoline to move up in October 2011. However, prices of some other energy commodities such as coal, carbon credits (CER) and European Union Allowances (EUA) continued to head north with the momentum gathered during the past few months. While prices of NYMEX (CME) WTI futures contract rose the sharpest in October at 17.6 per cent on a monthly basis, CER futures traded on the ICE-ECX platform fell the most at 12.7 per cent.

Carrying the bearish momentum of the past month, largely on growing concerns over slow growth in the global economy, crude oil (WTI) futures on NYMEX opened the month at US $77.61 a barrel, down by more than 2 per cent from the previous month’s close. Further oil prices dipped below the US $75 mark for the first time in more than a year as uncertainty over the European sovereign debt crisis and a weak outlook for US economic growth hurt prospects for future oil demand. Various financial institutions also highlighted concerns over global economic growth. Goldman Sachs forecast that Euro-zone would slip into a “mild recession” in Q4 2011 and Q1 2012, while Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services said it sees a 40 per cent chance of a new recession in Western Europe next year. Eventually, NYMEX crude oil futures prices touched their month low of US $74.95 on October 4.

Thereafter, a drop in US oil inventories triggered a reversal in oil prices. The prices received further support from better-than-expected US jobs data that somewhat eased concerns over the US economy. Later, growing expectations that European leaders would take steps to deal with the debt crisis added to the strength of oil prices. Besides, what also helped the sentiments was International Energy Agency’s (IEA) statement that, despite the slowdown in the US and Europe, crude oil demand might turn out to be stronger than expected. However, news that China’s daily crude oil imports declined by 12 per cent in September, alongside an increase in US oil inventory levels showed by the weekly report, applied some brakes to the oil upswing. Again, upbeat China manufacturing data and expectations of a new effective package to solve the Greece debt crisis pushed NYMEX WTI crude oil futures prices to the month high of US $94.65 on October 25. Later, following a short-time decline on growth in US weekly oil inventories, oil prices remained buoyed as European leaders eventually agreed on October 26 on measures to support the sovereign debt crisis. Another factor that supported oil prices was data that indicated that the US economy grew at the fastest pace in the third-quarter. Finally, following the rise in US dollar on Japanese government’s intervention in forex market and filing of bankruptcy by MF Global, world’s leading broker, oil price closed down the month at US$ 93.19, still up 17.6 percent on a monthly basis.

The rise in oil prices also was reflected in the prices of its derivates. While futures prices of gasoline on NYMEX moved up by just about a percent, heating oil futures prices rose by about 9 percent on a monthly basis. This was largely on expectations of demand for the approaching winter season in northern hemisphere. On the other hand, natural gas futures prices on NYMEX, known to follow oil prices, rose by 7.3 percent in the month. Expectations of demand for heating purpose in colder regions in the coming season, alongside a weaker dollar on easing of tensions over the European debt crisis, helped the upside in natural gas prices.

Futures prices of energy commodities in the emission segment – CERs and EUAs – witnessed a fall on ICE-ECX by 12.7 and 5.3 percent, respectively. Mainly heavy issuance of carbon credits in the UN-backed emission offset market and, to some extent, EU growth concerns have been responsible for the fall in carbon prices. In addition, ICE Rotterdam monthly coal futures prices too fell by about 3.7 percent in October on weak European demand and expectations that supply growth would outstrip demand in the coming year.
(Views expressed here are personal.)

Renjini Liza Varghese

a) According to you, how long will it take India to have a fully automated energy infrastructure?
India, according to me, is moving in the right direction. Take the example of solar energy initiatives in the country. From the off-grid system, now India is moving to grid connected solar. And coming back to implementation of smart and energy efficient system, the country is also taking the needed initiatives. How soon the country migrates to an efficient system will depend on how fast and efficiently the implementation happens.

