VOLUME 10 Issue # 9 66
INTERNATIONAL
OWNER : FirstSource Energy India Private Limited PLACE OF PUBLICATION : 95-C, Sampat Farms, 7th Cross ENERGY STORAGE Road, Bicholi Mardana Distt-Indore Future of batteries – Winner takes all? 452016, Madhya Pradesh, INDIA Tel. + 91 96441 22268 www.EQMagPro.com
EDITOR & CEO : ANAND GUPTA [email protected] 50
PUBLISHER : ANAND GUPTA
PRINTER : ANAND GUPTA
TRENDS & ANALYSIS SAUMYA BANSAL GUPTA [email protected] PUBLISHING COMPANY DIRECTORS: ANIL GUPTA PV MANUFACTURING ANITA GUPTA Gluing Instead Of Soldering New teamtechnik stringer connects high-effciency HJT cells CONSULTING EDITOR : SURENDRA BAJPAI
HEAD-SALES & MARKETING : GOURAV GARG 28 [email protected] 30
Sr. CREATIVE DESIGNER ANAND VAIDYA [email protected] GRAPHIC DESIGNER : RATNESH JOSHI PV MANUFACTURING BUSINESS & FINANCE SUBSCRIPTIONS : Solar developers ask government LONGi Solar’s Export to India
GAZALA KHAN CONTENT to rethink on manufacturing... Reaches an Apex ... [email protected]
Disclaimer,Limitations of Liability While every efforts has been made to ensure the high quality and accuracy of EQ international and all our authors research articles with the greatest of care and attention ,we make no warranty concerning its content,and the magazine 10 is provided on an>> as is < 6 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com 40 44 48 INTERVIEW INTERVIEW INTERVIEW WITH MR. JAMES HOU WITH MR. JIANFEI LI WITH MR. DAVID ZHONG Sales Head for South & East Asia, GoodWe Vice President/CTO, Sineng Electric Director, Shenzhen Sofarsolar 26 32 ELECTRIC VEHICLE BUSINESS & FINANCE ENERGY STORAGE Transformation of rural ecosys- Tata Power-Welspun deal : Cyrus Production of indigenous li-ion tems: Potential impact of... Mistry didn’t follow... 38 battery launched 24 22 TECHNOLOGY TECHNOLOGY LONGi Solar’s Export to India Chennai-based Swelect partners with Airbus unveils pioneering solar- Reaches an Apex ... US company to produce water... powered drone SOLAR PROJECTS Tata Power to develop 18 250 MW Solar Project in Karnataka EQ NEWS 12 14 Pg. 07-33 INDIA SOLAR PROJECTS SOLAR PROJECTS PRODUCTS Australian Consulate General inaugrates Roof top solar plants of Solar Power system in Mumbai 24075 kw set up in Punjab Pg. 76-77 by... www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 7 GINLONG Solis is one of the oldest and largest global string inverter specialists that manufactures string inverters for the residential, commer- cial and utility scale solar markets, which would benefit from a complete product line of ultra-reliable, bank- able, cost effective and innovative string inverter technologies which are installed globally, optimized lo- cally, to deliver significant long-term return on investment for solar stake- holders. 8 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com DELIVERING ENERGIES WITH A CLIP AND CLICK! Fastening solutions for Fastening solutions for PHOTOVOLTAIC MODULES ELECTRICAL MANAGEMENT Industrial & Commercial roofs Grounding Ground mount Cable routing A RAYMOND FASTENERS INDIA Pvt. Ltd Tel.:+91 2135 676 200 G.No. 259,276/8B Nighoje-Chakan, Taluka – Khed Pune 410501 - MAHARASHTRA www.araymond-energies.com 2018_flyerA4_India.indd 1 16/08/2018 10:41:48 INDIA DELIVERING ENERGIES WITH A CLIP AND CLICK! ‘DMRC to get green power from Rewa solar plant in two months’ The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) will start getting green power from the Madhya Pradesh-based Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Ltd (RUMSL) in the next two months, the first project in the country to supply power to an inter-state open access customer. he 750MW project in Rewa district, spread over an area of 1,590 acres, Essel Infraprojects launch- is among the largest single-site solar power plants in the world. The DMRC es 1st Waste to Energy plant had signed a power purchase agree- ment (PPA) with the RUMSL to get green power from the latter to run its in Nagpur T trains in the national capital. Essel Infraprojects Limited (EIL), a part ofSubhash Chandra-led diversi- fied Essel conglomerate and country’slargest integrated player in Madhya Pradesh Renewable Energy Prin- infrastructure, utilities, green andsmart city space, launched its first cipal Secretary Manu Srivastava told PTI waste to energy (WtE) plant atNagpur in Maharashtra by performing that the DMRC would get around 25 per ‘bhoomipujan’ of the plant. Union Minister for Road Transport & Highways cent of the total power generated by the Nitin Gadkari, stateChief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and New & Renew- RUMSL, which would meet around 90 per able Energy MinisterChandrashekhar Bawankule graced the occasion. cent power demand of the DMRC. “The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) will get green power from the Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Ltd (RUMS) within the next two months,” Srivastava said. Fastening solutions for Fastening solutions for “We thank Mr Gadkari, Mr Fadnavis and Mr PHOTOVOLTAIC MODULES ELECTRICAL MANAGEMENT Bawankule for theirgracious presence on the He said the RUMSL has started generating 10 MW power occasion of ground-breaking ceremony of solid Industrial & Commercial roofs Grounding from July 6 this year. “The project is estimated to meet waste treatment plant at Nagpur. This will be a Ground mount Cable routing 90 per cent of the daily electricity demand of the DMRC. catalyst toprovide cleaner air, water for citizens,” Besides, it would save Rs 1,400 crore of Delhi Metro in the Mr Chandra, Essel Groupchairman, said. next 25 years,” Srivastava added. He said the DMRC would pay around Rs 3.67 for per unit of solar power, including the transmission charge. The DMRC is currently buying power IL has successfully commenced its state-of- at Rs 7 per unit. Presently, the Delhi Metro has network of the-art WtE andcollection & transportation about 288 Km with 208 stations which has now crossed (C&T) projects and operations in Jabalpur the boundaries of Delhi to reach Noida and Ghaziabad in (Madhya Pradesh), Ranchi (Jharkhand) Uttar Pradesh, Gurgaon and Faridabad in Haryana. The MP and Amritsar (Punjab). Nagpur Solid Waste Power Management Company Ltd, which supplies power to Processing and Management Private the state discoms, will get 76 per cent of the power pro- Limited(NSWPMPL), a company incor- duced from the Rewa solar power plant, while the DMRC porated by EIL, will develop the projectby will benefit from the remaining 24 per cent. E investing Rs 218.80 crore. Once the project Speaking about the operational status of the RUMSL, is functional, itwill treat 800 tonnes of total the top officer said that major works at the plant have been 1,100 tonnes of waste generated in city. A RAYMOND FASTENERS INDIA Pvt. Ltd completed while fixing of solar panels is going on. He said The Nagpur Municipal Corporation RUMSL will go full steam by this year-end. “RUMSL is the (NMC) will provide Rs 70 crore to NSWPM- joint venture between the Solar Energy Corporation of India PL as viability gap funding for execution un- Tel.:+91 2135 676 200 (SECI) and Madhya Pradesh Urja Vikas Nigam (MPUVN) der Swachh BharatMission. NSWPMPL will which has roped in private players in setting up the plant,” develop the project in two years followed G.No. 259,276/8B Nighoje-Chakan, Taluka – Khed Pune 410501 - MAHARASHTRA said Srivastava who is also the managing director of byoperation and maintenance for 13 years. MPUVN. Under the plant, three units of 250 MW each will The tipping charges of Rs225 per tonne will produce a unit of green energy for less than Rs three, he be paid by NMC, which will increase by 4.5 added. percent every year, it was stated. Source: UNI www.araymond-energies.com www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 11 2018_flyerA4_India.indd 1 16/08/2018 10:41:48 INDIA Solar roof top power can generate 3 lakh jobs in six cit- ies of UP: CEED Centre for Environment and Energy Development (CEED) has claimed that Uttar Pradesh has a great potential of solar rooftop power in six cities and it can generate 3 lakh jobs in the state. EED releasing its report “Uttar Pradesh: Uncovering Solar Rooftop Potential in Urban Cities” claimed that by using just only 11 per cent of the built up area in six major cities could generate 11.4 Gigawatt or 11.400 MW of power. The report, while exploring the rooftop solar po- Ctential of six major cities – Lucknow, Kanpur, Agra, Meerut, Allahabad and Gorakhpur, suggests that the installation of solar rooftop up to its potential in these cities can generate 3 lakh jobs in the state. Talking to reporters about the findings of the report, CEED’s Program Director Abhishek Pratap said here that solar rooftop has a game-changing potential to completely revitalise the development landscape with im- proved power supply, massive capital infusion and significant rise in job creation. “The 11.4 GW of solar rooftop potential just in these six cities can bring Rs 570 billion investment in the solar energy sector in Uttar Pradesh alone, thus creat- ing a ripple effect in employment generation with a possibility of 3 lakh jobs in next five years along with an expansive upliftment of manufacturing, assembling and service sectors in the solar industry,” he said while adding that “solar rooftop not only fuels invest- ment and jobs, but also brings inclusive development studied in the report – Allahabad and Meerut – are 1577 MW by building sustainable energy infrastructure and and 900 MW respectively. maintaining healthy ecosystem’’. However, due to the existing grid curtailment factor as per State net-metering guidelines and the power demand, 1674 UP government has already set up an ambitious target MW can be immediately installed in these cities before year of generating 10,700 MW of solar power by the end of 2025. Out of these six cities, Lucknow can accommodate 725 2022. The target set for solar rooftop systems is 4,300 MW, while Kanpur and Agra can accommodate 250 MW and MW. CEED’s report reveals that about one-third of this 144 MW respectively. Allahabad can shelter 140 MW while target can be achieved by merely exploiting the potential Meerut and Gorakhpur can house 335 MW and 80 MW of solar of these six major cities. It also charts a sustainable and rooftop power. viable roadmap to make the cities of UP powered through solar energy. Recently, the UP Government made solar rooftop mandatory for all “As these cities have well established urban Government buildings and asked residential settlements and overall infra- structure, their potential lies largely in the its departments to explore the uses of solar residential sector, followed by public/semi- energy for catering their energy require- public buildings and government buildings. ments. Anand Prabu Pathanjali, Manager – Clean Energy With an overall solar suitable roof area of at CEED said, “For catalyzing energy transformation in only 98.75 sq. km out of the total cities area of the state, Government buildings offer best options with 5,958 sq. km, a total of 11.4 GW of solar power bundling of projects which help in reducing the cost. With can be generated,” the report said. solar price going down and reaching grid parity, industrial and commercial consumers should also be encouraged Among these cities, Lucknow (3187 MW) has the maxi- mum potential, followed by Kanpur (3010 MW) and Agra to adopt solar with even more enthusiasm as it helps in (1986 MW), whereas Gorakhpur (833 MW) has the lowest reducing their operation expenditure. solar rooftop potential. The potential of the other two cities Source: UNI 12 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 13 INDIA First tender for 1,000-mw solar capacity in DSIR likely in August The first tender for the 1,000-megawatt (mw) solar capacity in the Dholera Special Investment Region (DSIR) in Gujarat is likely to be is- sued, a senior official has said. Delhi to generate over 2,000 MW of solar energy by 2025 “This is going to be the largest single- With an aim to generate more than 2,000 MW of solar energy in the location ultra mega solar park of 5,000 mw national capital by 2025, the Delhi government is laying out a compre- in the country. We are hopeful of inviting hensive roadmap to encourage adoption of rooftop solar projects by bids for the first 1,000 mw in the next one the residential sector. month,” Dholera Industrial City Develop- ment Corporation (DICDC) managing director Jai Prakash n order to achieve this goal and understand the Shivahare said at a select media interaction here over the opportunities and challenges in aggregating weekend. He further said the greenfield project is expected the consumer demand, the Energy Efficiency to generate more than 20,000 jobs. and Renewable Energy Management Centre (EE&REM), Delhi’s Department of Power, or- ganised a consultation workshop ‘Rooftop Solar ujarat Power (GPCL), Gujarat Urja Demand Aggregation Program for Domestic Vikas Nigam (GUVNL) and Gujarat Consumers’. The workshop, supported by the Electric Transmission Corporation I SUPRABHA (Sustainable Partnerships for (GETCO) along with the Solar En- Rooftop Solar Acceleration in Bharat), a World ergy Corporation of India (SECI) are Bank-SBI Rooftop SolarTechnical Assistance implementing the project. (TA) Programme discussed the opportunities and challenges faced by Renewable Energy G Service Company (RESCO) developers in set- ting up solar rooftop projects in the city. Gujarat principal secretary to the chief min- ister, MK Das, said the state expects good response for the bids. “After we decided to In his address, Power Minister Satyen- go slow on the solar power capacity addition dar Jain said: “It is the endeavour of the due to higher costs, we are now getting back Delhi Government to promote the use of to it in a big way. Also now that the prices have come down, renewable energy by all sectors. we want to take advantage of this market,” he said. “We “The residential sector is a key compo- expect very good response as the capacity we are offering is nent in an urban setup like Delhi and we are exploring ways massive, which will not only give economies of scale to the de- and means to make it easy for this sector to adopt rooftop velopers, but also benefit from the development happening solar. The RESCO model enables this by minimising capital in the Dholera region . expenditure for homeowners and RWAs. The Delhi Govern- ment’s aim is to generate 1000 MW by 2020 and 2000 MW by Meanwhile, a 200-mw wind park has also been planned in 2025 through Rooftop Solar Installations.” Dholera, which would attract an additional investment to the tune of Rs 1,400 crore. Source: IANS Source: PTI 14 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com INDIA he petition filed by Amplus seeking implementation of exemption or HERC announces a combined order waiver of wheeling charges, cross- subsidy charges, transmission and for multiple matters distribution charges and surcharge for ground-mounted and rooftop so- Haryana Electricity regulatory commission recently announced an order on lar power projects Waivers/conces- multiple matters including Suo Motu for amendment and/or modification of HERC sions shall be applicable till the ag- (Terms and Conditions of Determination of Tariff from Renewable Energy Sources, Tgregate installed capacity of 500MW of Solar PV Plants Renewable Purchase Obligation and Renewable Energy Certificate) Regulations, 2010 in the State is achieved, where after the Commission and its subsequent amendments (hereinafter referred to as RE Regulations, 2010). shall review the provision of waivers/concessions tak- ing into account the financial impact on the Distribution The Commission invited views and comments from the stakeholders and Licensees. the Haryana Distribution Licensees seeking answered to them individually. The order also talks about the following: a relaxation of Renewable Purchase Obligation. The Commission has considered the above submis- Suo-Moto proceedings on RPO compliance If an Obligated entity fails to sions and is of the considered view that, after consider- comply with the obligation to purchase the required percentage of power able deliberation, the RPO targets have been fixed. from renewable energy sources or the renewable energy certificates, it Further, even the Discoms have raised the issue of shall also be liable for penalty as may be decided by the Commission these targets being on the higher side. Further, it has under section 142 of the Act. Provided that in case of genuine difficulty been submitted by the Discoms / HPPC procurement in complying with the renewable purchase obligation because of the of RE power in the peak hours will not only add to the limited availability of renewable energy or non-availability of certificates, demand-supply gap but also add to the surplus and the obligated entity can approach the Commission for relaxation or carry backing down of cheaper conventional power putting forward of compliance requirement to the next year. However, in normal an avoidable financial burden on the electricity con- circumstances, the renewable purchase obligation shall not be waived sumers of Haryana. Hence, the Commission finds no off. Provided further that where the Commission has consented in writing reason to change the RPO targets as appearing in the on an application made by the obligated entity to carry forward of compli- draft Regulations as the same in the considered view ance requirement, the provision of regulation 58 (1) of these regulations of the Commission attempts to balance the interest of or the provision of section 142 of the Act shall not be invoked. all the stakeholders. Source: reconnectenergy www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 15 SOLAR PROJECTS NABARD sanctions over Rs 735 cr for solar, irriga- tion projects in Bengal The financial institution said the grid connected solar power proj- ects would generate 88.61 MU of green energy per annum NABARD said it has sanctioned Rs 735.53 crore in the first Australian Consulate quarter of the current fiscal under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) for West Bengal for facilitating the execution of 86 projects. They include six solar power, General inaugrates Solar one medium irrigation, five minor irrigation and 12 flood protection projects, besides 57 projects for the widening Power system in Mumbai and strengthening of roads and five rural bridges, accord- ing to a statement. Cheshire Homes India-Mumbai which was established in 1955 by Group Captain Leonard Cheshire got Rooftop 30 KW capacity Solar Power ccording to the National Bank for System at Andheri East branch in Mumbai which is funded by the Aus- Agriculture and Rural Develop- tralian Consulate General Mumbai, under the Direct Aid Programme ment (NABARD), the entire loan (DAP) for the year 2017-18 covered under the project “Leveraging amount was provided to the state Renewable and Sustainable Energy”. at a concessional rate.Elaborat- ing on the projects, the financial heshire Homes looks after differ- institution said the grid connected ent initiatives like in-house gen- solar power projects would gener- eration of organic manure through A ate 88.61 MU of green energy per waste recycling, organic vegetable annum. garden and promoting plastic-free The work on the irrigation proj- environment by producing cloth / ects is expected to benefit 11,554 fabric bags for housing societies hectares of land besides address- in Andheri East. The function was ing the problems of water wastage C attended by Mr. Tim Hall, Vice Con- in the upstream areas, seepage sul, Australian Consulate , Mumbai, loss, deposition of silt and insuf- Dr. Bakul Mehta, Sherley Singh, ficient height of canal, which have P M John Chairman of Cheshire been resulting in erratic and short Homes and divyang (disable) kids supply of water in the command and their families. Kids performed area. The flood protection mea- on Bollywood songs on this occa- sures were aimed at addressing sion . the erosion of river banks and about 155 villages would ben- efit, it claimed. The widening and strengthening of 57 roads would facilitate 352.81 km in 14 districts and this would help the farmers to access agro inputs and markets for their agricultural produce along with other facilities. Rural bridges would lead to saving of 82 km dis- tance, the statement added. Source: UNI Source: IANS 16 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 17 SOLAR PROJECTS Roof top solar plants of 24075 kw set up in Punjab by 1105 beneficiaries: Kangar • Low Cost Power by Roof Top Solar Systems • Roof Top Solar Plants of 24075 KW have been set up in the State by 1105 beneficiaries • 1KW to 1 MW power can power be generated by the roof top solar plants Punjab Energy Development Agency(PEDA) is trying hard to provide affordable power to the people. The Roof Top Net Metering Solar Project run by the department is being appreciated a lot by the people. e said that under this scheme in 2017-18, about 250 ben- eficiaries and till date 1105 beneficiaries have installed roof top solar plants of 24075 kW. Besides, about 3000 KW Roof Top Solar Plants are under construction. If the solar plant is installed at 80 percent of the section load then the electricity bill of the consumer is reduced by 80 percent. H Mr. Kangar said that energy is a means of progress. Due to the increase in population, industry and busi- ness, the energy requirement is increasing day by day. With this, the sources of energy such as diesel, coal and petrol are depleting fast and they will not be able to meet the energy needs for long; we have to adopt new and renewable methods to meet the growing energy needs. So, in the current scenario, we should make full use of solar energy. He told that the consumers can install them on houses roofs, vacant land, factories, government, semi govern- Giving the information, ment, local body offices, business locations, institutes, the Minister of Power and domestic complexes etc. ranging from one kilowatt to Renewable Energy, one Mega Watt plant. According to the capacity of Roof Mr. Gurpreet Singh Top Net Metering Solar system, the consumer can make Kangar said that Roof Top personal use of solar power and can forward additional electricity to the grid of PSPCL. It also facilitates the Net Metering Solar System banking of energy. If the net metering is done by PSPCL leads to a huge reduction then the consumer can give additional power to PSPCL in electricity bill and power which can be used later by the consumer as saved/ can be used according to banked energy. The amount of collected/saved energy is one’s requirement. The Roof reflected in the next bill. On the basis of the retail supply Top Solar System is a solar rate which is approved by PSPCL, the energy bill is pre- photovoltaic power system pared keeping in account for the total energy imported / exported by the consumer. installed in vacant area or on the roof of the consum- er’s pemises and generates PEDA CEO Narinder Pal Singh Randhawa said that electricity from the sunlight. Punjab has a reservoir of solar power which can be NET Metering and Techni- used as electricity to illuminate our homes and lanes. cal Standard Policy was The advantage of solar systems is that they can be in- released in 2014 to encour- stalled in less time and their daily maintenance is little. age Roof Top Solar Power In comparison to the other systems, this system is envi- Generation in Punjab. ronment is friendly and once it is installed, it generates electricity throughout the day. Consumers who wish to install Solar Roof Top Projects should approach PEDA so that approval can be obtained as per the prescribed conditions and directions from the MNRE. GoI gives 30 percent capital subsidy on installation of SPV system. 