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Small Hydro Power (SHP) India - Institutional Set-up
India has an estimated SHP potential of about 15,000 MW. From 801 SHP projects (up to 25 MW) an aggregate installed capacity of 2,953 MW has been installed by 31.01.2011. Besides these, 271 SHP projects with an overall capacity of 914 MW are under construction. A database has been created for most potential sites by collecting information from various sources and the State Governments. The database for SHP projects created by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) now includes 5,718 potential sites with an aggregate capacity of 15,384 MW.[1]
The biggest barrier for successful implementation of small hydro projects are the long lead times. This is due to the numerous permits and clearances required for such a project.
SHP Policy in India
The overall policy of the government is to encourage private sector participation for the power generation field and the SHP sector is moving towards attaining commercial status in the country. SHP projects are increasingly becoming economically viable. It has been recognised that SHP can play a role in improving the energy position in some parts of the country and in particular in remote and inaccessible areas. SHP in remote areas can be focussed on contributing to a national clean energy strategy as well as electricity for processing, communications and health care needs.
Financing SHP in India
A special incentive package has been developed for the promotion of the SHP programme in the North-Eastern states (Sikkim, J&K, Himachal Pradesh and Uttaranchal), giving capital grants per MW. The capital support is to cover 90% of the project cost with support limits for various ranges of projects (below 100 kW, 100kW to 1MW and up to 25 MW).
The development of commercial projects has been the emphasis in 2003-04 covering projects up to 25 MW with subsidy from MNES. In total, 47 commercial projects with a total capacity of 164 MW have so far been supported and 35 of these (in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh) have been commissioned by the private sector.
The Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) is the financial institution that provides the loans for setting up SHP projects. It has a strong track record with US$128 million disbursed for 118 SHP projects (180MW) so far and is currently handling a second World Bank financing package designed for SHP.
The MNES has been implementing a scheme of providing financial support for Renovation / Modernisation and capacity up-grading of old SHP Stations. The main aim of the scheme is to renovate the plants, to extend their life with improved performance and reliability. The MNES has so far supported 12 projects for their renovation and modernisation and the scheme has been rationalised and extended to cover projects up to 25 MW.
The Alternate Hydro Energy Centre (AHEC) Roorkee is the knowledge hub for small hydro development. All plants have to be tested and verified by AHEC before any subsidy from MNRE can be accessed.
SHP Industry in India
India has a wide base of manufacturers of equipment for small hydro power projects. State-of-the-art equipment is available indigenously. 20 manufacturers fabricate almost the entire range and type of SHP equipment. Manufacturers capacity is estimated at about 300 MW per year.[2]