b) Transmission losses stand close to 25 per cent, how far this can be minimized with smart equipments?
Energy losses can occur during transmission and also distribution. Majorly it is classified under technical losses. India’s losses are similar to that of Latin American countries. This can be reduced to the minimum by the automation of the plant, the charging station and the transmission lines as a whole. Implementation of smart and energy efficient conductors, landing station automation and the consumers using smart electrical equipments out together will improve the efficiency considerably.  The technology of course had taken a giant leap in this regard. HVDC lines are very popularly adapted example in transmission area.

c)  While we connect solar/ wind energy to the grid, intermittent supply is a concern. How to tackle this?
Agree that the renewable energy grid faces this problem because of the non- availability of fuel source. This is where the intelligent ICET technology comes into picture. By migrating to an automated system helps monitor the variations in the line and the technology helps the grid to manage this volatility without leading to grid failure.

d) Globally, what kind of investments you require in smart grid implementation? What is lacking in India in this regard?
If take the Asian countries, Japan and Korea are very advanced in smart grid investments. Close to US $4.8 billion. Implementation of smart grid directly implies improvement in efficiency, which calls for a larger amount of investments.  In a country like India, the government needs to pitch in. private sector playing a role in the beginning seems to be less tentative. And also, you cannot pass on the charges directly to the consumer. So the role of government in the beginning stage will play the crucial role.

e) Compare India and China in terms of adapting and executing the smart grid application?
China has advanced a bit further in terms of executing the application. They have high voltage wires which are comparatively in higher numbers. The government is very proactive which led to acceleration in developing energy infrastructure.  India has become conscious about have developing the energy infrastructure. Remember, automation of the feeder improves the quality of the power also. This is one point which is attracting attention in India. Globally the countries are adapting the existing technologies. However, the technology is not fully matured, the innovations are on. The expectation now is that the innovation curve should increase close to the consumers.

EB Bureau
It is almost a week since the nation plunged into a severe power shortage. Telangana blockade in Andhra Pradesh, Coal India mining workers strike, rains causing hindrance to movement of coal, and shut won of some of NTPC’s units owing to various reasons. Various state and centre bodies have started taking measures to fight the black out.

According to coal minister Shriprakash Jaiswal, the coal crisis is being addressed and things will get to normal in the next four to five days. Power Ministry is pressurising both NTPC and private players to supply more. The states which were facing dip in power supply due to technical, plant maintance were dependent on central quota. And when the power crisis started, the central pool availability also decreased leaving the states to fend for themselves through other sources. The states which are reeling under shortage have resorted to long hour of load-shedding leaving people to swelter under the October heat.

Take for example of Maharshtra’s Chandrapur plant, the largest thermal plant in the state, the generation has dipped below half, owing to coal supply scarcity. However, when the state went into the severe power deficit, Western Coalfields Limited (WCL), a subsidiary of Coal India blamed Mahagenco (the state generator) for the power crisis. Mahagenco retorted with pointing figure at the quality of the coal supplied by WCL and thus resulting in decrease in load factor.

The truth was that, majority of the plants run by NTPC did not have the prescribed reserve coal stock.  In some plants the reserves were less than what required for four days and in majority of the plants across the country it was less than what required for 15 days against the 30 days reserve.

If we go by the assurance of the power ministry and the coal ministry, hopefully the supplies will be normal in next five days. However, this has raised many a questions
a) Who should be held responsible for this?
b) What will happen to government’s plan of electricity to all by 2012?
c) Is the recent crisis reiterates the need for more private players in generation?
d) Is India taping alternate energy to its full capacity?
e) Should the country look at the long lasting demand of commercial mining of coal?

Agree, the unforeseen shortage of coal created the deficit this time. But majority of the states got a demand supply gap close to 25 per cent. This time the load shedding went up to 16 hours a day in rural parts of the country. The industrial bodies like ASSOCHAM have already raised alarm about industrial production taking a hit because of the power crisis.

Things may appear to be sailing smoothly with coal ministry and the railway ministry taking the apt step to move coal to the power plants in a fast phased manner. However, the coal minister’s statement of not able to supply coal for all power plants in the next plan period leaves both the public sector and private players equally concerned.