18 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com SOLAR PROJECTS ACME Bags 300 MW Solar Power Project in 1000 MW of UPNEDA Solar bid “With consistently offering most competitive tariff and highest solar By winning this 300 MW solar project, ACME portfolio power generation; ACME has be- will exceed 5 GWp Solar PV Portfolio across India with an come the leader in solar power gen- operational capacity of 1.7 GWp and 2.8 GWp solar projects eration in India. This has entrusted at different stages of development. a huge responsibility on us to chart the future ahead in solar power ACME won 300 MW Solar PV capacity in the reverse auction held on in India. I am confident that with 10.07.2018 invited by UPNEDA. this addition of 300MW capacity, ttar Pradesh New & Renewable ACME will strive to achieve highest Energy Development Agency efficiency in solar power gen- (UPNEDA) invited solar tenders eration and strengthen with cumulative capacity of 1000 its partnership with MW of grid-connected solar the Government in photovoltaic (PV) projects to be building a strong executed across the state. Total nation & economy 13 companies have shown interest said Shri Manoj Uwith the aggregated capacity of 1870 MW. ACME bided for Kumar Upadhyay, the highest capacity of 300 MW. ACME won the bid with Founder and the highest 300 MW solar PV capacity in a highly competi- Chairman ACME tive reverse auction held yesterday at a tariff of INR 3.54/ unit for 150 MW & 3.55 per unit for another 150 MW solar Group. capacity. Source: acme.in www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 19 SOLAR PROJECTS Solar tariffs once again hit ACME bags 600 MW Solar all-time low of Rs 2.44 a unit Power Project at SECI 2 GW at SECI auction Interstate Transmission The tariff had fallen to Rs 2.44 per unit only once before, in a SECI auction for projects at the Bhadla Solar Park in May 2017, but had been climbing System (ISTS) Solar bid at a significantly in subsequent auctions tariff of 2.44/unit olar power tariffs touched Rs 2.44 per unit once By winning this 600 MW solar project, ACME portfolio will more, the lowest they have ever reached, in exceed 3.8 GWp Solar PV Portfolio across India with an the latest 2000 MW auction conducted by Solar Corporation of India (SECI). Acme Solar, one operational capacity of 1.7 GWp and 2.1 GWp solar projects at of the biggest domestic solar developers, with different stages of development. around 875 MW of commissioned solar projects, won 600 MW with this bid. The tariff had fallen to Rs 2.44 per unit only once before, in a SECI Sauction for projects at the Bhadla Solar Park in May 2017, but had been climbing significantly in subsequent auctions, the highest reached being Rs 2.94 to Rs 3.54 per unit in an 860 MW auc- tion across different talukas of Karnataka, held by the Karnataka Renewable Energy Develop- ment Ltd (KREDL) in February this year. Other auctions by Gujarat, Maharashtra and NTPC too have seen winning tariffs of well over Rs 2.50 per unit. The other winners at the auction were Shapoorji Pallonji, which won 250 MW bidding Rs 2.52 per unit, along with ACME bags 600 MW Solar PV capacity in the reverse auction held invited Azure Power, Hero Solar and Mahindra Susten, all three by SECI for 2000 MW solar power tender. of which bid Rs 2.53 per unit. While Azure Power won 600 MW, Hero and Mahindra got 250 MW each. The remain- olar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) ing 50 MW was awarded to Mahoba Solar at Rs 2.54 per invited solar tenders with cumulative unit. All 2000 MW of projects will be connected directly capacity of 2000 MW to be executed at to the Inter State Transmission System (ISTS). any location in India. Total 8 companies qualified for the tender with aggregated capacity of 2950 MW. ACME and Azure Industry sources attributed the sharp fall to develop- have bided for the highest capacity of ments in China, from which around 80% of the solar 600 MW each. ACME won the bid in a S highly competitive reverse auction held panels and modules used in Indian solar projects are imported. In end-May, the Chinese government yesterday at a tariff of INR 2.44 /unit. The stopped approving further solar projects and cut second best tariff offered was 2.52 /unit subsidies for its solar developers, as it felt the sector for 250 MW. was expanding too fast. With local demand falling, Chinese solar manufacturers have no choice but to export, leading to a weakening of prices. India ac- counted for 30.9% of China’s solar exports in 2017, “With consistently offering most com- according to the China Chamber of Commerce for petitive tariff and highest solar power Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Prod- generation; ACME has become the leader ucts. Solar tariffs had been rising for the past year in solar power generation in India. This due to two main reasons – the rising cost of solar has entrusted a huge responsibility on us panels from China, and the possibility of safeguard to chart the future ahead in solar power in duty being imposed on Chinese solar imports ever India. I am confident that with this addi- since domestic manufacturers complained to the tion of 600MW capacity, ACME will strive Director General, Safeguards that Chinese imports to achieve highest efficiency in solar power were seriously hurting their industry. However, generation and strengthen its partnership domestic manufacturers do not have the capacity to with the Government in building a strong meet India’s solar equipment requirements, sparked nation & economy said Shri Manoj Kumar by its ambitious programme of achieving 100 GW of Upadhyay, Founder and Chairman ACME solar capacity by 2022. A decision on safeguard duty Group. is expected shortly. But the trend of rising Chinese panel prices has clearly been dramatically reversed. Source: reuters 20 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 21 SOLAR PROJECTS Tata Power to develop 250 Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd MW Solar Project in Karna- commissions 614 kWp solar taka rooftop order for BPCL Re- Tata Power, India’s largest integrated power company, announced that Tata Power Renewable Energy Limited (TPREL), the Company’s wholly finery, Mumbai owned subsidiary, has received a Letter of Award from Karnataka Renewable Energy Development Limited (KREDL) to develop 250 MW (50 Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd (G&B) is pleased to announce commissioning MW x 5 Nos) of solar projects located in state’s Tumkur district at of 614 kW solar rooftop order from M/s Bharat Petroleum Corpora- Karnataka. tion Limited (BPCL) installed in their Mumbai Refinery unit. he projects will be set up at the Pavaga- da Solar Park in Tumkur district at Kar- as one of the prestigious and chal- nataka and the energy will be supplied lenging project done by G&B in to the State Discoms under a Power recent times considering refinery unit Purchase Agreements (PPA), valid for which is generally restricted area for a period of 25 years. The Company has execution. With this order, G&B has won this capacity in a bid at a tariff of expanded their portfolio to Maharatna INR 2.85/kWH announced by KREDL PSU. BPCL management appreci- T during April 2018. The projects will be W ated hard efforts put in by G&B team commissioned within 12 months from to complete installation within time the date of signing of the PPA. with utmost safety & highest qual- ity standards. The whole project is spread across 13 different locations. This was also the largest rooftop solar project for BPCL in Mumbai Speaking on this achievement, Mr. Praveer region. With successful commission- Sinha, CEO & MD, Tata Power, said, “We ing of this project, G&B is all geared are proud to announce that we have been up for future endeavours of BPCL. awarded the 250 MW Solar Project in Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd com- Karnataka, and thankful to the Government missions 614 kWp solar rooftop order of Karnataka and the officials at KREDL for for BPCL Refinery, Mumbai Godrej & this opportunity. We are delighted to con- Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd (G&B) is pleased tribute towards the realisation of our coun- to announce commissioning of 614 try’s commitment towards clean and green kW solar rooftop order from M/s energy through solar power generation.” Bharat Petroleum Corporation Lim- ited (BPCL) installed in their Mumbai Refinery unit. This was one of the prestigious and challenging project done by G&B in recent times consid- “We are pleased to announce our win in Karnataka ering refinery unit which is generally and with this, we continue to demonstrate our restricted area for execution. strong project development, engineering and exe- cution capabilities. This is an important milestone in our endeavour to generate 35-40 per cent of Mr. Raghavendra Mirji, Associate Vice President Tata Power’s total generation capacity from clean & Head – Power Infrastructure & Renewable energy sources. Pavagada Solar Park has provided Energy vertical, said that the company is pres- us a unique opportunity to enhance our generation ently executing more than 3 MW of roof top capacities in the same location and post develop- projects in Maharashtra and around 5 MW in ment we will have the optimisation advantage of operating more than 400 MW AC power from Pav- other states. This unique project 614 kWp roof agada. Establishment of solar project in this area top project will add another feather in the cap of will improve the revenue to the Govt. and enables Godrej & Boyce and demonstrates its execution Pavagada to be one of the pioneers in Solar park capabilities in solar field. in the entire Country.” said Mr. Ashish Khanna, President-Renewables, Tata Power. G&B plans to play a larger role as an EPC contractor The 250 MW solar project is the largest capacity won by for both On-Grid and Off-Grid solar power generation. the company in a bid so far. The plant is expected to annu- Being driven by the focus on sustainability, reliability, ally offset approximately 578631 tCO2e per year. TPREL values, G&B intends to enhance its presence in the has an operation capacity of 675 MW making it a key player sphere of Renewable Energy and will focus on various in the renewable energy space. 1.6% of their total annual green initiatives aimed at reducing the carbon footprint. consumption will be met with this project. Source: godrej www.EQMagPro.com 22 EQ September -Part C 2018 Source: adfactorspr SOLAR PROJECTS urrently, Amazon India The company plans to further Amazon India to install has already installed deploy largescale solar panel 1,000 kilowatt (KW) of systems on rooftops of an ad- solar power panels in solar power panels at ditional five fulfillment centres its fulfillment centre in and two sortation sites located Hyderabad. In addition in Bengaluru, Mumbai and more fulfillment cen- to the installation at Hy- C Chennai, while further expand- derabad, the company ing existing capacity in Delhi. tres has installed 600 KW of With this deployment, by the solar power panels at end of 2018, Amazon India Amazon India has announced a new initiative to generate clean its fulfillment centre in will be able to generate solar energy through installation of solar panels on the rooftops of Jamalpur, Haryana. energy close to 8,000 KW. its fulfillment centres and sortation sites in India. Source: cnbcnews.in 1 2 3 www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 23 TECHNOLOGY Imec Beats Silicon PV with NTPC defers 2,000 MW so- 27.1 Percent Perovskite-Sili- lar auction over devel- con Tandem opers’ concerns about Imec, the world-leading research and innovation hub in nanoelectronics, energy and digital technology, within the partnership of EnergyVille, safeguard duty announced a record result for its 4-terminal Perovskite/silicon tandem State-run NTPC Ltd deferred a tender for 2,000 megawatts (MW) so- photovoltaic cell. With a power conversion efficiency of 27.1 percent, the lar power by a week as local companies started to feel the effect new imec tandem cell beats the most efficient standalone silicon solar of a safeguard duty on solar cell and module imports from China cell. Further careful engineering of the Perovskite material will bring and Malaysia, said two people aware of the development. efficiencies over 30% in reach. erovskite microcrystals are a promising he postponement of reverse auction material system to make high-performance by India’s largest power generation thin-film solar cells. They can be pro- utility was triggered by concerns cessed into thin, light, semitransparent among pre-qualified bidders on the modules that can achieve a high power impact of the safeguard duty on their conversion efficiency, are inexpensive financial models. The solar develop- to produce, and have a high absorption ers had submitted technical bids to efficiency for sunlight. Because they can participate in the reverse auction P be made semitransparent, perovskite solar T ahead of the imposition of the safe- cells and modules can also be used on top guard duty on 30 July. To be sure, this of silicon solar cells. When the Perovskite is the second time that the auction is carefully engineered, the absorbance has been deferred. in the Perovskite minimizes the thermal losses that occur in the silicon cell. As a “This is the first interstate transmission system result, a Perovskite-silicon tandem solar cell can potentially reach power conver- (ISTS)-connected solar auction by NTPC that has sion efficiencies above 30 percent. Imec’s now been deferred to 14 August over safeguard new record tandem cell uses a 0.13 cm² duty concerns which will impact tariff to the tune spin-coated Perovskite cell developed of around 35-40 paise per unit,” said one of the two within our Solliance cooperation stacked people cited above, requesting anonymity. on top of a 4 cm² industrial interdigitated back-contact (IBC) silicon cell in a 4-termi- nal configuration, which is known to have India achieved a record low solar power tariff of Rs.2.44 a higher annual energy yield compared per unit in May 2017. Earlier last month, tariffs again to a 2-terminal configuration. Additionally, touched Rs.2.44 per unit in an auction conducted by scaling up the tandem device by using a 4 state-run Solar Energy Corp. of India. cm 2 perovskite module on a 4 cm 2I BC silicon cell, a tandem efficiency of 25.3% was achieved, surpassing the stand-alone “Representation was made to NTPC to defer the efficiency of the silicon cell. auction given the uncertainty introduced by the safeguard duty,” said the chief executive officer of a New Delhi-based company that prequalified to bid for the auction, who requested anonymity. With modules making up nearly 60% of a solar Manoj Jaysankar, doctoral researcher at power project’s total cost, a majority of Indian devel- imec/EnergyVille, adds: “We have been opers have placed orders with Chinese manufacturers working on this tandem technology for two because of their competitive pricing. When contacted, years now, and the biggest difference with previous ver- an NTPC spokesperson declined comment. For Chi- sions is in the engineering and processing of the Perovskite na’s solar module manufacturing capacity, estimated absorber, tuning its bandgap to optimize the efficiency for to be around 70 gigawatts (GW) per year, the major tandem configuration with silicon.” markets are the US, India and China itself. “Adding Perovskite on top of industrial silicon PV may prove “We have given one-week extension because to be the most cost-effective approach to further improve the certain formalities need to be completed internally. efficiency of photovoltaics,” concludes Tom Aernouts, group It was earlier deferred as well when there was no leader for thin-film photovoltaics at imec/EnergyVille. “There- issue of safeguard duty,” said a senior NTPC execu- fore, we invite all companies in the PV value chain that are tive, seeking anonymity. looking into higher efficiencies, to partner with us and explore this promising path.” Source: imec-int Source: livemint 24 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 25 TECHNOLOGY Airbus unveils pioneering AVANCIS restarts produc- solar-powered drone tion facility in South Ko- The project was presented at Britain’s Farnborough airshow, where Airbus revealed that the Zephyr S took off on July 11 for its maiden flight from rea. Production start of Arizona in the United States. European air giant Airbus today unveiled a solar-powered drone called Zephyr that will fly at a high altitude and fulfil the same functions as a satellite. CIGS Premium Module Fac- tory scheduled for 2019. AVANCIS, German manufacturer of premium thin-film modules, celebrated in a festive ceremony the reopening of its CIGS PV fac- tory in Ochang, South Korea. The ceremony of the symbolic start of production was held with company representatives from AVANCIS KOREA, AVANCIS Germany and the President of its parent company CNBM, Prof. Peng Shou, as well as government representatives from the Korean province of Chungbuk. n 2012, AVANCIS had completed the 100 MW factories in South Korea, but did not ramp-up. After a careful examination, the conditions for the former joint venture Hyundai-Avancis had been assessed as not optimal. Last year, the South Korean gov- ernment targeted to cover 20% of the coun- “This maiden flight of the Zephyr S aims to prove and try’s total electrical energy production from demonstrate the aircraft capabilities,” Airbus said in a I renewable energy sources by 2030 predict- ing an undeniable growth of the PV market statement. The High Altitude Pseudo-Satellite (HAPS) in South Korea. All the more, Oliver Just, has a wingspan of 25 metres and weighs less than 25 CEO of AVANCIS, is now looking forward to kilogrammes. It can fly at an altitude of 21,000 metres the reopening of AVANCIS KOREA. above the weather and conventional air traffic. Another model planned, the Zephyr T, would have a wingspan of 33 metres. “The only civil aircraft that used to fly at the altitude was “We have worked hard and long to get Concorde,” as well as the military reconnaissance U2 and back to our factory in South Korea,” said SR-71 Blackbird planes, Airbus said. The plan is for the Oliver Just, CEO of AVANCIS. “Of course, drones to fly for three months in the stratosphere, with a this does not work without a forward-thinking and strong descent that would last around 30 hours. parent company like CNBM. The decisive factor was and still is in times of overcapacities and price declines in PV modules, we are nevertheless experiencing an increasing demand for our aesthetic premium modules in the solar façade sector worldwide. With the return of AVANCIS KO- REA, we have the opportunity to manufacture and market Zephyr “is a mix between a satellite and a UAV our high-quality CIGS modules for Korea and the Asian (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) with the capabilities market. This is a very important milestone for us.” of a satellite and the flexibility of a UAV,” Jana Rosenmann, head of the drones division at Airbus, told AFP. Ramp-up of the production The drone is equipped with battery technology that saves All preparatory measures are in full swing for the start of energy during the day, releasing it at night. Seven models production at AVANCIS KOREA. As part of the update are planned to be produced in 2018 and seven more in actions, the general overhaul of the equipment and HR 2019, Rosenmann said. hiring process will be completed by end of 2018, ramping The drones will have both military and civilian applica- of production is scheduled for first half of 2019. tions, including maritime surveillance, border patrol mis- Source: avancis.de sions and forest fire detection. Britain’s defence ministry is the first customer. Airbus said it intended to collaborate closely with regulatory authorities around the world in the absence of international rules on such drone flights. Source: PTI 26 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 27 TECHNOLOGY Risen Energy insures its core Chennai-based Swelect part- competitiveness with mass ners with US company to production of the industry’s produce water from solar first 370W bifacial PERC dou- energy Chennai-based Swelect Energy Systems, a solar technology solutions ble glass module provider, has partnered with Zero Mass Water, a US-based company, to install and sell hydropanels that can be used to produce water from Risen Energy Co., Ltd., one of the leading PV solutions providers in China, solar energy. recently announced that the company has made a major breakthrough in the mass production of its 370W bifacial PERC double glass module. With the new technology, the company has grown the annual capacity of the module to some 800MW. The product has become the first of its kind to be put into mass production. he company spent nearly six months completing the development of the bifa- cial PERC double glass module, a mod- ule that features the unique double glass and frame structure. In addition to a highly improved moisture barrier, a com- mon problem in double glass modules, the frame design significantly enhances Tthe module’s compressive strength by providing protection, allowing for more convenient installment and substantially reduced incidence of micro-cracking. During the R&D process for the module, one of the challenges was to cre- ate a model that could support the most updated designs and the combination of glass and frame. In addition, the biggest challenge in mass production of the module was to enhance the lamination process in order to ensure higher quality and a better appearance. The bifacial PERC double glass module is expected to increase power genera- tion by between 7 and to 30 percent, with the amount of boost dependent on the environment where the module is installed, generally adding at least one percent additional income to the return on investment for any project in which it is deployed. China General Nuclear Power Group, one of One unit, which costs Rs 2 lakh (approx), the four smaller yet influential power generation companies could produce up to five litre of water per in China, has recognized the advantages of the technol- day, said Robert Bartrop – executive vice- ogy and entered into a 20MW cooperation agreement with president, Global Business, ZMW. Risen Energy. “The company has global customers in 15 As China’s PV market matures, efficient and high-quality countries, including the US and Australia, products will continue to gain popularity in the industry, and the panels will be made exclusively while the mass production of Risen Energy’s bifacial PERC available in south India through Swelect. double glass module will fully meet the demand for high- The company will make installations in power modules in China. Looking ahead, availability of the north India as well,” he added. highly efficient module will eventually be extended to in- ternational markets. Driven by the changes in government policies, the PV industry has accelerated the pace of grid parity, forcing industry players to engage in upgrades of their equipment. PV module-related new technologies and products as well as new models for PV power stations will “Solar is beyond photovoltaic and bring solar-provided electricity to grid parity from a techni- thermal, it has now forayed into water cal perspective and insure a high income for partners. production. Swelect brings Source hy- Risen Energy has successfully broken technical barriers dropanels – which is a renewable way this time and will continue to further expand the production of getting drinking water. Two panels capacity of the bifacial PERC double glass module in due can take care of the water needs of course. With a corporate philosophy that allows each of four people,” said R Chellapan, MD, its employees to “dare to think, dare to do and everything Swelect. becomes possible”, the company fully expects to remain competitive no matter what changes appear to roil the market environment. Source: Risen Energy Co., Ltd Source: timesofindia.indiatimes 28 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com ELECTRIC VEHICLES PowerGrid to commission 1st commercial e-vehicle fast charger State-run transmission utility Power Grid Corp will e further said that the Talking about high voltage direct cur- commission by the first week of July its first com- company is in talks rent (HVDC) lines, he said Champa to mercial e-vehicle fast charger at one of the metro with Gurugram metro Kurukshetra HVDC line would be opera- rail stations in Hyderabad. rail and Chennai tional by the end of this year while the metro rail to install its company will try to commission Raigarh fast chargers at their to Pugalur HVDC by April 2019 against train stations to give its deadline of 2020. a boost to the e-ve- Hhicles initiative in the country. The CMD Power Minister R K “We have tied up with the Hyderabad was of the view that the public sector has Singh after launching Metro. We will commission our first com- to push e-vehicle initiative in the country the book, said, “Renew- mercial fast (direct current) charger at one by providing supportive infrastructure able energy technology of the metro rail stations in Hyderabad,” till the time it is a big hit among the covers in depth renew- PowerGridNSE -1.77 % Chairman and Man- private sector players. About the green able energy generation aging Director I S Jha told reporters on the energy transmission infrastructure being technologies and challenges associated occasion of the release of a book ‘Renewable developed by PowerGrid, he said the with grid integration of renewables and Energy Technology’, co-authored by him. company has already completed many their solutions. Seasoned professionals transmission links and the transmission as well as young student community infrastructure development is way ahead Jha said the company is in talks with interested in the domain of renew- of clean energy project development. Hyderabad Metro to install fast chargers able energy will greatly benefit from at its 24 stations in the city, which can He said the green energy transmission this book, which is written by quali- charge an e-vehicle in about an hour infrastructure is in place much before fied persons both from industry and and top up half charged batteries in 15 coming up of renewable energy genera- academics working in this field.” to 20 minutes. tion projects in the country. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 29 ELECTRIC VEHICLES Transformation of rural eco- systems: Potential impact of renewable energy and electric vehicle convergence If we take a step back to reflect, the challenges as- sociated with improving the condition of rural mobility and viability of solar mini-grids may find a common solution through the advent of electric vehicles (EVs) in the rural areas. Although, the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan (NEMMP) was launched in 2013 to promote hybrid and EV’s in India, Indian cities got introduced to EV’s with the launch of 2-seater mini passenger vehicle, REVA in 2001 and electric “rickshaws” in 2008. While most of the EV development efforts till now have been geared towards the four-wheeler passenger segment, a new category of EV’s is emerging, including two and three wheelers, mini-vans that can cater to the demand of the rural markets. The charging infrastruc- ture for these EV’s present a high potential option as a “With rapidly evolving technolo- productive load for the mini-grids. Furthermore, mini-grid gies and business models, there developers can themselves support the deployment of is need to adopt new and funda- such vehicles through rental models and create alternate mentally different pathways to livelihood opportunities for rural entrepreneurs. It will provide clean, cost-effective, and however be important to assess the cost-benefit for a efficient mobility services” said rural entrepreneur to operate an electric vehicle, but with Arvind Panagariya the former the pace of improvement in technology and declining costs, it is poised to rapidly become more profitable. Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog in Such models can also help in attracting investments a 2017 report titled India Leaps in the mini-grid sector from EV manufacturers looking Ahead: Transformative mobility to expand into the rural markets. In fact, enabling last solutions for all. mile mobility has the potential to open a completely new partnership ecosystem for mini grid developers. This can anagriya’s statement above touches on two include rural supply chain owners such as the FMCG intriguing themes, evolving business models players and healthcare solution providers who may use and adopting new pathways to provide clean the EV’s powered by local mini-grids to reach the most mobility. The statement assumes greater remote rural regions. Moreover, these interventions can importance in the wake of India’s clean energy seamlessly dovetail with the incentive schemes for rural movement, supported by the government’s livelihoods and EV’s. target of achieving 175 GW of renewable energy (100 GW of this from solar sources) by Overall, there is enough merit for mini-grid P 2022 and ending dependence on fossil-fuel driven passenger transport by 2030. The mul- developers to implement a pilot with EV’s and tipronged effort indicates a promising future for possibly prove a tenable case for rural hubs ac- the urban centres, however, the convergence tually being the first to be transformed through of solar energy and electric vehicles may have the potential to have an even deeper impact on the solar and electric vehicle movement. the development of rural geographies. Source: economictimes.indiatimes 30 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com EQ-June-2G-210x297mm 20180702.pdf 1 2018/7/2 11:41:38 India Expo Centre 18-20 Sep. REI 2018 Huawei Booth: 3.61 www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 31 PV MANUFACTURING Risks involved in setting up of power projects and venturing into manufacturing of equipment are not comparable either, as the power sector is highly regulated while manufacturing business is largely market driven, Solar Power Developers Association (SPDA) has said in a letter to power minis- ter R K Singh. “It is being perceived that, by linking PPA (power pur- chase agreement) with solar equipment manufacturing, government is compelling them (independent power producers, or IPPs) to get into manu- facturing — which is cause of concern for most developers,” said SPDA whose members include industry bigwigs such as ReNew Power, Avaada Power, Acme Solar, Green Infra, Azure Power, SPRNG Energy, and Hero Future Energies. “Mem- bers of SPDA have expressed Solar developers ask government to their reluctance in venturing in solar manufacturing,” it said. rethink on manufacturing-linked tenders ET reviewed a copy of the letter sent earlier this week. Solar project developers have requested the government to reconsider the proposed large scale, manufacturing-linked solar power tenders, saying it would compel them to foray into equipment manufacturing, which is a completely different business requiring different skillsets. Developers further argued that while power generation is perceived olar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) had earlier this year as low-medium risk given assured floated a 5 GW manufacturing tender linked with 10 GW power revenue, solar manufacturing is risk- purchase agreement, as part of a government plan to revive the ier given higher exposure to market, ailing solar manufacturing industry in the country. The technical bid faster obsolescence of technology for the tender was supposed to open later this month, but it has and need for continuous invest- been postponed to third week of August, as the developers’ have ment in R&D to stay competitive. All expressed their concerns in the pre-bid meeting. Government this could pose added challenge to officials, however, said the concerns of developers are unfounded IPPs with inadequate manufactur- S as they are free to form a consortium with manufacturers of solar ing experience in accessing project equipment to participate in the tender. financing. “Developers are free to tie up with manufacturers if they do not “Solar IPPs are being exposed have the expertise in manufacturing,” a senior government official to high degree of risk, which said. “SECI will make appropriate changes to the bid only if the may not be in their interests concerns of developers are found to be valid,” the official said on the and also not in the best interest condition of anonymity. of the country,” SPDA said in its letter to the minister. SPDA Around 90% of the solar equipment used in the country is suggested that the develop- imported, and the government is planning manufacturing-linked ers could be charged a certain tenders of up to 20 GW size to beef up local manufacturing of so- amount in future bids to create a lar components. Industry watchers said developers and manufac- solar equipment manufacturing turers will need to find a common ground to form any consortium. fund, which could be disbursed “Given both the businesses are exposed to different kinds of risks, as capital subsidy to help attract it is important that the risks and rewards are equitably balanced “credible and serious players” between the two parties,” said an industry executive who request- to invest in manufacturing facili- ed not to be identified. ties. Source: economictimes.indiatimes 32 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com PV MANUFACTURING The RCEP bloc comprises 10 Asean group members India lost 2 lakh jobs due (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Sin- gapore, Thailand, the Philippines, Laos and Vietnam) and their six FTA partners – India, China, Japan, South Korea, to dumping of Chinese solar Australia and New Zealand. India’s trade deficit with China increased to USD 63.12 billion in 2017-18, from USD panels: Parliament Panel 51.11 billion in 2016-17. India was one of the major exporters of solar products between 2006-2011 before China started dumping their products at the cost of Nothing should be agreed to at the cost of Indian manufacturers. Dumping of Chinese solar panels in India, once our industrial health,” the panel said. Further a major exporter of the product, is estimated to have cost 2 lakh noting that tariff barrier is an important tool jobs, a parliamentary panel said and asked the commerce department to counter dumping of Chinese goods, it said: to properly implement its probing arm DGAD’s suggestions on cheap “The government tariff protection must also imports from China. be accompanied with production subsidy or incentives which can be a match to Chinese xpressing shock at the job loss esti- assistance so that our domestic production mates it quoted, the panel strongly gets a real boost.” recommended resolution of problem of poor implementation of the findings of the Directorate General of Antidumping On pharmaceutical industry, the report said that it is high and Allied Duties on dumping of Chi- time that India’s dependency on Chinese bulk drugs has nese goods as also subsidies they get. reduced drastically. “Such a strategic product cannot be left at These observations have been made the mercy of China as it impacts the nation’s health security,” E by Parliament Standing Committee on it said. To protect textiles sector, the report suggested hike Commerce in its report on impact of in customs duty on garment imports. It also said that all zero Chinese goods on Indian industry. It is duty access that have been provided on imports of garments disheartening to note that India was one into India should be made subject to sourcing of raw materials of the major exporters of solar prod- from India.Commenting on the firecracker industry, it called ucts between 2006-2011 before China for prohibiting import of hazardous Chinese firecrackers. started dumping their products at the cost of Indian manufacturers. “Presently, the exports from India have been deci- mated and brought to a standstill,” the report said, adding that the government must take strong note of such dumping. Immediate trade remedial measures need to be deployed to protect the domestic solar industry, it said. “The anti-dumping framework also suffers with lax implementation. The unscrupulous elements are able to import the Chinese goods by circumvent- ing the goods put under anti-dumping framework through misclassification of products,” it added. On steel sector, the report stated that nothing has been done to revise or rationalize the anti-dumping duty im- posed. It recommended that the steel industry, in consulta- tion with DGAD, look into this matter on an urgent basis and make the anti-dumping duties realistic and effective to ward-off any adverse consequences of dumping of Chi- nese steel goods in the country. The report also said there are concerns about the mega trade deal — Regional Com- prehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), of which India and China are participants along with 14 other countries. It suggested following caution during the negotiations and asked the government to calibrate its approach in such kind of agreement. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 33 BUSINESS & FINANCE LONGi Solar’s Export to India Reaches an Apex in January- May 2018 BNEF: Corporate procure- ment already at record vol- umes in 2018 Corporations have purchased 7.2GW of clean energy so far in 2018, already surpassing last year’s record 5.4GW, according to Bloomberg NEF’s 2H Corporate Energy Market Outlook published Some of the key findings from the report include: 4.2GW, or 60%, of global corporate energy procurement has come from the United States, already establishing a record year. ew industries are entering the market, including telecommunications and manufacturing. Com- According to a report of ETEnergyWorld on July 1, a senior Indian official N panies are increasingly working with utilities in revealed that “India will auction 40 GW of renewable energy projects regulated markets through special programs comprising 30 GW solar and 10 GW wind per year for the next 10 years known as green tariffs. At the same time, com- till 2028.” panies are leveraging aggregation models to pool their electricity demand together, which has n recent years, India has become the third larg- opened the door for smaller companies to buy est PV market besides China and the United renewable energy. States. India’s newly installed PV capacity was about 9GW in fiscal year 2017, and is planned acebook has been the largest corporate buyer to reach up to 11GW in fiscal year 2018, an in- thus far in 2018, purchasing over 1.1GW of crease of 2GW year-on-year. At present, LONGi F clean energy. AT&T is the second largest buyer Solar is actively developing the Indian PV mar- with 820MW, and aluminum manufacturers ket, and systematically rolling out the industrial Norsk Hydro and Alcoa follow with 667MW and I deployment, making the Indian market a pivotal 524MW, respectively. link in LONGi’s global strategy. LONGi Solar has supplied monocrystalline modules to a number he current 140 RE100 signatories consume an of 100MW-level PV power stations in India. Ac- estimated 184TWh of electricity cumulatively. In cording to the customs export data, from January order to meet their renewable energy targets by T to May 2018, LONGi Solar ranks No.1 in terms 2030, BNEF estimates they will need to pur- of module shipment to India, demonstrating that chase an additional 197TWh of clean energy. If the company’s high-efficiency, high-reliability this were to be met entirely with PPAs, it could and high-yield products have been acclaimed catalyze an additional 100GW of solar and wind by the Indian PV market. It is a consensus that build globally. India is a PV market with huge potential, and as record 2018 is also year for corporate procure- a regional market, India is also becoming more ment in Europe. Companies have purchased and more important to China’s PV industry. On 1.6GW of clean energy this year, up from 1.1GW this basis, LONGi Solar has utilized advanced A PERC monocrystalline technology to quickly in 2017. Aluminium manufacturers Norsk Hydro and Alcoa Corp make up 75% of this activity, enter the Indian market and carry out effective signing deals in Norway and Sweden. These deployment, accelerate local implementation of companies are primarily motivated by the op- high-efficiency capacities steadily, and promote portunity to lock into a fixed, long-term price for the market share of efficient monocrystalline clean energy, rather than sustainability initiatives. modules in India continuously. Source: Bloomberg NEF 34 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com BUSINESS & FINANCE France’s Engie appoints Roths- child to find a buyer for Indian NTPC inks Rs 1,500 solar biz crore Term Loan French energy firm Engie SA, one of the largest foreign investors in India’s solar power with HDFC Bank space, has mandated Rothschild to find a buyer for picking up a significant stake in its Indian solar business. Engie confirms the appointment of Rothschild in the search for a potential partner for long-term growth in the solar business, said Malcolm Wrigley, country manager, India for Engie, in an emailed response. However, an external spokesperson for Rothschild said: “We do not comment on market speculations.” “The precise form of the transaction is not fixed, except that we are not seeking to sell a majority. So, it is not possible to place a value. A broad field of poten- tial partners are being considered, and the key criteria is long-term commitment to the market and growth.” ngie’s move comes at a time when financing at the lowest cost has become key to success, given the record low tariffs. India had achieved solar power tariffs of ₹2.44 per unit in May 2017. Earlier this month, it again touched ₹2.44 per unit in an auction conducted by state-run Solar Energy Corp. of India. This assumes greater significance, given that the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) on Monday recommended NTPC, India’s largest power generating company, Elevying a safeguard duty for two years on solar cells and modules im- has signed term loan agreement for Rs. 1,500 crore ported from China and Malaysia. Such a duty may impact tariffs for the with HDFC Bank Limited on 10th July, 2018 for its ongoing solar bids. Engie plans to set up two gigawatts (GW) capacity in various projects. India by 2019 and has an 810 megawatt (MW) solar portfolio through its subsidiary Solairedirect. It also has a wind power generation capacity of he loan has a door-to- 80 MW. Mint had reported on 19 March about Engie’s plans to sell a stake door tenure of 15 years in Solairedirect, which has been actively bidding for projects in India. and will be utilised to “Engie is looking at growth capital,” said the head of a solar power part finance the capital firm aware of the company’s plans, requesting anonymity. expenditure of NTPC and The Indian clean energy space has witnessed increased consolidation has been extended at in recent times. Last month, Finland’s state-controlled power utility Fortum an interest rate linked to Oyj had signed an agreement to sell a 54% stake of its solar power unit 3-months Marginal Cost in India to UK Climate Investments (40%) and Elite Alfred Berg (14%). T of funds based Lending Greenko had also agreed to buy Orange Renewable from Singapore’s AT rate (MCLR) of the bank. Capital Group at an enterprise value of $1 billion. The loan agreement was Subhash Chandra’s Essel Infraprojects Ltd has mandated Investec signed was signed in the to find a buyer for its solar business, while diversified conglomerate presence of Shri A. K. Shapoorji Pallonji Group is in talks to sell a stake in its solar power Gautam, General Manager project portfolio. (Finance), NTPC, ShriRa- With a presence in around 70 countries, Engie owns power, gas and veesh Bhatia, Regional energy services businesses. It has been active in India for the past 20 Head, Corporate Banking, years. After selling its Meenakshi Energy coal-fired thermal plant in Andhra North, HDFC Bank Ltd., Pradesh in November 2016 to India Power Corp. Ltd, Engie had sought and Shri K. Sreekant, to exit all coal-fired projects. It has been actively eyeing the Indian clean Director (Finance), NTPC energy space since then. India’s clean energy space witnessed grow- Ltd. The proceeds of the ing investor interest since the National Democratic Alliance government facility will be utilized to announced its plans to add 100 gigawatts (GW) of solar power capacity finance capital expenditure by 2022. Other overseas green energy firms and funds active in India are on the company’s ongoing SBG Cleantech, a joint venture between Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp., and new projects, and in India’s Bharti Enterprises Ltd and Taiwan-based Foxconn Technology the renovation and mod- Group; Actis Llp; Italy’s Enel; Singapore’s Sembcorp; and Saudi Arabia’s ernization of stations. Alfanar. Recently, a joint venture between Engie SA and Dubai-based private equity firm Abraaj Group to build a 1,000 MW wind power platform, fell through. Source: asianews www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 35 BUSINESS & FINANCE In his petition to the NCLT, Mistry had alleged exces- Tata Power-Welspun deal : sive interference of Tata Trusts. In his shareholder missive, Mistry had accused Ratan Tata and Noshir Soonawala of taking the veto rights of the trust-nomi- Cyrus Mistry didn’t follow nated directors as their entitlement to dictate to these directors how Tata Sons should conduct itself. protocol, says NCLT “On looking at this transaction, it is evident that Tata Sons did not hold the board meeting before Tata Power Co proceeded with the transaction on 12.6.16. Let alone exercising the powers under Cyrus P Mistry did not Article 121-A, when substantial investment to follow the requisite such acquisition was to be made by Tata Sons,” protocol on matters according to the order. It was evident that the of critical interests approval was really a “fait accompli as stated by to Tata Trusts, the the answering respondents because they could not majority shareholder express anything except approving the acquisition, of Tata Sons, the since TPCL had already signed papers over the Mumbai Bench of the acquisition of Welspun on 12.6.16 itself.” National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) said in The order also justifies Tata Trusts’ nominee direc- its order. tors Nitin Nohria and Vijay Singh speaking to Ratan Tata before giving their go-ahead on the resolution. “Can giving such direction to the Trusts’ nominee directors to proceed with resolution amounts to interference with the affairs of the company?” said the istry did not call for a board meeting order. It added that since Mistry went ahead with the of Tata Sons prior to Tata Power’s proposal without seeking consent of the Trusts or its Rs 90-billion deal with Welspun, nominee directors, his action was “prejudicial to the even as he sent the papers to the interest of the company.” directors. This was in contravention of Article 121 A of Tata Sons’ Articles of Association. Tata Power had announced on June 12, 2016 that M it would acquire Welspun in a Rs 92.49-billion deal and completed the process in September. JM Financial Sequencing (of events) acted as the exclusive transaction was less critical as long adviser to Tata Power on the deal. as the decision taken was According to the Article, any matter a right one, said Amit affecting the shareholding of Tata Tandon, founder and Trusts in the holding company needs managing director at to be discussed by the board before Institutional Investment any of the group companies decides in favour of making an investment Advisory Services (IiAS). exceeding Rs 1 billion. This is particularly applicable to those deci- sions that are not part of the annual business plan. “Such issue should have come before the board of Tata For all the controversy over the deal within the board- Sons prior to Tata Power Company taking a decision to room, the Welspun buyout has been a big booster for Tata acquire such a project, because it is Tata Sons that has Power’s renewable business. The after-tax profit of Tata to provide debt to finance acquisition,” the order said. Power’s renewable portfolio jumped to Rs 720 million in the January-March quarter of 2017-18 against Rs 140 million It pointed out that though the papers were sent to the a year ago, mainly due to refinancing of loans in acquired nominee of Tata Trusts on Tata Son’s board, Mistry did assets of Welspun Renewables. The company said the not hold any board meeting before Tata Power Company after-tax profit of its renewable portfolio was affected by signed the documents in respect to Welspun transaction lower fixed cost absorption in newly commissioned projects on June 12, 2016 itself. under stabilisation. 36 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com BUSINESS & FINANCE REC Silicon ASA – Solar Trade Dispute with China Forces Layoffs REC Silicon will execute a layoff affecting nearly 40% of its current workforce in Moses Lake, Washington. his layoff will impact approximately 100 employees across the company and is a direct result of the on-going solar trade dispute between China and the United States. Due to this on-going trade dispute, the company has not been able to access its critical market in China since 2014. This has caused successive reductions in REC T Silicon’s operations in the United States. REC Silicon has decided to reduce its production at Moses Lake to approxi- mately 25% of total production capacity. This decision is in response to the solar trade dispute between China and the United States and reduced demand for During the same period, the company’s revenues solar grade polysilicon. The actions taken have declined by over 70% to $272 Million in 2017. will help maintain the company’s liquid- REC Silicon’s fluid bed reactor (FBR) production facility ity, its ability to meet financial obligations, in Moses Lake, Washington produces the lowest unsub- and maintain REC Silicon’s capability to sidized cost solar polysilicon in the world. Because REC resume manufacturing operations when Silicon employs a highly cost competitive manufacturing access to China’s polysilicon markets technology, the company’s products are competitive is restored. REC Silicon’s management without trade protection. President Trump and U.S. regrets today’s lay-off of our highly-skilled Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer committed to colleagues. We have done all we can pursue a resolution of the AD/CVD measures imposed to avoid today’s action, but we have no by the Government of China on U.S. polysilicon. There choice while the China market remains has not been a resolution nor any re-opening of the closed. It is a tremendous injustice that the China market to REC Silicon. It is now absolutely urgent hard-working Americans, who have made that the U.S. Government takes steps to re-open the REC Silicon the polysilicon industry’s tech- China market for U.S. polysilicon production to avoid nology leader and one of the most compet- further job losses, avoid the loss of U.S. technology itive producers in the world are now losing leadership, to preserve this important part of the solar their jobs. REC Silicon can out-compete energy supply chain in the United States, to allow REC its foreign rivals, and we can do it from our Silicon to re-start production, and most importantly allow manufacturing locations here in the United us to re-hire our skilled and dedicated workers. REC States. We simply need fair access to the Silicon’s markets for semiconductor grade polysilicon China market. and silicon gas products have not been impacted by the solar trade dispute. REC Silicon’s operations in Butte, REC Silicon invested $1.7 Billion to construct a state Montana will continue to support these markets. of the art, cost leading solar grade polysilicon production REC Silicon currently has approximately $42 Million facility in Moses Lake, Washington in 2010. At its peak in in cash deposits and expects to report approximately 2011, REC Silicon generated $1 Billion in annual revenues $58 Million in revenues for the second quarter of 2018. from its operations in the United States and provided Second quarter FBR production is expected to be 2,040 approximately 900 high paying jobs. Approximately 95% of REC Silicon’s revenues are generated from sales in MT or 240 MT below the guidance on April 26, 2018. markets outside the United States. As a consequence of The results for the company’s semiconductor segment the on-going solar trade dispute with China, REC Silicon and silicon gas sales are expected to be near guidance. has executed successive layoffs to preserve its operations Current market conditions will negatively impact the in the United States. After the layoff today, the company company’s profitability and credit risk exposure. REC will continue to employ approximately 400 people at its Silicon expects to recognize additional impairments to facilities in Moses Lake, Washington and Butte, Montana. inventories, accounts receivable, and fixed assets in its As a direct result of the solar trade dispute, REC Silicon’s second quarter earnings release on July 19, 2018. workforce has declined by a total of 500 jobs since 2011. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 37 BUSINESS & FINANCE Safeguard duty could jeop- ardise solar mission Solar Power Developers Association (SPDA) has sought exemption of safeguard duty on solar equipment for ongoing project. The duty will not only put the ongoing projects in risk but also will kill thousands of job created, mostly in rural India, from the down-stream activities of solar power generation including the manufacturing sector. SPDA president Vineet Mittal told Telangana, “We have sought exemption of safeguard duty on solar equipment for ongoing projects. We are pleading the government to keep solar equipment out of the purview of the Greenko’s 1550 MW renew- proposed safeguard duty, particularly for ongoing projects. Safeguard duty is adding uncertainty in solar generation.” able energy project cleared The State government approved the proposal of Greenko Energies Pri- Indian companies had been primarily assembling vate Limited (GEPL) for the establishment of India’s largest Integrated the cells after they were imported. They will be Renewable Energy Project (IREP) at Pinnapuram village in Panyam outplaced by overseas companies if the duty is mandal of Kurnool district. imposed both in terms of efficiency and cost. It will make the assembling costly.” in a letter to Com- The project comprises 1000 MW solar and 550 MW wind energy merce Secretary, who is also Chairperson of the plants and 1200 MW standalone pumped storage facility. A G.O was Standing Board on Safeguards, on July 18, 2018, issued to that effect on behalf of Principal Secretary (Infrastructure, the SPDA said, such recommendations on safe- Energy and Investment) Ajay Jain. guard could jeopardise availability of low cost energy I s per the G.O, the government has to the consumers, making the investments of more than Rs 1 lakh crore unviable. The Directorate General of Trade Remedies also approved the allocation of 1 tmcft (DGTR), in its recent report, has recommended imposition of of water on a non-consumptive basis safeguard duty on imports of solar cells/modules into India for a from Gorakallu reservoir as per the in- period of two years. dustrial water supply guidelines subject India imports upto 70 per cent of solar modules and panels to guidelines issued by the Irrigation at present, mostly from China, Taiwan and Malaysia. The SPDA Department, recognition as a Mega pleaded to the board to protect ongoing solar energy projects Industrial Project (to facilitate single (wherever bids concluded) with complete exemptions from the A window clearances and facilitation) imposition of any safeguard duty. According to the association, and allotment and alienation of 4766.28 the viability of around 27,000 MW projects involving the invest- acres of land to GEPL on outright sale ment of more than Rs 1 lakh crore is at stake as the cost of these basis as per the latest market value projects will be additionally burdened by 20 per cent with present to be fixed by Revenue Department. recommendations on safeguard. As a result, entire solar mis- The project is to be completed within sion will lose its objective endangering thousands of jobs, many four years failing which the land has to interdependent micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) be returned to the government. The catering their goods and services to this sector and finally turning G.O. stated that the government of these projects into NPAs (bad loans), he noted. He added, “India A.P. targeted to create 18000 MW of currently has 21 GW installed capacity. The country has set an renewable energy capacity by 2021- ambitious target to achieve 100 GW of solar energy generation by 22 comprising 10000 MW solar and 2022, meaning there needs to be an addition of 79 GW capac- 8000 MW wind. With the promotion ity. The government has planned to auction 60 GW solar energy measures initiated by the State govern- projects by March 2020 to achieve the target. India’s solar energy ment, the share of renewable energy in consumption is still not on par with the world average, as its power total power consumption has reached per capita stands at just one-third of the global average” 18% during 2017-18. GEPL said that The SPDA pointed out that their submissions are not regarding the project would create 15,000 jobs appropriateness of the duty or its quantum rather about its ap- and 3,000 after construction and result plicability or treatment of this duty on the ongoing projects which in a fresh investment of ₹15,000 crore have been allocated at the tariffs discovered under the competi- in the State. The power will be evacu- tive bidding process.The industry body also said that it is likely ated through Power Grid Corporation of that dis tribution companies (discoms) will not take the burden of India network. MoU for this project was increased tariff and would certainly oppose any such pass-through signed by the GEPL with Government in the tribunals and courts. Moreover, it said that the discoms will of A.P. at the CII Partnership Sum- mit-2018 held in Vizag. not purchase solar power as soon as the tariff increases above Rs Source: thehindu 3 per kWh on account of safeguard duty. Source: telanganatoday 38 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com BUSINESS & FINANCE An industry association thinks that the real number is closer to 50,000 megawatts, in the same ballpark as all the capacity added in the past five years of feverish plant-building. Others have provided even higher estimates. This is a significant proportion of India’s total power generation capacity and, at perhaps Rs 4 trillion, a sizeable fraction of the banks’ balance sheets.India isn’t alone. In several countries, analysts are beginning to wonder if “stranded assets” in particular, thermal capacity left behind in the shift to renewables or to more efficient generation threaten to create systemic stress for the financial system. One estimate suggests that European financial institu- tions alone, including pension funds, have more than 1 trillion euros of exposure to fossil-fuel companies and projects, and even a smooth transition to a low- carbon economy might involve losses of 400 billion ‘Zombie’ power plants: A fi- euros. Worse, it isn’t always certain who’s exposed to what degree the exact circumstances in which sud- nancial time-bomb that may den crises can take hold. In the US, meanwhile, coal companies are returning to the leveraged-loan market with a vengeance; fossil-fuel assets already made up torpedo Indian banks a third of that market in 2015. In India, renewable energy now looks competitive Government seems intent on abandoning good ideas for dealing with with “zombie” thermal power plants in terms of cost, the country’s banking crisis and encouraging bad ones. Perhaps that while new plants require government subsidies and shouldn’t be surprising, given that the bureaucrats don’t yet seem to favorable administrative decisions that bureaucrats have grappled with the real nature of the problem. are reluctant to provide. In addition, provincial power utilities are chronically in the red because of their he latest terrible proposal for deal- inability to force end-users of electricity to pay up. ing with the bad loans weighing down Even if they recover, and more and more Indians get India’s state-owned banks, which access to electricity, a decent proportion of the invest- control more than two-thirds of depos- ment in the sector is going to go into renewables or its, is to create a “bad bank” an asset- clean coal. Those stressed assets that have been management company that would take or are likely to be rehabilitated seem to be in sec- stressed assets off their balance sheets. tors like steel, where recovering domestic demand in Naturally, the scheme emerged from India (and some handy antidumping tariffs targeted T a committee made up of the heads of at China) have convinced some investors to take a India’s nationalized banks. Ownership punt on a plant or two. By contrast, there are no tak- of the new company would be shared ers for plants, like one $38 billion white elephant in between banks and private investors. It Jharkhand, that were only profitable if the government would have to raise at least Rs 1 trillion subsidized their coal. Private Indian power plants are (about $14.5 billion) for an alternative in any case operating at only 55 percent of capacity; investment fund from various pools of who would want to risk setting up another one? capital in the private sector. Why so much? Because the company will have to act as a market maker for stressed The transition to a lower-carbon economy assets that nobody wants, picking up 15 is a reality, even for countries like India percent of an agreed-upon floor price. where coal will still be the bedrock of power This is the real issue. There are already quite a few pri- generation for decades to come and even vate-sector asset-management companies lurking around if renewable energy is still unreliable for now that India has finally instituted a real insolvency code. base-load power. Given that this transition The problem isn’t that they don’t have enough money, it’s is real and happening, policymakers around that not enough of the stressed assets being put on sale the world must understand that carbon-based look good enough to buy. The most intractable bad loans, assets are a financial time-bomb. In India, the ones the bad bank is meant to deal with, are concen- they look like they might torpedo the banking trated in one sector: power. In particular, Indian thermal sector; elsewhere, they will pose other major plants are struggling. A parliamentary subcommittee threats to financial stability. It’s time for estimated earlier this year that 34,000 megawatts-worth regulators to get serious about the knock-on of capacity is in trouble. Either nobody has signed up to effects of the world’s fight against climate buy power from these plants, rendering them unprofitable, change. or they don’t have access to subsidized coal. Source: bloomberg www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 39 BUSINESS & FINANCE ADB Sells €600 Million 7-Year Green Bond to Spur Climate Financing The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has raised €600 million to help fi- nance climate change mitigation and adaptation projects with the issue ZNShine Solar Wins Bid to Sup- of a 7-year green bond. ply PV Modules to India’s BHEL ZNShine Solar, a leading global photovoltaic (PV) solutions supplier on China’s National Equities Exchange and Quotations (NEEQ), has won the bid to provide 37.5MW of PV modules to Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL), India’s largest power generation equipment manufacturer. Since the inaugural US dollar de- nominated green issue in 2015, ADB he deal makes ZNShine Solar the first has steadily expanded its green bond overseas module supplier to win contract offerings, having pioneered the dual- with BHEL. It also represents a critical step tranche format for supranational for ZNShine Solar as it moves to expand green bonds in 2016 and issuing its maiden green Indian its presence in the India market. The rupee-linked bond in 2017, said ADB Treasurer Mr. Pierre reason that ZNShine was able to stand Van Peteghem. “We are very pleased to accommodate the out among many local competitors during strong demand for our green bonds from euro investors the bidding is owing to its high-quality with last night’s offering, which allowed us to both tighten T products, customized local services, as price guidance while increasing the issue size for our first well as ZNShine’s newly developed euro denominated benchmark green bond.” graphene-coating (nano technology) solar modules. Graphene-coating technology has self-cleaning property. According to roceeds of the green bond will sup- the contract ,10% of the shipment will be port low-carbon and climate resilient graphene-coating solar panel and all deliv- projects funded through ADB’s ordinary eries will be made by October. capital resources and used in its non- concessional operations. In July 2017, ADB adopted its Climate Change “Thanks to our winning of the BHEL project, Operational Framework 2017–2030. we can introduce our graphene-coating The framework strengthens ADB’s modules to the global market. It is what we Psupport to its member countries in meeting their climate are most proud of,” said Qian Li, Marketing commitments under the Paris Agreement, the Sustain- Director at ZNShine Solar. “The Indian PV able Development Goals, and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Financing—including nationally determined market there has been growing rapidly in re- contributions for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. cent years, we are targeting its potential and ADB’s financing of climate mitigation and adaptation huge demand. As of June, our total shipments reached a record $4.5 billion in 2017, a 21% increase to India have reached to approximately from the previous year. 1GW, making ZNShine one of this market’s ADB is now in position to achieve its $6 billion annual major suppliers of PV modules. We are also climate financing target by 2020. Out of the $6 billion, $4 planning to build with our local partner an in- billion will be dedicated to mitigation through scaling up tegrated production line there that includes support for renewable energy, energy efficiency, sustain- silicon wafer, cells and modules.” able transport, and building smart cities, while $2 billion will be for adaptation through more resilient infrastruc- ture, climate-smart agriculture, and better preparation for The graphene module is considered to be very important for climate-related disasters. India as the country suffers from dust storms, which may result The 7-year bond has an issue size of €600 million, a in the burden of cleaning and maintenance at power plants with coupon rate of 0.35% per annum payable annually and a high labor costs. Nowadays, PV modules require manual work maturity date of 16 July 2025. It was priced at 99.924% to clean the surface, this may cause PV cell crack or residual to yield 43 basis points over the DBR 0.5% February water stains on the module surface. ZNShine Solar’s self- 2025. The transactions were lead-managed by Bank of cleaning graphene modules will make the cleaning much easier America Merrill Lynch, Citi, and Credit Agricole CIB. The while reducing the operational costs. In addition, graphene- issue achieved strong primary market distribution with coating modules maximize the light transmittance (94.3%), nearly 90% placed in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa which increase the power output by 0.5% to 1%. (EMEA); and 10% placed in Asia. By investor type, 39% In addition to BHEL, ZNShine Solar has built long term re- of the bonds went to central banks and official institutions; lationship with a range of renowned companies in India, some 12% to banks; and 48% to fund managers, insurance, deals will also include graphene self-cleaning modules. pension funds, and others. ADB plans to raise around Source: ZNShine Solar $23 billion from the capital markets in 2018. Source: adb.org 40 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com BUSINESS & FINANCE Bright Solar Tapping Markets PXIL SUCCESSFULLY CONDUCTS Through IPO to Raise Rs. 19.44 Cr 86th MONTHLY REC TRADING Incorporated in 2010, Gujarat based Bright Solar Limited is a company engaged in assembling of DC/AC Solar Pumps and Solar Pump Systems SESSION AND ACHIEVES MARKET under the registered brand name of “PUMPMAN”, “BRIGHT SOLAR”, and “BRIGHT SOLAR WATER PUMP”. SHARE OF 51% DURING THE SES- he company is also engaged in EPC contracts of Solar Photovoltaic Water SION IN SOLAR RECs pumps which include supplying, PXIL SUCCESSFULLY CONDUCTS 86th MONTHLY REC TRADING SESSION AND ACHIEVES installing and commissioning of the pump system along with compre- MARKET SHARE OF 51% DURING THE SESSION IN SOLAR RECs. hensive maintenance contract for a specific period of 1-5 years. In solar Auction Date: June 27, 2018 pump system, it has a wide range of Particular Solar RECs Non-Solar Non –Solar Tproducts like DC Solar Pump, Solar Pump Inverter, and RECs RECs AC Solar Pump. In the year 2017-18, the company started issued after issued prior to providing consultancy services for acquiring projects and 01.04.2017 01.04.2017 tender bidding after identifying the competent client on the Total Sell Offer 16,34,392 89,676 20,000 tender to tender basis. In addition, the company has been (nos.) awarded water supply, sewerage, and infra project in its Total Buy Bid 304,331 254,391 - service portfolio. Bright Solar is in the process of acquiring a (nos.) land admeasuring area of 18,209 sq mts at Kheda, Gujarat and on which the company is planning to set up a manufac- Market Clear- 1,000 1,050 - turing unit for Solar PV modules/panels. The Company has ing Price (Rs. / already executed an agreement to sell for the acquisition Certificate) of land. It is also planning to set up a water treatment plant Market Cleared 304,331 82,154 - assembling unit at Patna (Bihar). Volume The company has on hand orders in the book amount- (nos.) ing to Rs. 97 cr. The pre IPO placement of the shares was made at the same rate as of the IPO which is Rs. 36/share, PXIL successfully conducted REC trading for the month approx. aggregation of the amount gained was Rs. 3 cr. of June 2018, the trading happened under the backdrop To sum up, Bright Solar is into assembling of DC/AC Solar of Hon’ble Supreme Court order dt. 14.05.2018 and di- Pumps and Solar Pump Systems, EPC contracts of Solar Photovoltaic Water pumps, consulting of Projects and ten- rections received from Hon’ble CERC vide letter dt. ders, Water supply and Sewerages Infra Project. The com- 28.05.2018 as under: pany is planning to commence Solar Module manufacturing and water treatment plant assembling Unit. The Promoter of • Trading in Solar RECs shall be carried out in accor- the Company is Mr. Piyushkumar Thumar. dance with CERC order dt. 30.03.2017 in petition no To part finance its plans for acquisition of land including 2/SM/2017. stamping and registration for proposed solar PV Modules/ • For non-Solar RECs issued on or after 01.04.2017 panels manufacturing project, working capital and general trading shall be carried out in accordance with CERC corpus fund needs, BSL is coming out with a maiden IPO of order dt. 30.03.2017 in petition no 2/SM/2017. 5400000 equity shares of Rs. 10 each with a fixed price of • For non-Solar RECs issued prior to 01.04.2017 trad- Rs. 36 per share to mobilize Rs. 19.44 cr. The issue opens ing shall be carried out with a condition to deposit the for subscription on 26.06.18 and will close on 29.06.18. difference between the earlier floor price of (Rs. 1,500/ Minimum application is to be made for 3000 shares and MWh) and the floor price (Rs. 1,000/MWh) as deter- in multiples thereon, thereafter. Post allotment, shares will mined vide CERC order dt. 30.03.2017 in petition no be listed on NSE SME Emerge. The issue is solely lead 2/SM/2017. managed by Swastika Investment Ltd. Alankit Assignments Ltd. is the registrar to the issue. Issue constitutes 26.47% of the post issue paid-up capital of the company. On perfor- The directives (a) and (b) were covered under Session mance front, for last four fiscals BSL has posted turnover/ ID REC2706201801 and directive (c) was covered under net profits of Rs. 28.46 cr. / Rs. 0.54 cr. (FY14), Rs. 47.84 Session ID REC2706201802. PXIL attained market share of cr. / Rs. 1.97 cr. (FY15), Rs. 15.47 cr. / Rs. 0.71 cr. (FY16) 51% in Solar segment, nearly 3.86 lacs RECs were cleared and Rs. 18.13 cr. / Rs. 1.71 cr. (FY17). For first 10 months leading to overall market share of 43%. Prior to today’s auc- ended on 31.01.18 of FY18, it has earned a net profit of Rs. tion more than 19.7 lacs non-Solar RECs and 44.2 lacs Solar 5.35 cr. on a turnover of Rs. 28.27 cr. For last three fiscals RECs were available in the market for trade. During today’s it has reported an average EPS of Rs. 0.97 and an average session, market participants submitted bids at different price RoNW of 19.08%. The issue is priced at a P/BV of 3.47 on points within the applicable price band. PXIL is thankful to the basis of its NAV of Rs. 10.36 as on 31.01.18 and at a all the market participants for overwhelmingly supporting the P/BV of 2.10 on the basis of post issue NAV of Rs. 17.14. exchange platform in this segment and requests the market Company asking price is at a P/E of around 11. participants to provide such support in all the Products. Source: businesswireindia Source: powerexindia www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 41 Energy storage Arthur D. Little Predicts Innovative Next-Generation Lithium-ion Technology Will Triumph in the Future Bat- tery Market Arthur D. Little (ADL) released a new study, “Future of batteries: Winner takes all?” Based on extensive market analysis, the report Production of indigenous examines the current enormous level of activity in the sector, which has seen existing and new players invest over $13.7 billion over the li-ion battery launched last two years. Commercial production of indigenously developed lithium-ion (li-ion) batteries that can bring down the cost of various cell-powered sys- t predicts future trends that will meet growing tems, including electric vehicles, was launched. needs in areas such as electric vehicles (EVs), re- newable power solutions and consumer electron- he technology, developed by scientists ics. It aims to help players across the ecosystem at CSIR-Central Electro Chemical Re- build effective strategies that unlock value and search Institute in Karaikudi, was taken market position. The report predicts the battery up for commercial production by Beng- market will become a $90 billion-plus sector by aluru-based Raasi Solar. The company 2025, and that new innovations, such as solid- is planning to produce rechargeable state electrolyte lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, will I batteries for storage of solar energy and replace existing battery technologies over the long-term. to power electric vehicles. This is thanks to improved performance and innovation T delivery combined with consumer pull and willingness to pay for better solutions. Despite the current investment frenzy from various play- ers, including the automotive, technology, consumer goods, utilities and chemicals sectors, either entering the market or expanding their offerings, the report predicts that the risks of failure are high. Companies that successfully build complex innovation ecosystems, working with a range of partners and backed by significant intellectual property, have the greatest chance of winning and maintaining market share. Michaël Kolk, Partner and Head of ADL’s Global Chemicals Practice, explains: “Battery technol- ogy is undergoing the biggest disruption in its 150-plus-year history, driven by the need for better solutions in areas such as electric vehicles and renewable power. However, companies need to beware of the risks, as well as the huge potential of the market, if they are to emerge victorious in the future.” Inaugurating the lithium-ion cells production and a demon- stration plant at a function at The report explains that innovation, in terms CSIR Madras Complex in Taram- of both new technologies and process transfor- ani, Governor Banwarilal Purohit mation, is vital to bring down costs. Kurt Baes, said using indigenous batteries Partner, Energy & Manufacturing, further com- could go a long way in driving the ments: “We estimate that to make EVs competi- country’s plan to achieve 100% tive with internal combustion engine vehicles, electric vehicle sale by 2030. EV battery-pack prices need to fall to $100/kWh. “Since the cost of the battery Currently, the lowest cost estimates are in the accounts for about a third of the $190–$250/kWh range. Equally, for energy grids, total purchase price of an electric battery prices need to drop by 50 percent in order vehicle today, driving down bat- to switch back-up from gas-fired units to battery tery costs could be a key element storage. This potential is providing enormous op- of long-term success for India’s portunities.“ automotive sector,” he said. 42 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com Energy storage BioSolar Identifies Market Opportunity for Reducing Costs of Lithium-ion Bat- teries BioSolar, Inc. (OTCQB:BSRC)(“BioSolar” or the “Company”), a developer of breakthrough energy storage technology and materials, today commented on the market demand for cost effective battery compo- nents, as prices for commonly used materials and minerals continue to skyrocket. ecent reports state that the price of lithium has soared by more than 300% in the past two years, cobalt by 129% over the past year, and nickel reaching a two-year high. The price for these components is driven by the tremendous demand for electric vehicles, one reflected R by automaker BMW’s recent an- nouncement to award a contract worth over $1.16 billion to Chinese lithium-ion battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd (CATL). To combat the rising costs of battery components, BioSolar has continued its development of a silicon anode additive material technology suitable for high-growth industries such as electric vehicles and consumer elec- tronics. Recently, the Company partnered with Ferroglobe, a global leader in the supply of silicon metal, to jointly Raasi chairman C Narasimhan said lithium, the develop and market silicon anode materials incorporating basic compound used for making li-ion batteries, BioSolar’s silicon additive technology, potentially demon- is currently imported. But these batteries are more strating commercial viability of the product. efficient and durable than lead acid batteries. “A lead acid battery used in an e-rickshaw costs about Rs 7,000. These batteries must be changed once in six months. But a lithium ion which costs around Rs 30,000 can last for nearly eight years,” he said. “We believe that a low cost, high capacity With the indigenous battery, Narasimhan said his lithium-ion battery component would company has plans to build a bus that can run up to have an immediate impact on several 500km at a speed of 150kmph on a single charge and industries experiencing high-growth develop a flash charging system where vehicles can but facing constraints in mineral availability, which in get charged on the go. Besides the 1GW plant, Nara- turn impacts manufacturing costs and ultimately the simhan said a 300mw battery assembling plant, a price for the end user,” said Dr. David Lee, Chief Executive cell manufacturing plant and a lithium recycling Officer of BioSolar. “To be successful, BioSolar’s Si anode plant will be setup in Krishnagiri. material technology must prove it is commercially viable, representing a solution that would bring down costs for CSIR-CECRI director Vijayamohan K Pillai said his companies building electric vehicles and personal electron- laboratory is working with National Metallurgical Labora- ics technologies that depend on widespread adoption from tory and Institute of Minerals and Materials Technology consumers.” on developing lithium recycling technology. The industry standard for Si anode components remains Si nano-particles, despite the difficulty of manufacturing “All batteries currently being used are imported from raw Si nano-particle materials which remains a costly countries like China. Once we indigenise, it will bring challenge. By contrast, Si micro-particles are easier to down the cost. For manufacturers, they can produce manufacture at a significantly lower cost. Unfortunately, more vehicles at a lesser cost and export it,” said anodes made from Si micro-particles are more prone to B C Datta, vice-president, corporate affairs, Hyundai damage during battery charging and discharging due to Motors India. Datta added that Hyundai has plans to volume expansion, thus not yet commercially viable. Bio- introduce fuel cell cars in India next year. Solar’s innovative additive technology is designed to solve this problem by increasing capacity while simultaneously reducing cost. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 43 INTERVIEW INTERVIEW WITH Mr.James Hou Sales Head for South & East Asia GoodWe Power Supply Technology Co.Ltd EQ: How much Invert- ers have you supplied to India till now, what is the target/expectation in 2018- 2019 JH : Inverters supplied to In - dia by now: 120MW Target in 2018-2019: 500MW EQ: What according to you is the current which can be successfully deployed on large scale opportunities, biggest challenges, in Indian commercial rooftops and ground-mounted solar PV Solar Market. systemsand can help further reduce installation costs while its power boost function provides higher yield and JH : Thanks to the technology development in these a faster ROI. years, we are happy to see that solar energy is well However, when many PV manufacturers have accepted and applied globally with cost reduction of been flooding in India, a vicious price war between whole system, especially falling price of PV modules. manufacturers has cut margins to the bone which will As one of the major PV markets, Indian Market disrupt the healthy development of PV industry as well installed close to 9.5 GW Solar Projects in last year. as provide opportunities for low-cost inferior products. GoodWe can offer a comprehensive portfolio of GoodWe’s philosophy is to always create win-win products and solutions for residential, commercial and partnerships by identifying and integrating the most utility scale PV systems. And MT Series inverters (50- advanced components and techniques available while 70kW) are most suitable for Indian C&I solar market, offering an unparalleled after-sales service. 44 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com INTERVIEW EQ: What are your plans for India, your EQ: Currently 10GW + Solar Projects are in the offing, view on the GOI target of 100GW Solar Whats your plan to Capture this opportunity. Power by 2022 JH : Technological innovation and a strict quality control are JH: With significant growth of our supplying to Indian GoodWe’s main core competences. With an in-house R&D team of market, we are very aware of the importance of 200 employees and two global research centres, GoodWe can offer providing most satisfying service to win long-term a comprehensive portfolio of products and solutions for residential, business. We have set up our Indian office in Mumbai commercial and utility-scale PV systems, ensuring that performance and till today have built up a local team of 10 people and quality go hand-in-hand across the entire range. Only the most mainly for service, and there are more to join. reliable and prominent components are selected for the inverters after rigorous testing. Samples of incoming raw materials are EQ: Kindly comment of Energy Storage as a inspected and defective components are rejected along with their game changer, its technology, cost trends… entire batch. In addition, all GoodWe inverters pass an aging test at etc… 50ºC in a high humidity, sealed room for 6 hours to simulate extreme JH : Besides offering a comprehensive portfolio of temperature conditions and ensure their maximum performance string inverters and solutions for residential, commercial without degradation. All GoodWe inverter series are IP65 waterproof and utility scale PV systems, GoodWe is committed to and dustproof for indoor or outdoor mounting. research and manufacturing of energy storage solutions and smart energy management system. Energy EQ: Present some noteworthy projects, case studies storage technologies are a game changer for energy of solar plants built using your solar Inverters market, offering the prospects of greatly increased 6 MW Mangalur India Mangalore Refinery and flexibility, reliability and efficiency in the delivery of Petrochemicals Limited power to consumers.With the development of relevant technologies and the price declining of batteries, energy JH : With a total capacity of 6.063 MWp, Mangalore Refinery and storage will complement the accelerated deployment of Petrochemicals Limited has successfully commissioned largest solar renewable energy in its various forms. power project in a refinery site. The solar power project is spread The residential energy storage solutions from across 34 roof tops within the refinery premises comprising both GoodWe give customers control of their power, by RCC and sloping sheet steel roofs. “These solar plants generate giving them choice and flexibility over how they use more than 24,000 units per day amounting to more than 8.8 million the electricity grid. By storing excess power during units per annum.” off-peak hours, when electricity costs are at their lowest, clean energy can be enjoyed during peak times while benefitting from a reduction in monthly costs. In addition, the battery storage system provides critical back-up power during grid outages or blackouts. GoodWe has recently launched its brand-new ET Series three-phase high voltage energy storage inverter for both households and commercial applications. The series is the most compact and lightweight inverter in the market with maximum efficiency of 98.3%, equipped with Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS), backup overloading, AC charging functions and open-protocol EMS communication system. The GoodWe ES & EM series bi-directional energy storage inverters can be used for both on-grid and off-grid PV systems. During the day, the PV array generates electricity which can cover loads, be fed into the grid or charge the battery. Once the sun goes down, customers can start using their stored solar power. Batteries can be charged using cheap overnight electricity or with solar during the day. The GoodWe SBP Series is an AC coupled, cost-efficient, battery back-up solution that can work alongside any grid- tied string inverter for both single and three-phase energy storage systems. GoodWe SBP provides an uninterruptible power supply to inductive loads such as air conditioners or refrigerators. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 45 INTERVIEW EQ: What is the size of your ompany in terms of manufacturing capacities, growth chart, future xpansion plans, revenues, shipments, ASP’s, financial figures, JH : Our current production capacity of solar inverters is 10GW per year. GoodWe’s revenue in 2017 is $200 million with an average monthly sales volume of 30,000 pieces, which increased 100% compared with 2016. According to the report about global inverter shipments from IHS Markit, the leading source of information, insight and analytics in critical areas, GoodWe ranked 8th in the 2017 World PV inverter market and secures top 10 World PV Inverter Market in 2018 Q1. 