While the blame game continues between the railways, coal ministry and the power ministry, it is the industry and the aam janata who is sweating it out. However, the new crisis hopefully will make the government, the CEA and the regulatory bodies to make the firm decision to find an answer to the country’s power woes before it is too late.

Persisting debt concerns from euro-zone, weak Chinese PMI data and a downbeat assessment of the economic prospects from the US Fed led to significant fall in energy commodity prices in the month of September 2011. While the prices of EUA (European Union Allowances) futures prices traded on the ICE-ECX platform fell the most by 16.4 per cent, ICE Rotterdam monthly coal futures fell the least by 2.6 per cent on a monthly basis.

With tropical depression shutting rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, crude oil (WTI) futures at NYMEX (CME) opened the month of September on a steady note at USD 88.93 per barrel, marginally up by 0.14 per cent from the previous month’s close. Later, strengthening of another tropical storm, Lee, again threatened oil supplies in the U.S., which had already been reduced by an earlier cyclone, resulting in a rise in oil prices. During the same period, news that China could assist Italy allayed some fears on European debt contagion. As a result, crude oil futures at NYMEX climbed to a month high of US $90.52 on September 13.

Thereafter news that Libya would begin exporting crude oil from the eastern port of Toburk within ten days, helped in reversing the movement of oil prices, which was further supported by re-emergence of concern that Europe’s debt crisis and the faltering US economic recovery will temper fuel demand. Later with S&P downgrading Italy’s credit rating, adding to debt concerns, as well as the reported rise in weekly US oil inventory levels, resulted in a further fall in oil prices. While IMF too downgraded the growth forecast for the global economy, the fact that it also lowered its forecast for China to 9.5 per cent from 9.6 per cent this year added to concerns that demand from the world’s fastest growing economy could also take a hit. Adding to the growing fears on global economy, US Federal Reserve in its FOMC statement stated that that there was ‘significant downside risk’ to the economy. Consequently, oil prices continued to move southwards and eventually registered a month’s low of US $ 77.11 on September 26. Thereafter, bargain hunting at low levels, weakening of the dollar and reporting of fall in weekly US oil inventory levels helped oil prices to recover. Finally, despite Germany’s positive decision on Greece bailout at the fag end of the month, oil prices continued to remain under pressure on looming global economic uncertainty and thus closed the month at US $79.2, down by 10.8 per cent on a monthly basis. Continuing on the trend of the past few months, the spread between WTI (NYMEX) and Brent (ICE) crude futures registered yet another all-time high (on ‘close price’ basis) of US $26.87 on September 6.

The fall in oil prices was also reflected in prices of its derivate. NYMEX future prices of gasoline and heating oil were down by 13.4 per cent and 9.2 per cent respectively in the September on Heating oil fell 9.2 per cent this month, the biggest loss since May 2010.Broad reasons remains the same that the US economic recovery has stalled and the European debt crisis that began in Greece can potentially spread, endangering the region’s economy and reducing global growth. On similar lines, NYMEX futures prices of another major commodity, natural gas was also down by 9.6 per cent in September on economic concerns as well as subsiding of weather induced demand.

Scenario with emission commodities was also no different as both EUA futures prices and CER (Certified Emission Reduction) futures prices on ICE-ECX platform fell by 16.4 per cent and 13.0 per cent respectively. While mounting concern about Europe’s economic prospects was one of the factors, allocation of surplus units under the European ETS’s second phase that can be carried forward to the Phase III which begins in 2013 aided to the fall in emission prices. Notably, ICE Rotterdam monthly coal futures managed, albeit not completely, buck the trend of big fall in energy prices as it fell by only 2.6 per cent in September.

EB Bureau
The US has expressed gratification in India’s recent commitment to ratify the Convention on Supplemental Compensation (CSC) by the end of the year.   “All efforts taken by both the countries in the past six-years in civil-nuclear cooperation will open a new page when it moves to the implementation level,” said United States Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary Geoffrey R Pyatt, while addressing a gathering of the global business community that is ready to explore the vast opportunity being thrown open by India in the nuclear energy sector.