46 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com INTERVIEW EQ: What are the top 5 markets for your company in EQ: Kindly highlight your product, technology the past, present and future? & company USP’s, distinctive advantages JH : PAST: Netherlands Australia Turkey China KOREA etc… PRESENT: India, China, Europe,Latin America, JH : Secure a Faster ROI with GoodWe MT Series - Apart from offering a more competitive price, the new FUTURE: India, China, Europe, Latin America, North America, MT series inverters are able to provide a continuous Southeast Asia maximum AC output power overload of 15% thanks to its boost function, which offers customers a faster EQ: Explain various guarantees, warrantees, return on investment. GoodWe MT Series features a insurance, certifications, test results, performance more compact design with less than 20% volume and report of your inverters lighter weight compared to other conventional models, JH : VDE: VDE proved that GoodWe inverters have more than 10 which greatly simplifies installation and commissioning, years lifespan. TUV:GoodWe distinguished with TÜV Rheinland saving time and costs. It also supports 95mm2 aluminum All Quality Matters Award for three consecutive years CHUBB: cables instead of 75mm2 copper cables, which saves GoodWe bought Commercial Errors Or Omissions Liability investment for AC cables. With capacities of 50 kW and Insurance from CHUBB for its solar inverters 60 kW, the new transformerless, three-phase GoodWe MT series grid-tied inverters are equipped with four MPP Trackers ensuring that the outputs of connected modules are able to generate the highest yields even in different PV installation conditions, 5% output up compared with the string inverters with one MPP tracker on the market. Moreover, the start voltage is 200V, much lower than 600V of other products, which makes our inverter start up earlier to generate more power with longer working time. Even on the rainy days, the inverter can still work normally because of the low start voltage. GoodWe ET Series Delivers Independence and Non-Stop Energy - GoodWe has recently launched its brand-new ET Series three-phase high voltage energy storage inverter for both households and commercial applications. The series is the most compact and lightweight inverter in the market with maximum efficiency of 98.3%, equipped with Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS), backup overloading, AC charging functions and open-protocol EMS communication system.Covering a power range of 5 kW, 8 kW and 10 kW, the ET Series allows 30% DC oversizing to fully maximize yield during extreme hot and cold weather and features a wide battery voltage range of 180 – 550 V to ensure customers flexibility choices and compatibility with different type of lithium battery. Furthermore, it features UPS to inductive loads such as air conditioners or refrigerators with an automatic switchover time of less than 10 milliseconds, providing grid-tied savings when the grid is up and off-grid independence and security when it is down or compromised. Not only that, GoodWe ET allows backup overloading up to 100%, which allows quick restart for inductive load such as A/C while it will not cause harm to any electrical appliances. The inverter is also in-built with open-protocol EMS communication system as it ensures interconnections between grid companies and batteries to dispatch electricity freely. EQ: What will be the cost, technology trends in solar inverters Smarter and moreuser- friendly JH : Higher powerdensity Easy installation Good service, monitoring and accessional software benefits lower O&M cost Finally, push the connection to grid at an equal price to be achieved sooner together with PV modules and accessory equipment. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 47 INTERVIEW INTERVIEW WITH Mr.Jianfei Li Vice President/CTO Sineng Electric Co., Ltd. EQ: World Market Scenerio including China and its impact on pricing and availability of mod ules in 2018-2019. Expected Pricing- & Availability in 2018 ? JL : China has a new policy for its PV project and the installation will be about 30GW this year, which is much less than 50GW+ of last year. The policy will have an impact on the pricing of PV modules globally. The PV module price will be decreasing 5~6 rupees per watt in 2018 as estimated. 48 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com INTERVIEW EQ: How much Inverters have you supplied to India till now, what is the target/expectation in 2018-2019 EQ: Currently 10GW + Solar Projects JL: We have supplied more than 130MW inverter to India till are in the offing, Whats your plan to now. Our target is 1GW inverter installation for India market in Capture this opportunity. 2018-2019. JL : The currently 10GW+ solar projects are good opportunity for our company. We will focus on the utility PV project for its largest market share in the 10GW+ projects. We have 2.5MW and 3.125MW outdoor inverter for the utility project. Both inverters are high capacity and competitive in India market. We have string inverters of 3kW to 60kW for the rooftop projects which also have a good share in the 10GW+ projects. EQ: What according to you is the EQ: Please share your Road Maps – Pricing, current opportunities, biggest Technology etc… challenges, in Indian Solar Market. JL : As one leading PV inverter company, Sineng always makes JL: The Indian Solar market steady increases technology innovation to decreasing the inverter cost. It has recent years and has a good policy which is all kinds of inverter solutions, including central inverter, central a good opportunity for us. Sineng has a full distributed inverter and string inverter, with capacity ranging from range of central inverter, central distributed 3kW to 3.125MW. inverter and string inverter. All these inverters Sineng develops bigger and bigger central inverter for the are high quality and reliability. It We has have India PV market. It launched 1.25MW in 2016 and 2.5MW in factory and production line in Banglore, which 2017. This year 3.125MW outdoor inverter is launched for India will ensure delivery time. We also have a strong market. local service team for maintenance and support Besides large capacity central inverter, Sineng has central the costumer project. distributed solution, which is the unique product for PV market. It One of the challenge for us is that India is the central inverter with distributed multi-MPPTs combiner box, market is changing rapidly , so many inverter which has the features of string inverter with multi-MPPTs, I-V companies are coming into India, and so many curve scanning and string level monitoring. However the BOS is new techniques and products changing so lower than central and string inverters and suitable for application quickly, this also requires us to quick reponse to in large scale solar power plant. the market. EQ: Upcoming & Trending Opportunities with EQ: Aggressive Bidding despite of Bifacial , PERC, Wind-Solar Hybrid, Floating Solar many challenges enlisted above, etc… what is your view/opinion JL: Bifacial PV module will be used more and more in the PV JL: Many international inverter companies plant in the future for its 30% power generation higher than enter to India PV market and the competition normal module. However the price of Bifacial PV module is becomes more heavier than before. The much higher than normal module at the moment, which will inverter high quality, lower price and good after limit its wide application, especially in India market where the service are the most important factors for all price of bidding electricity is very low. As the price of Bifacial customers. Sineng will provide the best product module decreasing, it will has a huge market after next year. for India market. Wind-Solar hybrid has many applications globally. However, the application is limited by the climate. The solution is used a lot in location where the wind resource is good. There are several floating solar projects in some countries and the technology is gradually mature. The project saves land cost. However the floating project need high construction cost and has higher technical requirement for anti-corrosion, water proof and stable floating requirement. The prospect is uncertain. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 49 INTERVIEW EQ: The recent aggressive bidding by EQ: Briefly describe the various technologies and various developers keeping Solar Tariffs its suitable applications such as Central Inverter, in the price range of Rs.2.44-3.3 per kWh String, Micro Inverter, 1500V, Outdoor, Container in various Solar Tenders…Whats your solutions etc.. view on the viability, Costs & timeline JL : The various technologies should be applied pressures, Resource Challenges (Materials, according to local conditions. Central inverter are mainly used for utility PV plant because system cost ManPower, Execution, Grid Connection, Land is lower and O&M is easier, also the power yield is Possession) etc… almost same as ground is flat. Both container solution JL: The bidding price is becoming lower and lower due and outdoor solution are used a lot for utility PV plant. to the heavy competition. The EPC has confidence on However the outdoor inverter is better at the locations the of harsh environment with heavy corrosion of dessert, ROI based on their research. As the price of PV module where higher IP protection is required. String inverters and inverter is lower and the efficiency and block size are normally used for commercial or industrial rooftop are improved day by day, the EPC can make profits even projects where the project capacity is small and complex at lower bidding price. direction requiring Multi-MPPTs. Micro inverters are normally used for small residential EQ: Present some noteworthy projects, case rooftop. As the price of Micro inverters is a little high, studies of solar plants built using your solar there are not widely used at the moment. Inverters JL : Azure power applied 1MW Sineng central distri EQ: Technology road map in terms of 1500V -buted inverter for their PV project. The PV project , micro inverters, upcoming game changes uses different capacity PV modules and the mismatch technologies problem is heavy. As the central distributed has Sineng develops 1500V of central, central distributed multi-MPPTs function which effectively reduces the JL: and string inverter. Currently, the central inverter is 1.25MW mismatch problem. The power yield data from this PV indoor, 2.5MW container solution and 3.125MW outdoor plant shows the central distributed solution has 52% solution. It will develop 4MW and 5MW outdoor inverter more power generation than central inverter. in the next two years. The 1500V string inverter is under development and will be available next year. EQ: Please describe in brief about your As Bifacial modules are the trend for the PV module, Sineng company, directors, promoters, investors, its is developing inverters to match the Bifacial modules with vision & mission its unique central distributed inverter which has multi-MPPT JL: Sineng was established in 2009 and has a total function. shipment of 20GW till now. We ranked global no. 5 in terms of inverter shipment in 2017 according to GTM. EQ: Kindly comment of Energy Storage as a Our vision is to bring inverter technology development game changer, its technology, cost trends… and serve clients with the best products. etc… JL: Energy storage is a must for the future new energy EQ: What is the size of your company in because the energy can be stored and steady output which terms of manufacturing capacities, growth is ideal solution of the new energy. As the solar power is chart, future expansion plans, revenues, not stable and can’t be stored, some PV projects set the shipments, ASP’s, financial figures, standard that the PV plant needs to install energy storage JL: Sineng has 10GW in-house manufacturing capacity system. The energy storage system plays an important role in China and 2GW in India. We can enlarge our capacity as more and more new energy installation. up to 18GW as per demand. Sineng will set foot to more There are DC energy storage solution and AC energy overseas countries like Middle East, Europe, South storage solution for PV plant. The DC energy adopts DC/ America, South east Asia, Afica etc. DC technology which is convenient, economic and high efficiency for PV plant. The AC storage solution adopts DC/ EQ: What are your plans for India, your view AC technology with grid support function, which is used on the GOI target of 100GW Solar Power by mainly for large scale storage system. 2022 As the price of battery is very high and investors can’t get JL: 100GW is a quite ambitious plan which can attract reasonable ROI, the energy storage system is not used a lot global manufacturers and investors to settle in India. for the new energy projects. When the price is decreasing Solar industry is developing very well and working to profitable level, the energy storage will be used in large towards the 100GW target. amount. 50 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com INTERVIEW EQ: What are your plans for Manufacturing EQ: Do you also bring financing set up in India, the opportunities and solutions for your customers ? challenges in manufacturing in India JL: Not yet. Sineng provides inverters, energy JL: We have established our manufacturing plant in storage system to customers as of now. Bangalore with 2GW manufacturing capacity. The opportunity is we can get more local supplied EQ: Please share information of some components which can make our inverter cost new orders in hand. competitive and meet fast delivery demand. The JL: 25MW Tata power, 50MW NLC, 50MW challenge is the local supply chain is not mature Sterling Wilson presently so we also have to take much raw material from China as well. EQ: What are the trends in new manufacturing technology EQ: What are the top 5 markets for your equipment, materials, processes, company in the past, present and future innovations etc… JL: China, India, Middle-east, Vietnam, Korea JL: The central inverter adopts traditional production line which is semi-artificial for EQ: Explain various guarantees, warrantees, assemble line, because its bigger size and insurance, certifications, test results, bigger component like reactor, IGBT, ACB. Also performance report of your inverters the wire connecting is complex for machine. JL: Our inverters have all the third party certificates The materials control and process control are needed for the India market, including IEC62109, electronic flow. IEC61683, IEC61727, IEC62116, IEC60068, IEC50530, The string inverter will be full automatic CEA etc… All the tests are carried out under the harsh production including assemble line and testing conditions, which make sure the application in harsh line, for its compact size and small components environment like high temperature and humidity in India. is easy to realize automatic manufacturing. EQ: Kindly highlight your product, EQ: Whats your commitment towards technology & company USP’s, distinctive the solar sector in India advantages etc… JL: Sineng has established local manufacturing JL: Sineng Electric provides customers with of power plant, local sales team, local service team and & electronic products and solutions including grid- 130MW installation in India till now. India will connected photovoltaic (PV) inverter, operation and be Sineng’s main market and Sineng will keep maintenance of PV power plant, development of PV focusing on India. power plant, power quality control, energy storage bidirectional converter and new energy automobiles EQ: What will be the cost, technology charging. Sineng Electric is a leading equipment trends in solar inverters manufacturer and solution provider in power and JL: Central inverter capacity will become bigger related industries, with its business scope covering which can save BOS cost. Multiple MPPT will power generation, power supply and power distribution be popular as it can increase power generation system.As one of the leading inverter manufacturers in for some special application site. Cost will the world, Sineng has acquired fortune 500 company’s gradually come down. solar division and integrated their advanced experience in inverter technology that has contributed to Sineng EQ: Are the developers betting on becoming top 5 solar inverter manufacturer globally. In Modules/EPC Prices or Interest Rates ? order to providing proactive services and competitive JL: Developers are betting on modules price solutions, Sineng localized solar inverter manufacturing mainly as they already seen the dramatic drop and service in Bangalore, which effectively maximize in modules. Interest rate are more or less fixed service availability and product performance. Featuring unless some big change from investors. one of the widest portfolios of solar inverters ranging from single- and three-phase string inverters up to MW central inverters and central distributed inverters (Multi- MPPT) makes Sineng inverter suitable for the small residential photovoltaic systems right up to multi-MW solar power plants. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 51 INTERVIEW INTERVIEW WITH EQ: World Market Scenerio including China and its Mr.David Zhong impact on pricing and availability of modules Director, Shenzhen Sofarsolar Co. Ltd. in 2018-2019. Expected Pricing & Availability in 2018? DZ: In 2018, we will decrease 5-10% of the price for each module. EQ: Currently 10GW + Solar Projects are in the offing, What’s your plan to Capture this opportunity. DZ: we will focus on rooftop projects, which are most in Gujarat, MH and RJ. We will attend more conferences to meet customers closely and do more advertisements. Exhibition also is important to us. EQ: What according to you is the current opportunities, biggest challenges, in Indian Solar Market. DZ: Indian PV market is increasing in a rapid speed. There are many opportunities for manufacturers, distributors and EPCs. The challenge is this is also a competitive market. Price is very import. Quality, service and brand are also necessary. EQ: How much Inverters have 20-36kW on-grid inverters will be ready you supplied to India till now, in Sep. Besides, 80-100kW on-grid EQ: Expectations from what is the target/expectation in inverter samples will also be ready in Q3. Indian Government Budget 2018-2019 New technology: IV curve scanning will next year? be available for all three phase inverters DZ: We have already delivered 60MW DZ: SOFARSOLAR: This is what in Q3. inverters in India since the end of 2016. we also want to know. Our target in 2018 is 100MW. EQ: Upcoming & Trending EQ: Aggressive Bidding EQ: Please share your Road Opportunities with Bifacial, despite of many challenges Maps – Pricing, Technology PERC, Wind-Solar Hybrid, enlisted above, what is etc… Floating Solar etc… your view/opinion DZ: We will put more resources on DZ: Our hybrid inverters 3-6kW will be DZ: more requirements are being Hybrid inverters in next 2-3 years. available soon. And 2nd generation of added into documents from tenders. String inverters are being used for more commercial projects. 52 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com INTERVIEW EQ: Kindly enlighten our readers on the EQ: Briefly describe the various technologies and performance of your Inverters in India in its suitable applications such as Central Inverter, various geographic locations, customer String, Micro Inverter, 1500V, Outdoor, Container feedback. solutions etc.. DZ: Perfect! As good as SMA! DZ: We are focusing on string inverters and hybrid inverters. We will develop 1500V inverters in 2019. EQ: Please describe in brief about your company, directors, promoters, investors, its EQ: How much is your R&D budget as % of your vision & mission sales / profits DZ: SOFARSOLAR:SofarSolar is Top 5 string inverter DZ: >8%. manufacture in China, who has specializing in R&D, manufacturing, marketing and service of solar PV EQ: What are the top 5 markets for your company inverters from 1kw to 70kw as well as other solutions in the past, present and future for solar storage etc for many years. It is one of the DZ: China, Australia, Italy, UK, India. subsidiaries of SOFAR Group which is the largest supplier in GPS industry with good reputation and EQ: Technology road map in terms of 1500V, support from Chinese local government.The company micro inverters, upcoming game changes set foot in renewable energy since its inception in 2007. technologies Directors: Tom Xu, the President of Sofar Group. David DZ: 1500V string inverters in 2019, three phase hybrid Zhong, vice-presidet of Shenzhen Sofarsolar Co., Ltd inverters in 2019 Promoters: Shenzhen Sofarsolar Co., Ltd Vision& mission: to build a renewable energy EQ: Explain various guarantees, warrantees, EQ: What is the size of your company in insurance, certifications, test results, performance terms of manufacturing capacities, growth report of your inverters chart, future expansion plans, revenues, DZ: Warranty: the first company who offers 7 years warranty in India Certifications: equipped with required shipments, ASP’s, financial figures, IEC certificates, EN61000, VDE0126, IP65 etc. DZ: Production Capacity: 4GW/year EQ: Kindly highlight your product, technology & company USP’s, distinctive advantages etc… DZ: top 5 Chinese string inverter manufacture. Advantages: More reliability Use higher voltage level capacitor. Support four uni-polar output relays. (reliable, effective heat dissipation, longer life) External inductor to lower temperature. Wider MPPT voltage range Higher efficiency Use “T” type three level topology. (Efficiency increases ≥0.2%) EQ: What are your plans for India, your view Safer All types of inverters have leakage current detec- on the GOI target of 100GW Solar Power by tion components. Use professional solar AC connectors as output. 2022 Anti-reverse power controller for 1-70kW DZ: We hope to get 10-15% of inverter market by GFCI detecting. 2022. More Convenience All information is available on a 4-inch screen. Four buttons give easy operation. EQ: What are your plans for Manufacturing Better monitoring RS485/WiFi/GPRS/Ethernet set up in India, the opportunities and Local data is recorded in SD card for 25 years. (for 3 challenges in manufacturing in India phase inverters) DZ: We will consider about it in 2019 IV curve shadow scanning for panel fault detect- ing. EQ: What will be the cost, technology trends Better appearance Die-casting housings. in solar inverters? Go through anti-corrosion and anti-rust protec- DZ: support 1500V input voltage, PLC tion processes. communication. Warranty 7 years www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 53 PV MANUFACTURING TEAMTECHNIK, Specialist And German Production GLUING Systems Manufacturer, Has Been Building Powerful Stringers That Solder Solar Cells And Produce High-Value Solar Cell Strings In INSTEAD OF Three-Shift Operation Since 2004. More Than 700 Stringers, With An Annual Production Capacity Of Over 25 Gwp, Have Already Been SOLDERING. Sold, And Have Been Installed At The Production Facilities Of New teamtechnik Leading Solar Module Manufactur- ers Around The World. Its Highly stringer connects Dependable Output And Top-Quality Soldering Output Have Made Teamtechnik The Technology high-effciency Leader In This Solar Technology HJT cells Segment. he STRINGER TT1600 ECA uses new adhesive technology to manufactureT solar cell strings from bifacial HJT (heterojunction) cells. Until now, this adhesive technology could only be used in manual processes, and for small unit volumes. teamtechnik's STRINGER TT1600 ECA now makes secure, automated series production a reality: The production system connects HJT cells with LCRs (light- capturing ribbons) at a cycle rate of 2.25 seconds. The company has already sold several machines for this new technology. Teamtechnik's Stringer Tt1600 Eca Reliably Connects Hjt Cells Using Adhesive Technology In Series Production 54 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com PV MANUFACTURING n 2017, teamtechnik present- ed the world's most compact, yet fastest, stringer produc- tion system at the SNEC trade fair in Shanghai: the STRINGER TT4200 GIGA. This world-beating stringer I achieves an extraordinarily high performance of 145 MWp, making teamtechnik the leader in the market for top-quality stringer systems with high output. The company has been finding ways to process new cell types, such as high- output HJT cells or BC (back contact) cells, for years. teamtechnik's engineers spent this time researching new technologies for join- ing these cell types using processes with short cycle times and reliable process technology. The challenges involved were considerable: it is impossible to join powerful HJT cells using existing sol- ECA processes with long-term reliability dering technology, because the performance of the sensitive HJT cells degrades when they are exposed to ex- cessively high temperatures. This also increases the risk of micro-cracks. The solution is an innova- tive gluing process which replaces the soldering of cells, and has been auto- mated by teamtechnik, in the STRINGER TT1600 ECA. In the stringer name, ECA is the abbreviation for "electrically conductive adhesive". In this process, a conductive glue is applied to both sides of the cells, using the screen-printing process. LCRs (for example) are then positioned accurately over the solar cells, so that the cells can be connected to form a string. This is then cured at temperatures of around 160 ºC, entirely on the string transport. In this system, the patented hold-down device technology, used in all team- STRINGER TT1600 ECA applying adhesive using screen-printing technik stringers, contributes towards ensuring that the ribbon position is extremely accurate. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 55 PV MANUFACTURING he ECA technology, now proven in many applications, reduces the MAJOR ORDER FROM SOUTHERN Tthermal and mechanical stress on the sensitive HJT cells. This ITALY FOR SERIES PRODUCTION results in high string quality and extremely powerful solar modules WITH HIGH UNIT VOLUMES designed for a long service life. The STRINGER TT1600 ECA is based on the same successful pro- he STRINGER TT1600 ECA is the first stringer with adhesive cess platform as all other teamtechnik Ttechnology developed to meet the needs of high-speed manu- stringers. These systems prove them- facture. Trials carried out in collaboration with leading European selves world-wide in 24/7 production research institutes, such as the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy every day. The ECA stringer is also designed for reliable series production Systems (ISE), the Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT) and with high unit volumes. Carinthian Tech Research AG (CTR) also confirmed excellent results An Italian solar module manufac- with regard to long module service life and efficiency. Tests were also turer recently gave teamtechnik an carried out aimed at reducing silver consumption across the entire order for several gluing stringers. process. This is helping to make the process more cost-effective. This solar module manufacturer has chosen highly efficient HJT cells for its solar parks. Searching for a suitable luing offers definite benefits over the soldering process: in con- partner for joining its HJT cells, the Gtrast to the classic soldering process, which requires process tem- solar module manufacturer selected peratures of up to 230 ºC, temperatures in the gluing process do not teamtechnik, the stringer specialist, need to exceed 150 – 180 ºC. This not only reduces the risk of micro- because tests for these cells had pro- cracks, but also enables sensitive cell types, and extremely thin cells duced the best results, in the run-up to selection. Together with its client, such as 100 μm cells, to be processed with structured ribbons. An teamtechnik tested the cells on one additional benefit: The front face of the cells requires no busbars, so ECA stringer in its own test labora- less silver is used, cutting costs. In addition, lead-free ribbons can be tory. To achieve the required high used with the gluing method. This is a benefit that will gain in signifi- performance, optimal combinations of materials were evaluated and defined cance in future. An example is the European Union's RoHS2 Direc- during the testing. tive. The RoHS2 Directive includes a provision to restrict the use of The international teamtechnik certain dangerous materials, such as lead, in electrical and electronic Group, with its committed service devices. This regulation currently does not apply to solar modules. engineers, ensures that production systems can be installed and com- However, if this regulation is extended to include solar modules in the missioned quickly and smoothly, with future, new lead-free processes will be necessary. Adhesive technol- short lead times. The company also ogy, used in combination with the STRINGER TT1600 ECA, already offers complete systems to its custom- makes lead-free production of solar modules possible today . ers: stringers plus robot positioning on glass panel. It also ensures that he adhesive technology used on the ECA stringer also makes suc- processes are set up to perfectly match to the high performance of the Ttion extraction systems, which are necessary to remove soldering stringers. fumes when soldering processes are in use, a thing of the past. Teamtechnik Group's Headquarters, Freiberg, Germany 56 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com PV MANUFACTURING Mr. Chandrasekhara Director ,Four-C-Tron Practice of Standardization in BOMs for solar module KEY FOR QUALITY AND COST REDUCTION www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 57 PV MANUFACTURING Cells : In the beginning - it was mono round, mono square, pseudo square then multi square with dimension from 100/101mm, 125/126mm, and 156 mm/156.75 mm and recently one company is manufacturing black silicon cells of 160.5 mm. As automation was introduced to interconnect cells from 2BB,3 BB for certain period 4 BB, 5 BB and 6 BB cells emerged which changed the width module of interconnecting ribbon and hence the Tabber /stringer manufacturers to is made incorporate these changes making earlier machines obsolete. By the time of cells Indian companies settle with 5 BB or 6 BB stringers, multi-wire connection with PV 12 or 16 wires will head up! As cell dimension is standard now, why not bus ,EVA,Backsheet,Inte bar width in the front and number of pads and its width in the back(still some rconnects, glass, junc- cells at back has continuous bus bars) be standardized by cell manufacturers so that ribbon width gets more or less standard to avoid buildup of different tion box and Al frame. width inventory due to different vendors of cells. Let us see what stan- dardization means for these materials EVA : Though the resin and EVA film has not changed much for last 25 years but from my experience there has been change in texture and thickness. Initially the thickness was 0.5 in solar industry for mm but now majority of module manufacturer use 0.45 mm thick EVA. Again more than 30 years some are trying to use Front and back EVA with different thickness. This will end up in extra inventory. However, the width of EVA keeps varying by 5 to in providing turnkey 10mm than optimum width, which has implication on overall module price. module production lines and materials. Backsheet : The backbone of module is white backsheet to provide insulation, prevent moisture ingression. In early years Tedlar/Polyester/Tedlar (TPT) was the 3 layer backsheet material with 350 microns thick which has withstood the weather for more than 25 years proving TPT is best backsheet. As Tedlar was expensive and monopoly of Du Pont, Kynar was introduced by Arkema to re- Wafers : place Tedlar and M/s Krempel, leading backsheet manufacturer with 25 years’ Semiconductor industry history in PV industry introduced KPK as alternative to TPT. But many new which uses mono wafers entrants are bringing in new materials with one or 2 layer instead of proven has long established SEMI 3-layer laminate with different process viz., extrusionand coating to bring down standards which define every the price to be competitive. But these new materials though certified under lab parameter of wafer right from condition have to prove against natural harsh environment compared to proven 4" to 12" and this is Universal TPT and KPK. Here again standard is missing about what exactly the com- standard for semiconduc- position should be and individual layer thickness and width. Not much data is tor fabs. The entire fab generated to qualify the performance of new back sheets in the field. equipment - from front end to backend are designed to handle SEMI standard Ribbon : wafers. Though the geometry It is the critical material which connects each cell to make string and finally of devices has shrunk the connect the junction box. The ribbon width keeps varying with increasing bus standards for wafer remain bars on the cells. This again increases the inventory depending on 4 BB or 5 unique. For solar cells, mono BB cells. Again is it 60/40 Tin/Lead or 62/36/2 -Tin/Lead/Silver? Whynotone or multiwafers is base mate- width commonto 4BB or 5BB and composition with 2% silver be set as stan- rial. Mono wafers were used dard? This will minimize inventory and adaptability to any supplier of cells and in the beginning for solar PV ribbon. modules with 4'' dia and later 125 mm square, 156mm square and now 156.75 Junction box : mm has been accepted as As regard to connecting cable and diodes in Junction box there is a kind of ac- standard for both mono and ceptable standard as far as electrical parameters are concerned. multi-wafer. 58 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com PV MANUFACTURING Thus the optimum cell matrix saving of module materials at GW Glass : boundary will be 1903 mm in level production besides at inspec- Transmittivity of AR coated glass is length and 950.5 mm in width with tion, packing, logistics, transporta- >93.5% and thickness of 3.2 mm cell size of 156.75 mm. Taking this tion stages etc., leading to healthy and 4.0 mm is commonly used. But as reference, dimension of glass competition amongst module in case of 72 cell module, though 4 has to be fixed. A fixed dimension manufacturers and trading at uni- mm glass is recommended still many of glass will make big difference ie., formpricing of module/watt.Further, module manufacturers use 3.2 mm each glass manufacturer produces Standardization in module size will thick glass to cut cost. Each module same size, stock and sell to any benefit EPC contractors and roof top manufacturer specifies width and module manufacturers at very installers too in installation as their length differently which again makes competitive price as it is a standard design can be streamlined, saving supplier of glass to customize the or- size inventory and delivery will be in real estate area, mounting struc- der and this will increase cost. When fast. Setting standard size of glass ture, hardware and replacement the cell size is almost standardized to alsohelps in optimizing the dimen- of modules of any supplier during 156.75 mm, why not glass dimension sion of EVA, backsheet and Al frame maintenance and life expectancy be standardized for 60 cells, 72 cells in the chain. During the study, it of module. This aspect has been or 96 cells module? Standard size in is observed that there was varia- overlooked. glass helps in further saving of EVA, tion in length and width amongst Existing Test houses and certify- backsheet and Al frame as width and manufacturers. In case of Indian ing agencies like UL and TUV labs length of these 3 material is decided modules variation in length was with long lead time for certification is based on glass width and length. upto 22mm vs 5 mm by Chinese depriving “in time” certification and This is the hidden secret of cumula- modules and in width it was 12 mm recertification by nearly 170Indian tive saving upto 2 to 3%. vs 1 mm respectively. This reflects module manufacturers. If solar mis- lack of standardization during de- sion is government vision with 100 sign and engineering, which result GW target, then why not Govern- Aluminium frame : in increased cost of production and ment fund at least 5 centers of exist- Again what is the width and height wastage of material.Surprisingly all ing 14 centers of ERTLs/ETDCs of frame? Each manufacturer has the 10 Chinese companies studied which has ready infrastructure and his own design/drawing though Alu- showed narrow band in dimension manpower. These labs were earlier minium grade is same. If the height ie., 5 mm in length and 1 mm in funded under GTZ, Germany pro- of frame is standardized with respect width. It is also observed that Indian gram and all the labs are equipped to 3.2 mm and 4 mm glass it will be module channel height was either with test chambers and qualified test more cost effective in packing and 35 /42/ 45 mm whereas Chinese engineers. Presently many of these transportation. company standard is 40 mm except test houses facility is underutilized one company which used 35 mm and revamping them to test solar height channel for both 60 and 72 modules to BIS standards will be a Solar modules : cell module. Many Indian module wise and cost effective move and manufacturers use 3.2 mm glass bring down the lead time and the When you study various manufac- for 72 cell module (same thickness certification charges. Further the turers' datasheet on modules, though for 60 cell modules) instead of 4 staff of these labs can be deployed the cells are of 156.75 mm with vary- mm which is theoretically and from for periodic validation of module ing efficiency, the module dimension design perspective not advisable. manufacturers and also power plant is different with each manufacturer. So who is responsible for mod- validation which in turn will generate Four-C-Tron took up a study of about ule quality and standardization? income for these labs.The author 30 leading Indian module manufactur- - Design / standards engineers? has also written to The Director ers and 10 Chinese module manufac- Module manufacturers? Testing General of STQC and BIS to inter- turers (who supply modules in India) and certification agency?Neither act jointly with MNRE and National with reference to module sizes of 60 MNRE nor BISlooked into the above Solar Energy Centreon the above cell and 72 cells. This study revealed aspectin setting the standards for proposal. large variation in dimension of Indian module dimension. From our study modules compared to uniform and of prevailing dimensional variations (Note: The author with 13 years’ minimum variation in Chinese mod- in module size and to bring in some experience inDefenceorganiza- ules which is surprising. standardization in manufacturing, it tions dealing with Standardization, As 60 cell module production is is suggested BIS to fix the overall Inspection and QC of equipment slowly replaced by 72 cell module dimension of modules for 72 mm as: and components and 35 years in which is getting popular with EPC and length 1958 +/-2 mm, width 991+/- 1 PV industry in wafer manufacturing roof top projects, 72 cell module was mm and in case of 60 cell module and setting up Spire turnkey module considered for deciding its optimum 1642+/-2 mm and width 991+/-1 mm lines and supplying modulemateri- dimension.First, spacing between cells respectively. Now BIS insisting on als is ready of offer free service should be minimum 2 mm during tab- BIS certification for Indian modules in upgrading the STQC labs and bing and 2 mm spacing between the and standardizing the sizes for 60 marketing their certification service string during layup. and 72 cell modules will result in to PV industry) www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 59 featured he physical and chemical interaction of a crystalline silicon solar cell and Quality Require- the various other materials used in its processing like (i) acids & alkali, (ii) PhosphorousT dopant in the form of POCl3, (iii) special gases viz., Silane & Ammonia, (iv) ments & Accep- metallization pastes like silver and aluminumis a complex process driven by the sun’s irradiance, the associated heat and the weather conditions that may range from extreme cold to extreme heat and also the presence of moderate to tance Procedure high humidity conditions. Even in the absence of manufacturing faults, these facts cause changes of the physical and chemical properties due to ageing, and, as a consequence, also of For Imported the electrical properties of a solar cell, leading to what is normally called as degradation by design. At an assembly level there is another set of materialsthat come into play further in the form of (a) tempered glass for better light Crystalline Silicon capturing apart from being a superstrate;(b) copper ribbon for carrying current;(c) encap- sulant material EVA for providing good optical coupling between glass and the solar cells, Solar Pv Modules excellent adhesion & good resistance to UV; (d) backsheet material acting as a substrate and providing electrical insulation and excel- lent resistance to UV and protection from harsh weather conditions. The quality control of Manufacturing faults add to those sources solar PV modules has of degradation. For example, improper en- become a key factor capsulation while laminating the solar module with many GW of ground may result in moisture ingress after a couple mount installations of years, thus leading to internal corrosion and happening every year other effects that degrade the solar module. in India. Most of the Poor handling practices during assembly of the modules for use in India solar PV module result in micro cracks that are are imported, crystal- not visible to the naked eye but can be seen in line silicon make and electro luminescence (EL) images. It is seen therefore the PV module that such micro cracks can have serious impact AUTHOR : acceptance procedure on the long-term performance of the solar becomes important. A module. Another major problemseen is a buyer solar PV module is an of solar PV modules opting for any backsheet assembly of solar cells material that have not been proven in the field along with other materi- though they would have passed the IEC tests, a als like glass, EVA and Tedlar/Polyester/Tedlar (TPT) or a Kynar/Poly- backsheet to name a few. ester/Kynar (KPK) is considered as a proven The production of solar and durable product as compared to the newer PV modules is a high- varieties that are being marketed as cheaper alternatives. The new back sheet materials throughput production being manufactured with coating/Polyester/coat- process. Today’s solar cell ing are unproven from a long term stability point technologies are able Mr. G.V. Subramanyam of view. The fact that the emerging markets to give higher efficien- for solar PV are in countries such as India, the Senior General Manager cies and the continuous degradation of the glass surface due to sand Plant Operations, Photovoltaics improvement journey is is an important issue for the reliability. As a Hinduja Renewables ongoing. consequence, there is a need for proper inspec- tion that combines available information from plant or factory audits, surprise production line inspection, 3rd party quality assessmentsand sample audits at the time of delivery and finally upon receipt of the solar PV modules. 60 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com featured Module Quality at the time of Purchase: Ensuring Module Quality by Manufacturer’s Facility Audits: uring the module supply agreement When the contract has been agreed between the buyer and the stage the following needs to be ad- supplier,plant or factory audits are mandatory. This can be carried dressed: What is the exact module type out by an accredited 3rd party agency that does an excellent job. sold and is the right data sheet being The module manufacturer will have many factories from where the Dprovided? Do certificates obtained against the so- goods of the same type will get manufactured and it is important lar PV module being supplied valid? For solar PV to rate which facility is better for sourcing the modules. The many plants in India especially, have the modules been points that get covered during factory audits are: facility standard, tested or queued for BIS certification. Regarding QMS in place, Organization chart, Incoming material inspection the quality tests and certificates obtained in this and acceptance documents, new vendor qualification procedures, regard, say, if a company claims its modules to be records of in-process checks, design & drawing documents, receiv- PID free then we have to ask whether is it backed ing and storing of raw materials records and procedures, packing by no claims so far on account of PID or not. and storing of finished goods, traceability records,dispatch process A detailed bill of materials (BOM) is also documentsformal meetings and interviews with key plant people needed and this BOM should match with the mod- at supervisory and executive level. It is important to quantify these ule submitted for testing with TUV and BIS. An findings by way of a radar or spider web diagram/ chart wherepa- important document to be asked for is a Construc- rameters (around 8-10)are graded. The parameters can be chosen tional Data Form (CDF);this gives listing of the ap- as incoming inspection, storage, cell tabbing and stringing, lay-up of proved critical components, and the suppliers that strings, 1st EL inspection, lamination process as per design param- manufacture them. It’s possible for a solar module eters, JBox fixing, framing, module curing, 2nd EL inspection, IV manufacturer to switch suppliers; reasons for testing, packing and shipping. The radar chart done during factory the switch can come from utilizing a lower priced audits before the start of actual production of the product being or- component but supposed to be of same qualityor dered gives a chance to focus on relatively weak areas during actual simply a supplier going out of business. production. For the classification of Whatever be the reason for change, it doesn’t defects as major and minor mean the buyer should accept unapproved part here are few examples. Im- substitutions. Ideally, the manufacturer will proper storage of glasses submit many different items from many different and EVA with respect to suppliers for their initial part/product testing with storage conditions comes the testing agency ( say TUV or BIS ) so that they under major defects, while have a large pool of approved suppliers to choose the use of a raw material by from..A product is only as good as the sum of its not following First in First parts is a well know adage. The role of BIS in help- out (FIFO) provided all the ing certifying the modules coming to India as per material stock is within ex- BOM (CDF) is commendable. piry date is a minor defect. These can easily come out during the factory audit. Module Quality at the time of Manufacturing: uring actual production, few shows up with rework of cells in many major and minor and production lot of the things that the buyer modules then it is a major defect as for the full order or for the day or for will have to do is to monitor the reworked modules indicate that shift ? A statistical sampling plan can the process in detail and doubtful cells have crept in or good be followed and if the buyer’s produc- Dmake notes, starting with auto tabber cells are subject to severe mechani- tion is spread over a week, then the & stringer, workmanship quality in cal stresses. Similarly if an operator inspector or the buyer’s representa- layup, the 1st EL check and interpre- is not able to answer convincingly tive visits the factory during any time tation given by operators, lamination on how he carries out the IV testing of a shift unannounced and draws process including the temperature and interprets, then too it is a major samples based on a sampling plan. profile, process capability and main- defect. In another case an operator For example if a production lot for tenance records of the laminator, may be seen using a frame with a inspection is takenas 1000 pc by the technicians using the right material as minor scratch or label fixing at the end inspector then this lot quantity falls per the BOM, curing time of modules of the production may not be exactly between 501 – 1200 as per accept- after framing, the 2nd EL check , IV in a place where it is intended to be; able quality limit (AQL) table. For this testing, cell breakage, module rework then these can be classified as minor lot quantity the sample size going by percentage and finally percent electri- defects. How many modules to draw general inspection level II comes to 80 cal failures. During production inspec- for inspection depend on many things pieces.On the 80 pieces we can apply tion, if the sample modules drawn – production lot, defect category into AQL0.4, 0.65, 1.0 or 2.5. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 61 featured By adopting AQL 0.4, it means that no major defect is allowed in this lot but 1 minor defect can be present. With 0.65 only 1 major defect and 2 minor defects are allowed. If it exceeds, then the lot gets rejected. With AQL of 1.0 only 2 major defects and 3 minor defects are allowed. With 2.5 the major defects can be 5 and minor defects cannot exceed 7. However with any AQL plan, no criti- cal defect can be allowed. Critical defects are like a module manufac- turer has used a backsheet rated for 1000 V whereas the requirement was for 1500 V or many modules are having a cut thereby compromising the functionality. The examples of major and minor have already been described above. Note: 1) AQL 2.5 means the buyer considers as acceptable quality limit (AQL) a defect rate of 2.5% of the lot quan- tity under consideration (here the lot quantity is 1000 pieces).AQL 0.4 means a defect rate of 0.4% of the lot quantity under consider- ation is accepted. 2) It is recommended to define different acceptable quality limit (AQL) for each defect type: critical, major, minor.Critical defect should always be kept at zero Third Party Testing: Testing of few modules (less than 6 numbers) using before commissioning the developer has to check jointly 3rd party agency like TUV also needs to be consid- in the presence of module supplier representative for ered. The external testing agency (TUV) will take the cell cracks coming on account of improper packaging modules from the production lot and subject them for and transportation. The Module Supply Agreement con- specific testing likewet insulation, mechanical loading, tract should cover the problems arising in modules on weak light or low light conditions andPID as per IEC account of packing & transportation which the supplier standards. Finally after installation of modules and just has to compensate. 62 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com PV MANUFACTURING Characteristic DIPL.-ING. measurement KLAUS M. SCHULTE Managing Director of the measuring instru- ments manufacturer PV-Engineering GmbH in of PV systems Iserlohn, Germany. hotovoltaic systems generally do not con- tain serviceable elements, which is one of the main advances of the PV technology in relation to other technologies. Nevertheless Pseveral technical problems can guide to less energy yield and subsequently to a loss of money. That is why PV systems needs frequent monitoring and checks, beginning with the check of the feed-in over alarms generated by inverters up to online monitor- ing systems. Additionally a visual inspection should be done frequently, which may show surface pollu- tion, damages or for example birds droppings (which may reduce the power of the module significantly!). Several standards like the EN 62446 specifies necessary measurements for the technical docu- mentation of a newly build or already working PV installation. At least if a loss of energy yield is detected, the reason for this misbehaviour has to be detected urgently. Different instruments allow the inspection of different attributes of the PV generator: thermal imaging cameras can show regions with higher (hot spot) or lower temperatures, where these tempera- ture differences may be the result of technical prob- lems in the module under test. Electro-luminescence cameras are able to show defects in the structure of the PV cells very clearly. But none of these both methods allow the deter- mination of the Peak Power (which is the maximum power under Standard Test Conditions) of the mod- ules under test, which is relevant for claims since this value is warranted at the sales date. That is why it is so important to check the real installed Peak Power directly after installation and each time you are in doubt. Ideal is the check at the installed generator, since every dismounting/ mounting of modules cost a lot of time, money and includes the risk of damages to the modules. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 63 PV MANUFACTURING fter the measurement of the IV-curve of the PV generator (module, string or even array) the curve tracers series PVPM returns the follow- ing values: short circuit current Isc, open circuit Avoltage Voc, the complete characteristic of the generator (that means its behaviour under load between short cir- cuit and open circuit), the current maximum power (which is not the peak power!), the measured temperatures and the irradiance. Based on these values the PVPM device uses our patented methods to calculate the values estimated at STC (1000W/m2, 25°C, AM1.5): currents, voltages, the peak power, the internal series resistance Rs, the internal parallel resistance Rp, and some more. The comparison from measured and estimated values (data sheet) gives a quick picture of the performance as well as possible problems of the PV generator. • low peak power, low fill factor • low currents • low voltages • high series resistance (connector/cabling problems), mostly combined with low peak power • irregular shape of the IV-curve (mismatch, partial shading, pollution) The PVPM carries out the measurements very fast Properly prepare measurement (between 20ms and 1s), so that a fluently process in the As for a complete IV-characteristic measurement the PV measurement of big PV fields is given. PVPM devices for generator also will be shorted, it must be disconnected from up to 1000Vdc and up to 100Adc (for special purposes) any load or inverter before measuring (otherwise the mea- are available. surement would short-circuit as well the input of the inverter, While using this technology a check of the PV genera- which will result in danger and serious damage). On the tor is done quick and with high accuracy on site. other hand the short-circuiting of a PV generator, even over a This measurement approach can be found in-depth longer period of time, is possible without damage for the PV in the book „Photovoltaik Engineering - Handbuch für generator. Planung, Entwicklung und Anwendung“, Andreas Wagner, One of the elements that decide about the accuracy of Springer Verlag, ISBN 978-3-540-30732-7. the results is the irradiance reference sensor. The standard describes a reference cell, that behaves spectral identical to the module under test. That is why we prefer calibrated refer- ence cells, that are build like a small module, with solar glass cover, EVA embedding and Tedlar back surface. The cell has to be the same material as the module (for example a mono- crystalline sensor for a mono-crystalline module). This set-up will behave like the tested module in nearly every detail and allows good precision of the results. As explained above, the irradiance sensor is essential for the accuracy of the STC calculations. Unfortunately these kind of sensors are not available for every technology. Addi- tionally such sensors for thin-film modules, would show (more or less) the same dynamic behavior as their "big brothers" – no favourable conditions for a calibrated reference. Hint: even a regular PV module can be used as a sensor in special cases. The irradiance sensor is attached before the characteristics measurement directly beside or next to the PV modules. Theoretically it is conceivable to align the sensor at a different location (in the yard) with the same angles (azi- muth and elevation) to the sun as the modules. But since the sensor receives not only direct irradiation but as well diffuse light, the result of the irradiation measurement will depend on the ambiance: a green lawn or a white gravel pit will reflect different portions of light... This potential source of error should be considered! 