Payatt who presented a paper on ‘Taking Stock of the US-India Nuclear Deal in India’ at the Nuclear Energy Summit held in Mumbai, pointed out that, “Our two governments’ vision for civil-nuclear cooperation was founded on the premise that India needs nuclear power to sustain its rapidly growing economy in a safe, clean, and cost-effective manner, and that the United States itself has a stake in India’s continued success. The goal of the 2005 joint statement is to fulfill that vision; to provide India access to the technology it needs to build and safely maintain a modern and efficient fleet of civilian nuclear reactors and infrastructure, enabling India to tackle the power requirements of its growing economy.”

India, which reels under severe power shortage, has plans to add another 100,000 Mw in the next plan period (2012- 2017). In nuclear, the capacity addition target is 20,000 Mw and 50,000 Mw by 2030. Currently the country generates 4,780 Mw which is less than five per cent of the energy basket.

While the rules under the Civil Nuclear Liability Bill are yet be framed and ratified by the Parliament, the international supplier community and the US are of the view that the promise made by finance minister  Pranab Mukherjee in his last visit to Washington of passing the CSC by end of the year will be met.

According to the Atomic Commission Chairman, Dr S Banerjee, drafting the rules of implementation of the CSC has been complemented.  It is expected that the draft will be placed in the Parliament in the coming winter session.

Geoffrey R Pyatt was optimistic that, “The unease persists about the current playing field in the Indian nuclear energy sector can be addressed. Through engagement with the IAEA, we believe that any concerns can be addressed and mitigated in a way that satisfies all of India’s international partners.”

The international supplier community looks at the Indian market as a country that has the largest number of reactors planned or under construction in the world.  Coupled with heavy investment in infrastructure, the recent discovery of uranium deposits in Andhra Pradesh, and an increasing reliance on private enterprise, there are vast commercial opportunities in virtually every segment of the Indian nuclear energy market.

The US had entered into the 2005 Indo- US civil nuclear deal with the objective to provide India access to the technology it needs to build and safely maintain a modern and efficient fleet of civilian nuclear reactors and infrastructure, enabling the country to tackle the growing power demand.

EB Bureau

Post Fukushima nuclear crisis India has resorted to a stricter safety regime with a revision in all the existing plants. This revised safety standards are applicable to the under construction and upcoming nuclear plants. To remove the fear about nuclear energy from the minds of the people, we need to need more public awareness programme on safe and cheap power, pointed out SS Bajaj, chairman Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB).

He clarified that the prime responsibility for ensuring safety of a nuclear power plant in India is that of licensee, AERB ensures that the licensee is performing its responsibilities adequately. The AERB, regulates the safety by specifying the requirements to be met through a system of codes and guides. By granting consent or license for setting up the facility or running it, after ensuring that it complies with the requirements set out in codes and guides.

He elaborated on the regulatory process in the country; it involves various stages of consent starting from construction to commissioning.  AERB carries out regulatory inspections and monitoring of sites to ensure that all requirements are being met. The regulation of operating plants involves regular reporting requirements like the inspections and detailed reviews of safety. The periodic safety review is mandatory in every 10 years.

In response to the Fukushima nuclear crisis the government had called for thorough  technical review of safety of existing nuclear plants in the country. The apex body AERB constituted a national level committee to review all related aspects. And he reiterated that “the capability of Indian Nuclear Power Plants to withstand earthquakes and other external events such as tsunamis, cyclones, floods, etc are being ensured. AERB also created a Fukushima monitoring cell to continuously follow the developments in Fukushima and to keep a close vigil on the radiation and contamination levels in and around Fukushima and in India.

Bajaj said the review has brought out the loop holes in the security system and NPCIL, the operator who went ahead with an internal review enhanced the safety standards. While NPCIL had asked the suppliers to meet with the revised safety measures, a proposal been made to for provisions in handling extended loss of power and extended loss of heat sink.

India currently has a nuclear generation capacity of 4,780 Mw from 20 nuclear plants. The under construction plants will produce another 5,300 Mw.