64 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com PV MANUFACTURING There is no "Standard Watt-Peak" What can the measurement fulfil? Speaking of accuracy: the accuracy of perfor- It has already been mentioned, that the ap- mance measurements are quite limited in photovol- propriate generator power, converted to STC con- taics. The “Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt ditions (peak power) can be compared directly PTB” in Braunschweig, the highest instance for this with the manufacturer's data. It is clear to read, kind of technology, is able to calibrate for example whether the PV generator reaches the required crystalline single cells with an accuracy of slightly performance. A second result of the IV-curve better than 1%. Every authority depending on these measurement (with e.g. a device PVPM1000CX) results will have unavoidable less accuracy. In the is the internal series resistance. This value indi- laboratory of TÜV Rheinland in Cologne an accu- cates whether the resistances of wiring, plugs, racy of 3% for crystalline modules is reached with a etc. existing in the PV generator are within the still high technical overhead. On-site measurements range of tolerable values. If this error appears in under natural sunlight can reach an accuracy of about the results, it can be eliminated and the correct- 5%. A high-accuracy "Standard Watt Peak", compa- ness subsequently confirmed by a quick new rable to the “Standard Meter” in Paris for the length, measurement of the characteristic curve - addi- does unfortunately not exist for PV technology. tional power losses are avoided. A measurement of the series internal resistance is possible only The process of measuring in detail with instruments of the type PVPM (patented method). The IV-characteristic measurements requires sunny, stable weather with a sufficient irradiance in the plane Shadings are frequent of the modules to be measured. The standard respon- sible for these measurements (IEC 60904) requests an At PV generators, a frequent problem irradiation of at least 800W/m2. According to our own in the performance loss due to (partially) studies irradiances of 500-600W/m2 are already suit- shading of modules/strings. Circumstances able to carry out a performance check. To force the PV and shading effects are sometimes hardly to generator into the various areas of its IV-characteristic, notice with the naked eye and are therefore a controlled transistor is used for small power sources easily overlooked. But even small shaded ar- (cell or single module). The use of capacitors has pre- eas can lead to significant performance and vailed at higher power (strings or arrays): the capacitor loss of earnings. Shadow effects are very is discharged before the measurement, then the PV easy to identify in a measured IV-character- generator will charge the capacitor. The maximum cur- istic. The "bump" in the IV-curve immediately rent of the generator, the short-circuit current, will flow suggests this problem. Of course a technical now briefly into the empty capacitor, the voltage is near problem of the module can produce the same 0V. While charging the capacitor, the voltage rises and shape of the IV-curve. the current decreases until, with full charged capaci- If only one module is affected, and if this tor, no more current will flow - the open-circuit voltage module is not found immediately, a little trick is reached. During this process, many current-voltage can help: cover one module completely with points are measured by the meter. This can be repre- something like a cardboard box and make an sented immediately as diagram on the graphical display. IV-curve measurement. If the right module Since this process of charging is very smooth you can was covered the error will disappear from the measure as well module types with high capacity. IV-curve (because the covered module does The speed of measurement plays an important role not produce power and thus will not affect the for the accuracy. On the one hand the IV-curve should IV-curve). be recorded in shortest possible time, so that fluctua- The measurement of I V characteristic is tions in ambient conditions have only a limited impact a meaningful instrument to assess the state on the result, on the other side, the characteristic may of the PV generator and allows, compared be distorted if the measurement runs too quickly: many to the thermal imaging, the determination of (mostly thin-film) modules have a more or less high power losses, as well as a quantitative evalu- capacity, and exactly this capacity "bends" the IV-curve ation of errors in the generator. at too short measuring times. Inspection time should be The summary for the practitioner: A fast significantly more than 10 ms for a single module for this error detection is the most important require- reason to obtain a precise and reliable characteristic. ment for a quick troubleshooting. And an Unfortunately, this requires a large load capacitor, which early detection of generator defects facilitate inevitably affects the dimensions of the instrument. warranty processing. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 65 FEATURED INDIA RATINGS PROPOSED - Amendments in Electricity Rules Bring in High Regulatory Uncertainty in Group Captive Business Proposed amendments in Electricity Rules 2005 re- lating to group captive plants have the potential to reduce the flexibility and competitive advantages enjoyed by the renewable energy players operating under the group captive model, says India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra). The recommended compulsory equity contribution clause will add to the cash flow pressure on captive users and the recovery of equity investments would be protracted depending on the savings on the power bill. By : Ind-Ra 66 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com FEATURED roposed amend- Genesis of Group Captive ments in Electric- Plants: Group captive plants have ity Rules 2005 been majorly set up by heavy in- relating to group dustries to ensure a reliable power captive plants supply for own consumption. How- have the potential ever, some RE-GCCs have been Pto reduce the flexibility and majorly setting up wind capaci- competitive advantages en- ties to sell to multiple third-party joyed by the renewable energy consumers. players operating under the Ind-Ra believes that the pro- group captive model, says posed regulations are in the con- India Ratings and Research text of new projects in the group (Ind-Ra). The recommended captive model, which are essential- compulsory equity contribu- ly selling in the short/medium-term tion clause will add to the mode. India’s power supply capac- cash flow pressure on cap- ity is more than sufficient to meet tive users and the recovery of the demand, apparent from the equity investments would be plant load factors of thermal power protracted depending on the plants remaining at about 60%. savings on the power bill. Also, The average realisations of RE- the opportunity cost of capital GCCs were in the range of INR4.5- investments would be weighed by 6/kWh over FY16-FY18, depend- captive users before deployment. ing on the location and capacity In the current regime, the savings for sale. The customers save about on power bill benefit the users from INR0.5-0.75/kWh when purchas- the time of power drawal without major ing from RE-GCCs. capital investments. The draft amendment Conventional group captive notified on 22 May 2018, if implemented, plants (Con-GCCs, involving ther- will lead to renewable group captive compa- mal, diesel generation plants) are nies (RE-GCCs) struggling to sign strong power generally owned by a customer or purchase agreements (PPAs; with meaningful termi- by any group company of the cus- nation and event of default clauses), find ways to manage tomer. Majority of Con-GCCs are consumers’ 26% ownership in them and customer retention at likely to remain unaffected, if the the cost of profitability. draft amendment is implemented. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 67 FEATURED tringent Rules on Equity Ownership equity investments with limited voting rights. The : Consumers need to own a minimum 26% requirement for bringing in the equity in proportion of shareholding in RE-GCCs in proportion of project cost/capital employed will be onerous as Sto the electricity consumed. The proposed amend- it involves a high upfront commitment. Also, agree- ment mandates captive consumers to hold at ments with consumers may become complex as least 26% of the equity base of 30% of the capital the rights of RE-GCCs (including dividend, board employed in the form of equity share capital with representation, etc) as effective shareholders need voting rights (excluding preference/equity share to be addressed. According to Ind-Ra’s calculations, capital with differential voting rights). Existing rules equity investments by customers could be recov- for recognising a group captive company involves ered in two years if a saving of INR1/kWh is offered ownership accounted by way of number of shares by GCCs under the assumptions that plant load and this has generally been achieved by RE-GCCs factor is 20% and capital cost is INR55 million/MW by issuing another class of shares/through shallow and customers invest 26% of the equity base. RECOVERY OF INITIAL INVESTMENTS AT INR1/KWH SAVINGS Period by which customer will First Year Second Year Third Year recover equity investment Capital cost range (INR million) 38 39-55 56-72 It remains to be seen how certain existing cap- been already deployed, will rework their equity and tive generating plant (CGP) which are already shareholding structure by the time the draft amend- commissioned, with alternate structures on capi- ment is implemented. talisation, where project capital and equity have imit on Number of Changes in Owner- stipulates that if the share holding pattern among the ship by Consumers is Highly Restric- shareholding held by customers changes more than tive: Ind-Ra has observed that customers of twice a year, then group captive status will stand re- RE-GCCsL change year on year, as the industry is voked from the date of third change till the end of the quite competitive and the customers have options year. Further, without the group captive status, ben- among RE-GCCs and they can also switch back to efits such as banking, waiver of cross-subsidy and the distribution utility. RE-GCCs need to manage the additional surcharge may fall off. If RE-GCCs need churn in customers and change in demand among to find consumers who can be retained for long, then the customers. However, the draft amendment pricing may need to be highly competitive. ncrease in Allowed Variation in Consump- be up to 30% for renewable plants, with approval of tion is Positive: Customers need to consume state government and electricity regulatory commis- not less than 51% of the electricity generated, sion. If the proportion of consumption is not complied Idetermined on an annual basis, in proportion to their with, captive status may be lost and the benefit for share in the ownership of a power plant within a all customers will be affected. For RE-GCCs, banked variation not exceeding 10%, according to existing power that is redeemed for consumption for use by rules. The draft amendment proposes a variation of captive users will be included to determine the ag- 15%, which gives RE-GCC the ability to manage the gregate electricity consumption on an annual basis. sale of energy among various consumers. Accord- The banked energy can be redeemed within the ing to the amendment, the leeway for variation may same financial year. onversion from IPP to CGP: CThe verted to CGPs (before notification of the amend- proposed amendments specifies that any ments) will be considered as a CGP under the new generating station setup as an independent rules unless specifically permitted by the appropri- Cpower project (IPP) shall not be considered for ate commission. benefits of a CGP except under certain limited cir- Tamil Nadu and Karnataka have a significant cumstances such as not availing any IPP benefits, amount of RE-GCCs contributed by industries setting lack of long-term PPAs etc. The draft amendments up their own wind turbines and even private players provide that the appropriate regulatory commission favouring these two states for setting up capacity un- shall certify a power plant as a CGP, based on its der the RE-GCC model. Tamil Nadu, which has 70% annual statement of generation and consumption of the wind capacity (5,500MW) operating in GCC and other such details. However, it is not clear if model, might have to restructure their share-holding power plants initially set up as IPPs, but later con- pattern before, if the rules are implemented. 68 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com Product Report REFUsol 100K The next generation of solar string inverters COMPATIBILITY: This inverter can be connected to any grid voltage between 200 and 460 VAC, offering maximum power between 48 and 100 kVA. • High design flexibility INSTALLATION FLEXIBILITY: The inverter can be mounted in • Best serviceability a vertical or horizontal position as demanded on site. The roomy • Maximum power density ConnectionBox is available with either fused direct string con- nections for decentralized designs, or with single DC input for • Minimized BOS costs centralized designs. SERVICEABILITY: The PowerUnit can be quickly detached from ith maximum power densi- the ConnectionBox for trouble-shooting and measurements with- ty, REFU’s next generation out disconnecting the power cables on the DC or AC side. Winverter family combines CONNECTIVITY: The inverter can be commissioned via the compatibility, installation flexibility, REFU App (available for iOS and Android) which connects seam- serviceability and connectivity in a lessly via Bluetooth® to the inverter. The integrated, fail-safe revolutionary design. Ethernet daisy chain (alternatively RS485) allows cost efficient high-speed monitoring without special accessories. Each inverter can be individually connected to the REFUlog portal for remote monitoring, configuration and updates. Vertical, horizontal and pole mounting is made pos- sible by the new design of the REFU's next generation invert- er platform which is super flex- ible. The ConnectionBox and PowerUnit can be delivered individually in separate ship- ments. The ConnectionBox can be installed during cable work, and the PowerUnit just before commissioning thereby optimizing your investment Install and wire Hang in PowerUnit and project cash flow. 1 the ConnectionBox. 2 before commissioning. 3 Start feed-in. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 69 Energy storage Future of batteries – Winner takes all? Understanding the fast-evolving battery market attery technologies are an essential catalyst to unlock The future size of markets and their importance to overall growth and new advances in sectors such as electric trends such as mobility, renewable energy and digitali- vehicles (EVs), electronic devices and battery energy zation are shown by the multi-billion-dollar investments storage (BES) for renewable energy. The increasing that have been announced across the ecosystem. These Breliance on battery storage is driving enormous demand – over- come from existing battery manufacturers, vehicle mak- all, battery applications are expected to become a $90 billion- ers, chemicals companies, energy suppliers and others, plus market by 2025, up from $60 billion in 2015. This is driving with many businesses moving outside their traditional unprecedented growth in battery supply, from a wide range of comfort zones. existing – and new – players. However, current technologies are not enough to unleash the full potential of applications such as power, renewable energy, consumer electronics, and mobil- ity. Innovation is required to drive a step-change in performance and price for subsidy-free, mass-market adoption of products such as EVs. For example, Arthur D. Little estimates based on industry expert assessments, that to make EVs price-compet- itive with vehicles with internal combustion engines (ICEs) on an unsubsidized basis, EV battery packs need to fall to a cost of $100/kWh. Currently, lowest-cost estimates are in the range of $190–$250/kWh. The same is true for energy grids – for regions with high renewable penetration, such as Texas (where wind covers roughly 25 percent of demand), battery prices need to drop by 50 percent in order to switch back-up from gas-fired The last two years have seen over $13.7 billion of units to battery storage. battery-related investments and acquisitions. This frenzy of spending has seen many organizations move beyond their traditional specialisms. For example, Total acquired battery manufacturer Saft, home appliance company Dy- son bought disruptive technology start-up Sakti3 as part of its planned $1.4 billion battery investment, and Tesla announced a “gigafactory” to produce batteries for EVs and energy storage in conjunction with Panasonic. Due to these investments the world is seeing a rapid build-up of vast and intricate ecosystems of existing and new players. Patent filings have increased threefold since 2010 – particularly in the area of joint filings, often between organizations in very different sectors. Examples include research institutions, companies developing bat- tery technology, and businesses using 70 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com Energy storage battery technology within applications, such as automotive, (the previous leader) is predicted to continue for five electronic devices and utilities. Players in the market therefore to 10 years. We expect that a similar time frame will drive need to manage their way through these complex ecosystems if the introduction of next-generation solid-state batteries. they are to thrive in the market. Players in the market must therefore take a long-term view and, at the same time, ensure they are focusing on the right technologies and business models for their orga- nizational success. Although the large influx of investments signals an attrac- tive and growing market, new entrants should beware, as there are considerable risks. These differ dependent on their positions within the value chain: For component suppliers reliant on scarce metals such as cobalt, there are considerable risks in securing these raw materials. Additionally, the race for an ever-more powerful battery is continuously raising component performance, resulting in innovative new chemistry which could make current technology obsolete. But There is no “God Battery” despite these risks, the component space offers attrac- tive financial returns, generally yielding 10–30 percent We believe that no single technology will dominate the industry EBIT margins. at large. Each of the five key battery storage markets (de- Due to overcapacity among battery cell manufacturers scribed in detail in Chapter 2) has very different requirements and their desire to lock in automotive OEMs on long- on factors such as power density, capacity, cycle lifetime, term contracts, margins have been squeezed. Not only energy density, capital cost, charging time, reliability and safety. has significant additional capacity been announced Winning solutions remain unclear, and success will require a and built, but battery plants are of much greater scale, combination of next-generation innovation and improvements to depressing prices ever further. Together with the need current technologies to meet evolving needs. Each technology for “big battery” manufacturers to form early, strong has intrinsic limitations to their technical and economic windows partnerships with automotive companies, this pushes of operations, whereby extending one performance feature (en- gross margins down to zero and below in the hope that ergy density, say) quickly goes at the expense of others (such greater rewards can be reaped later on. Bosch’s recent as safety or costs). Existing technologies, such as lithium-ion decision to abandon electric-vehicle battery manufac- (Li-ion) batteries, have seen rapid improvements in perfor- turing (while maintaining its position in other parts of the mance and cost due to a combination of greater economies of value chain) underscores the challenges facing players scale and research and development. However, there are still in an increasingly crowded batterymanufacturing burning unmet needs to be solved. Next-generation technolo- market. gies are required to deliver a step-change in performance of key battery characteristics. Much of the development in this Besides value chain-specific risks, an overarching area is being led by ambitious start-ups, working in both the hurdle is that the battery industry is extremely conser- Li-ion market (such as on silica anodes, solid-state electrolytes vative. There are long development cycles across every and advanced cathodes) and in alternative technologies, such step of the value chain. This implies long payback pe- as flow and zinc-air batteries. riods and slow scale-up for those interested in entering the market. So, amid all the announcements and investments, which technologies will triumph, and which players will prosper? This study aims to inform those within the battery tech- nology ecosystem, and help them set their strategies and unlock value moving forward. It focuses on battery components and cells, rather than battery packs, which will be covered in Arthur D. Little’s next report. The analy- sis and insight in this study leverage Arthur D. Little’s extensive engagements and one-on-one discussions with leading industry players, academia and start-ups. Not since the first rechargeable battery was invented back in 1859 has there been so much focus on battery technology. Yet, so far, return on this investment has been slight, dem- onstrating that caution is required from both incumbents and newcomers. Many new technologies are still in their infancy, and there is likely to be a significant time overlap between technologies entering the mainstream and their final replace- ment of incumbents. For example, Li-ion batteries currently dominate the automotive battery market. Despite this, produc- tion of NiMH batteries www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 71 Energy storage Battery applications – different needs, different solutions he global battery market is made up of multiple ap- large and the impact of a thermal runaway (battery melt- plications of battery technologies with slightly different down) can be severe. Cycle lifetime is also of more impor- needs and requirements, which leads to each being tance than in PHEVs and EVs, as the buses are charged best served by specific technologies. Next-generation at least daily. In the case of buses for which fast charging innovationT will impact each of these applications in different is required, they can be fully charged multiple times a day, ways, serving currently unmet needs and helping improve which makes cycle lifetime even more important. performance. The five major battery applications that com- prise the bulk of the battery market are: 3. Electronic devices Batteries for electronic devices are used mainly within Starter, lighting & ignition (SLI) batteries for internal laptops and mobile phones, as well as for tablets, e- combustion engine (ICE) vehicles readers and other devices. All these applications have Electric vehicles (xEV) similar requirements, with volumetric energy density by Electronic devices (ED) far the most important. They need to provide the largest- Stationary battery energy storage (BES) possible amount of energy in the most compact form. As most applications have low drain, power density is Other (aviation, drones, power tools, etc.) typically not an issue. Battery costs are relatively small By analyzing the specifics of these applications we can un- in comparison to the end product, and as the willingness derstand the drivers of battery R&D and outline predictions on to pay for high-performance batteries is generally high, future trends. cost is of secondary importance. 1. Starter, lighting & ignition (SLI) 4. Stationary battery energy storage (BES) This is the oldest (and still largest) application area. An SLI Stationary battery energy storage (BES) is a vital part of battery is used in every conventional vehicle with an inter- smoothing the supply and demand around power gener- nal combustion engine (ICE), and serves to start and ignite ated from wind and solar sources. Essentially, it en- the engine, as well as to provide electricity to the rest of sures that electricity from renewables can be stored for the car when the engine is not running. Starting an engine use when the wind isn’t blowing or the sun shining. Also, requires very large currents for a short period – up to 300 it ensures that peaks in consumption can be absorbed amperes for only a few seconds. In comparison, a wash- and backup is provided without having to temporarily ing machine only requires 10 amperes. This makes power rely on fossil fuel power plants (such as diesel genera- density a key requirement for such batteries. Additionally, it tors). needs to be able to operate reliably across a wide range of temperatures and environments, while recent advances in “start-and-stop” systems, in which the engine shuts off auto- matically when waiting for a traffic light, are also placing an increasing burden on the cycle lifetime of SLI batteries. 