EB Bureau

In the post Fukushima scenario, safety of the nuclear plants has been making a lot of noise. It is true that there is a revision in the security standards of nuclear power plants, this may can add on the cost of the project. However, even with all this, nuclear power will be still affordable at Rs 4 in 2017, said Dr Sukumar  Banerjee while inaugurating the India Nuclear Energy Summit 2011. He added that earthquake and tsunami is not the only safety concerns in a nuclear plant.  The first and foremost issue is the controlling of the chain reaction in the plant, second is the removal of heat and finally the prevention and removal of radioactivity if at all there is any, outside the contentment  area, and nothing outside the secluded area.

The 3rd edition of the India Nuclear Energy Summit 2011 had a grand opening at the hands of Dr Banerjee at the Bombay Exhibition Centre in Goregaon in the presence of the US ambassador Peter Burleigh, French Counsel General , Michael Duck, Senior VP, UBM Asia, Sanjeev Khaira , MD  UBM India and amongst other dignitaries.

The three day programme is structured in a manner that the first day the delegates and the participants get a chance to participate in the conferences which is being organized as part of the exhibition. On the inaugural day, there is a series of talk and interactive sessions on ‘the nuclear energy, the way forward, post Fukushima.’ The first day the DAE, second day will have a Indo- US nuclear energy safety summit by the American Nuclear Society and the third day will witness a Indo- French technology meet. “ Safety standards, finding the right kind of expertise are also equally important,” said Michael Duck.

India is a leader in HWR technology and expected to be the world in this technology sooner, pointed pout Dr Banerjee. India has a 345 reactor experience in nuclear. So the country is equipped to handle and go ahead with the nuclear programme.  “India’s target is to build a nuclear power plant without any safety concerns in a heavily populated area going forward.  The negotiations with Areva is a going on and optimistic to start the work of Jaitapur plant by December this year.”

Regarding the civil nuclear liability act amendment he said, it in the ministerial level now and will be placed in the Parliament in the coming session.

Though there are informal interaction happening with the Japanese companies and the scientist, there is no official talk happened yet on the safety measures of the nuclear plant. He concluded by saying that the once a disaster happens the first priority will be to contain radiation and then may be a possible evacuation. The disaster management department of the government is equipped to handle such a situation.

Renjini Liza Varghese

The increase in oil price and the shortage in coal are attracting the IPPS, the government officials to seriously think about and migrate to solar energy. This is the right time to do a stock taking regarding the National Solar Mission, pointed out the speakers in the conference. The ball was set rolling by Sanjay Chakrabarti, E&Y by pointing out the positive outcome of the first phase of JNNSM.

He also added that the concerns the solar power players faced in the first phase is being addressed while moving to the second phase. The project size is being increased from 5 Mw to 25 Mw. The per company allocation limit also has been increased to 50 Mw, however decided to limit it to 20 Mw to begin within the second phase of JNNSM.

Dr Pramod Deo, who gave the keynote address gave a in-depth picture of the lessons learned from the first phase and the concerns regarding the road ahead.   He added that kick starting the first phase without having any direct funding support from the government was an achievement. However, the repaying model announced in the first phase by bundling of power through NVVN is not going to be happening after the first phase.  In this case, the subsidy has to be directly funded.

“We are inching close to the second phase; the lack of clarity on policy beyond 2013 is a concern. The payment security mechanism post 2013 is also ambiguous.  We should start working on it before we hit the time line,” said Deo. He added that the feasibility issue, financial closure issue, balance sheet based financing limited data availability etc are being carefully studied.  Higher technology risk compared to other: Technology yet to be proven, developer don’t have prior experience, performance gurantee, raw material availability/reliability, financial risk and infrastructure risk like evacuation infrastructure, land etc also gave the practical issued involved in the solar energy.

The ministry of new and renewable energy targets to add 1000 Mw solar power in the first phase of JNNSM, second phase to see 3000 Mw and 16,000 Mw in the third phase.

The second edition of  Renewcon -2011 organised by UBM India, have divided the programme into four different categories. The first was worshops for EPC and PV, the second day is dedicated to solar, third day to wind and the fourth day for waste energy recovery.