2. Electric vehicles (xEVs) The fast-growing xEV market is made up of major groups of EVs, each with a distinct set of requirements: hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs), full electric vehicles (EVs) and commercial electric vehicles (CEVs). HEVs are conventional ICE vehicles for which the propulsion systems are combined with smaller electromo- tors driven by batteries, which are commonly charged by regenerative braking. The smaller relative capacity of the batteries makes energydensity and capital cost less rel- evant. However, as the battery is charged and discharged frequently and powerfully through braking, it has to have a Arthur D. Little extensively covered BES in its previous high power density, extremely short charging time, and long report, “Battery storage: Still too early?”, which identified cycle lifetime, which requires thousands of cycles. Com- multiple types of operating models for batteries in energy- pared to HEVs, a PHEV has a battery that can also be storage applications, including at grid scale and for residen- charged by plugging into an external electricity source. tial storage, in which it can be linked to wind turbines and These batteries typically have much larger capacity, en- rooftop solar panels. Based on their needs from batteries, abling the vehicle to drive fully electric for short distances. these operating models can be divided across two axes: This leads to requirements for lower capital cost and better 1) frequency of discharge and 2) length of discharge. The energy density, while power density and cycle lifetime are applications and key needs of each quadrant are shown in of less concern. “Full” EVs no longer have ICEs, and thus Table 2. One interesting example of this is Italian electricity require much larger batteries to deliver sufficient range for transmission operator Terna, which is combining multiple drivers, which makes capital cost and energy density their technologies for different applications: high-energy (long- most important needs. EVs also require batteries with high discharge) technologies for congestion avoidance in its reliability (as the vehicle can no longer fall back on the ICE) mainland grid, and high-power, lower-frequency technolo- and good cycle lifetimes of around 1,000 cycles, which gies to secure uninterrupted power supply on the islands of enable them to last for the same mileage as the rest of the Sicily and Sardinia. car components. Commercial EVs such as e-buses typically have increased safety needs as the battery systems are 72 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com Energy storage Silica has higher energy capacity than graphite, the normal material for anodes. This is leading to it being blended through graphite anodes, with the aim of eventually mov- ing towards full silica anodes. These can offer theoretical increases in energy density of up to 40 percent. However, for this to happen, issues in cycle lifetime have to be overcome, in which the anode pulverizes itself upon its 300 percent volume expansion while charging. Ongoing innovations use only minor silica concentrations, limiting potential density increases to 10–20 percent. Many advanced-cathode chem- istries exist that have higher energy capacities and voltages, 5. Others such as lithium nickel manganese oxide (LNMO). These Many other applications exist, with their own sets of needs, high-voltage cathode materials are currently facing issues e.g., drones, power tools, electric scooters, electric bikes, with the liquid electrolyte used in common battery systems, aviation, fork lifts. As they have a minor market share, they which breaks down at voltages above 4.5 V. The third and are not considered in this overview. strongest contender for innovation is a solid-state electrolyte. This replaces the current electrolyte system that is made of Next-generation technologies on the horizon organic solvents, dissolved lithium salts and polyolefin sepa- Li-ion batteries have improved dramatically over the past rators by one thin, ion-conducting membrane. It is often 25 years, enabling improved performance in consumer seen as one of the technologies with the most disruptive electronics and the introduction of new applications such potential inside li-ion, unlocking the use of new cell compo- as drones and EVs. However, to accelerate these and nents and delivering four benefits: other applications, new innovation is vital – a step-change in performance is required. 1. A solid-state electrolyte makes the safe use of pure lithium anodes possible, readily increasing the energy As table 3 below demonstrates, there are still major unmet density of a cell by 40 percent. needs in each application – such as: 2. It unlocks new types of cathodes. The oxide-based Cost, reliability and charging time for EVs. solidstate electrolyte no longer breaks down at 4.5 V, al- Cycle lifetime and cost for high-frequency stationary bat- lowing the use of 5 V cathodes and further increasing the tery energy storage. energy density by 10 percent. Safety across multiple applications. 3. It enables a new class of conversion cathodes such as sulfur and oxygen, enabling even larger potential increas- es in energy density. Lithium-sulfur systems have long been produced by companies such as Sion power; how- ever, they suffer from cycling issues due to polysulfides shuttling through the separator to the anode. This is one of the many possible problems that solid-state electro- lytes may solve. 4. Improved battery safety – perhaps the largest benefit. Using a solid material instead of a flammable liquid lectrolyte prevents the formation of dendrites (lithium slivers living in the electrolyte that can cause internal battery short circuits, which lead to meltdowns) and makes electrolyte leakage impossible (avoiding potential A lot is happening in next-generation technologies. A host self-ignition). Increased cell simplicity might potentially of battery technologies using alternative materials are being also lead to decreased costs. Given that safety is one of developed by ambitious start-ups, while there is increasing the primary priorities of virtually all big players, even a innovation within the Li-ion space primarily focusing on three slightly higher initial cost of this new technology might be areas: silica anodes, advanced cathodes and solid-state worth their investment. electrolytes. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 73 Energy storage 1. The current generation of Li-ion prevails Likelihood: medium probability This scenario assumes a situation similar to that which hap- pened in solar panels – the prevalence of one single technol- ogy. As with solar, massive investments in huge manufactur- ing facilities will further lower the costs of currentgeneration Li-ion technologies. At these price levels, other existing technologies will not be able to compete, while new innova- tions will not be able to cross the technological valley of death. Therefore, current Li-ion will become the technology of choice for the majority of manufacturers due to its good bal- ance of technical properties and price. However, even despite the huge increase in production capacity of the current Li-ion technology, we do not see this scenario as very likely, for two reasons: Batteries have very diverse applications: certain niche Given these factors, it is no surprise that the perceived ben- applications for which the willingness to pay is high (such efits of solid-state electrolytes are of large interest to battery as electronic devices) will drive new technological in- manufacturers as well as users. This is demonstrated by the novations, and these could later spread to mass-market large amount of well-funded start-ups, investment activity, applications. M&As, and research work/patent filings. Examples include: Further cost reduction will require performance improve- Recent ~$100m acquisitions of the start-ups Seeo and ments: the recent massive manufacturing scale-up has Sakti3 by Bosch and Dyson, respectively. significantly reduced production costs. To further reduce News from companies including Samsung, Toyota and costs, the focus needs to shift to improving the perfor- Bosch, which claim they will be able to produce solid- mance of batteries to make them cheaper on a cost/kWh state batteries before 2020. basis. This cannot come from incremental development, Several ~$100m start-ups active in solid-state, with but requires a step-change. prominent VC and CVC investors including Khosla 2. A new Li-ion generation emerges Ventures (into QuantumScape, Sakti3, Seeo), Kleiner, Likelihood: highest probability Perkins, Caufield & Byers (into QuantumScape, Ionic Essentially, the current generation of lithium-ion technology Materials), General Motors and Volkswagen. will keep its dominant position, but eventually, next-genera- tion Li-ion technology will attract sufficient investment to make Increased research activity and patent filing by large it a viable alternative. We believe this scenario is most likely corporates (880 filings in 2015 alone). for three reasons: The current generation of Li-ion technology is hitting its theoretical limits. The development of EVs and consumer electronics are creating further “pull” for better solutions that could be potentially addressed by technologies early in the develop- ment pipeline. Applications such as high-end consumer electronics pro- vide attractive markets with their willingness to pay for higher performance, enabling next-generation Li-ion to Which companies will be the winners in establish itself before targeting mass-market applications. next-generation battery technology? The hottest candidate, the solid-state electrolyte Li-ion battery, will need to surpass multiple challenges besides finding a safe While there is extremely high potential demand for battery pathway through the cost valley of death. Even when solid-state technologies in emerging markets such as EV and BES, the batteries enter the market in niche applications, current lithium- over-riding driver for success is cost. This has led to a con- ion batteries will most likely be produced to cater for the bulk of centrated focus on bringing down the costs of Li-ion batter- applications for another 10–15 years. We expect solid-state ies, such as by scaling up manufacturing, which has brought electrolyte batteries to start in highend consumer electronics, down prices further than many analysts expected. Lowering in which the willingness to pay for increased energy density is Li-ion prices is a double-edged sword. It helps meet existing relatively high and development cycles relatively short. Thereaf- demand, but lengthens the commercialization time of new ter, the technology will gradually spread to the majority of other technologies, as they have to reduce costs further in order to applications, such as EV and grid storage, for which develop- cross the “valley of death” (the time between the R&D stage ment cycles are typically much longer due to stricter require- and becoming commercially cost-competitive with current ments around cycle and shelf lifetime. Alternative technologies, technologies). In turn, this potentially holds back the longer- such as flow and zinc-air batteries, will only occupy certain term innovation that battery-driven markets require. Based on niche applications with very specific requirements. In the energy its analysis, Arthur D. Little predicts that one of three pos- sector, a range of other technologies will coexist, depending sible scenarios will dominate the mid-term battery technology on the application and driven by the less strict requirements on industry: size and space for stationary systems. 74 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com Energy storage 3. Unforeseen technology steals the show However, some of the much-touted (and heavily invest- Likelihood: medium probability edin) next-generation technologies will fail to live up to This scenario assumes a situation similar to that which hap- expectations. pened in solar panels – the prevalence of one single technol- ogy. As with solar, massive investments in huge manufactur- Every part of the ecosystem and value chain faces differ- ing facilities will further lower the costs of currentgeneration ent risks and opportunities. The ecosystem can be broadly Li-ion technologies. At these price levels, other existing broken down into companies that are providers of materials technologies will not be able to compete, while new innova- and technology (e.g., chemicals companies, cell and pack tions will not be able to cross the technological valley of manufacturers) and those that are users of battery energy death. Therefore, current Li-ion will become the technology of storage (such as automotive OEMs, electronics firms and choice for the majority of manufacturers due to its good bal- utilities). And while there are already many established play- ance of technical properties and price. However, even despite ers in both categories, the enormous growth promise of the the huge increase in production capacity of the current Li-ion battery market will remain a strong magnet to new entrants technology, we do not see this scenario as very likely, for two – which will generally have more options but also a longer reasons: road ahead than current players. As of now, there is no truly viable battery technology with suf- Where does it leave each one of these groups? Figure 8 ficient potential to replace currently dominant Li-ion batteries below provides an overview of our recommended high-level across all applications. Lithium is the lightest metal around, strategies: with the lowest electrochemical reduction potential, making it clearly the most suitable charge carrier for high-performance batteries. Only in grid-storage applications do low-perfor- mance and lowcost technologies have potential applications. In EVs, no other battery type stands a chance, which makes only hydrogen fuel cells the only long term threat. For all companies in the battery space, three generic high- level strategies are of key importance: Managing IP is becoming more important than ever, and not just in protecting licenses to operate. Cross-licensing and copatent ownership are on the rise, and industry convergence is bringing together companies with very different IP maturity and capacity, such as traditional chemical companies, automotive OEMs and connectiv- ity players. (See Arthur D. Little’s Prism article, “IP management 4.0”.) The impact for current and future battery Success relies on defining an innovation ecosystem strat- egy with key research partners, keeping it updated and players pursuing it decisively. As our report shows, the battery technology market will remain As with any other breakthrough technology, there is al- highly dynamic, delivering both major rewards and large-scale ways a distinct chance that companies bet on the wrong risks over the coming years: horse. There is no easy way out on this one but creat- Tomorrow’s winning innovators should benefit from contin- ing a portfolio of options along strategic “competence ued, ongoing growth and have the potential to create tre- platforms” is usually a good idea. And last but not least, mendous value. However, high entry barriers in currentgen- companies need to ensure that they have the stamina and eration Li-ion markets will prove almost insurmountable to appetite for risk to continue to do what it takes to win. new entrants, while some consolidation among established In addition, there are strategic requirements that depend players seems likely. on the strategic importance of batteries for the business, Next-generation technologies show major promise. Despite and of the position in the value chain. We distinguish four some industry skepticism, we believe that over time they company situations: will eventually replace some, if not all, current-generation Li-ion batteries. Improved battery technology performance, especially in areas such as cost and energy density, will make batteries suitable for mainstream applications (such as in cars, cord- less devices and grid storage) and in new, high-end uses (e.g., in aviation and military). www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 75 Energy storage A. Providers with emerging or optional interests Reference section – battery technology Given the innate conservatism of the battery market, it is in detail futile to enter by offering current-generation technology. Companies are unlikely to switch suppliers unless there is a really good reason to do so (e.g., a price or performance Following the invention of the first rechargeable battery over impact of +10 percent). Instead, these new entrants should 150 years ago, research has led to the wide range of tech- focus on investing in next-generation technologies. As these nologies that are now used today. However, each technology are expected to be costly at first, building a strong position has its own strengths and weaknesses – product/technology will generally start in a niche in which the relative willingness designers therefore need to choose wisely for their particular to pay is high for highperformanceproducts. Good examples applications. Before discussing each technology, it is impor- include Bosch and Dyson, which are directly stepping into tant to understand key terms: advanced solid-state batteries expected to be used in high- A battery pack consists of battery cells (as you would end applications. Other options are skipping Li-ion technol- find in your TV remote control) and a battery manage- ogy completely and launching into other promising technolo- ment system, which regulates. gies such as flow batteries, as witnessed in the cases of Foxconn and Jabil. A battery cell consists of multiple components, such as electrolyte fluids and electrodes, which can differ B. Providers with established or locked-in interests in chemistry, yielding different battery characteristics. Those already active in the battery field should focus on two This report focuses on battery components and cells. main themes – relentlessly reducing costs in current-gener- ation technology while innovating by looking for disruptive technology. Many in the industry believe that current-gener- ation lithiumion battery is the only feasible technology and no challengers will emerge soon. This feeling has grown thanks to the failure of other battery chemistries (e.g., the sodium-ion battery Aquion) and insufficient breakthroughs in the area of solid-state technology, despite years of focus and investment. While we agree that most other battery chemistries have limited full-scope market impact, we do believe that next-generation solid-statelithium-ion batteries are closer than many industry experts believe. This should be of concern to any established player in the battery field – they should understand strategic scenarios that would allow them to extract maximum value from these new technology trends. C. Users with emerging or optional interests Battery performance is continually improving, while costs are becoming ever lower, on both a capital-cost and a lev- To shed more light upon the complex battery space, Arthur elizedcost basis. This unlocks many new opportunities in a D. Little has developed a framework consisting of seven key wide variety of applications. Obvious examples include grid performance indicators (Table 4). Arthur D. Little uses this storage and EVs, which are gradually becoming cost-com- framework to assess the different technologies that currently petitive with alternatives. However, less obvious examples exist, and to show where the burning unmet needs lie from also exist, such as garden tools shifting from traditional the application perspective. petrol engines to batteries and drones suddenly becoming 1. Lead-acid batteries feasible. Companies should be aware of how a “perfect bat- tery” can impact their businesses and monitor battery price The grandfather of rechargeable batteries, lead-acid and performance characteristics to see when the tipping batteries, was the first rechargeable batteries ever made. point has been reached. Active monitoring is vital, as battery While their technology is outdated, they have stood the price developments continue to exceed industry expecta- test of time and are still one of the most widely used types tions year after year. today. Their popularity is due to their low capital cost and ability to operate efficiently even at low temperatures, D. Users with established or locked-in interests which often trumps their low energy densities and low cycle lifetimes. There are two main families of lead-acid For current users, closely monitoring the evolution of battery batteries. The flooded type has optimal capital cost, drop- characteristics is also of concern. Evolution in current ping as low as $60/kWh for large systems, which is less lithium-ion technology is already supplanting other technolo- than one-third of the current capital cost of the lithium bat- gies, as it is happening to sodium-sulfur batteries in grid teries used in most EVs. However, its downsides are its storage. To remain competitive, these users should keep low cycle life, low charging rate and maintenance require- abreast of current battery evolution, and actively invest in ments, in which the battery has to be topped up with water next-generation knowledge stakes (know-how, patents, to remain “flooded”. The second family, sealed batteries, etc.). When the time comes, they should be prepared for applies a slightly more advanced design that does not re- next-generation activity, ensuring that they have strong quire topping up with water. This eliminates maintenance bargaining power when the time comes to secure the best costs and increases cycle lifetime, but doubles capital partnerships and supplier contracts. costs. 76 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com Energy storage 2. Lithium-ion Lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries have gained enormous attention in the past decade. While already commercialized in 1991, constant marginal improvements in cost and performance over the past 25 years have unlocked a host of new applica- tions, making breaking news related to batteries a common sight. The rapid decline in costs is mainly the result of two underlying drivers: 1. Massive increase in scale across all steps of the manufacturing value chain. 2. Increase in performance of cells, making new cells cheaper on a cost/kWh basis The constant search for more powerful battery components has now led to a wide breed of Li-ion battery compositions. While a perfect battery still remains a work in progress, different variants of the battery’s three main components (anode, cathode, and electrolyte system, Figure 9) lead to specific strengths and weaknesses. In current systems, the cathode limits the power, while the charging is limited by the anode. Securing a steady cobalt supply is paramount Cobalt, a scarce metal produced as a small-scale byprod- uct of copper mining, is giving headaches to battery manufacturers. Its production nature makes its price- demand relationship highly inelastic, and on top of that, more than half of global supply lies in the Democratic Republic of Congo – a country with infamous for politi- cal instability and a long history of violent domestic disputes. LFP (lithium-iron phosphate) batteries take a different approach. The cathode is made out of more abundant iron and phosphate, leading to a lower raw material Cathode chemistry cost. However, cells produced with LFP have low energy density due to LFP’s inherent low voltage and low Current Li-ion batteries are commonly classified by their cath- energy capacity, eventually making it a more expensive ode chemistry. Five solutions are currently available: cell when measured on a cost/kWh basis. The cathode LCO (lithium cobalt oxide) is the most mature cathode material is still favored for its rigid olivine structure, chemistry, which made the commercialization of Li-ion which gives the material its extremely high power and possible. It produces cells with the highest volumetric high cycle lifetime. This technology is already very near energy density, but with a downside of low power density its maximal theoretical performance, giving little room for and low cycling ability. Cost is proving to be an ever larger further improvements besides cost cutting. The cheap issue, as the cathode is entirely made of cobalt. Current LFP production path of using rotary kilns has dramati- innovation efforts are focused on squeezing the last drops cally grown the Chinese battery industry. Now that other out of the battery’s performance by increasing the voltage technologies are evolving, higher-performance materi- and energy capacity of the material. Arthur D. Little als are gradually replacing LFP in applications such as believes that unless a better alternative comes around EVs, leaving the market flooded with an overcapacity of (such as solidstate batteries with new cathode types, see cheap LFP. In contrast, high-performance LFP, com- below), this technology will remain the cathode of choice monly produced by hydrothermal methods, will maintain in consumer electronics for two reasons: it has the highest a strong position in applications requiring high power volumetric energy density, and willingness to pay is gener- (e.g., HEVs and power tools) or high cycle life (CEVs, ally higher in these applications. grid storage). www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 77 Energy storage NCM (lithium nickel cobalt manganese oxide) is a diverse NCA (lithium nickel cobalt aluminum oxide) is a high-ener- material dependent on the stoichiometric balance between gy cathode material. The current focus is to increase the the nickel, cobalt and manganese. An even ratio (called nickel content further, resulting in higher energy density NCM 1-1-1) is suitable for high-power applications, while and simultaneously reducing cobalt usage, effectively higher nickel contents (5-3-2 or 6-2-2) provide higher energy bringing down the cost/kWh in two ways. NCA is primarily density and simultaneously reduce dependence on cobalt. used by Tesla, while all other EV makers use NCM. (See These are two important reasons the industry is trying to next bullet point.) That dates back to when Tesla produced commercialize the nickel-rich NCM 8-1-1 – major producers its first Roadster (2005). It needed a cheap, high-energy- were expecting to have the first solutions to market early density cell, and at the time, NCA as the only option, as 2018. NCM will remain the cathode material of choice for NCM would not be commercialized until 2009. Tesla is nearly all EV manufacturers (besides Tesla) until superior most likely to keep using NCA in its current development 5V cathode materials can be used. Even then, NCM cycle, as it is accustomed to using it in a supplied cylindri- will continue to be used for another five to seven years cal cell format provided by Panasonic. However, Tesla has due to the automotive industry’s long and conservative already switched to NCM for energy-storage applications, development cycles. NCM will also be the occasional hinting that a future switch for EVs could soon take place. choice in other applications, such as energy storage, LMO (lithium manganese oxide) is similar to LFP, as it HEVs and e-buses. can deliver high power and lacks energy density, but is two to three times cheaper. The main issue that prevents This short overview is not exhaustive. Besides the tech- its mass adoption is its low stability, as demonstrated by nologies mentioned above, different manufacturers are Nissan’s recent shift away from using the technology due testing and pushing other solutions, such as pure nickel to continued battery malfunctions. LNO (lithium nickel oxide) cathodes, manganese-rich NCMs and a host of 5V cathode materials including LNMO (spinel type lithium nickel manganese oxide). Anode chemistry Carbon-based anodes have been favored since the first commercialization of Li-ion batteries, as they are cheap and have high energy capac- ity and low voltage versus lithium ions. Mul- tiple subcategories of carbon-based cathodes bring different trade-offs: amorphous carbon has slightly lower energy density but higher charging power when compared to graphite, while silica composites have higher energy but suffer from lower cycle lifetime due to the large volume expansion of silica upon charging. Currently, carbon-based anodes are the main- stream technology, and we do not expect them to be replaced in the near future, until disrup- tive technologies such as pure lithium and pure silica anodes are commercialized. The current major focus and challenge of carbon-anodes R&D is increasing the silica content while maintaining cycle life. LTO (lithium titanate oxide) anodes can charge extremely fast, enabling a battery cell to reach full charge in five minutes. On the downside, the anode is expen- sive and has low energy capacity and high volt- age versus lithium ions, resulting in a low volt- age cell with low energy density and extremely high capital costs on a $/kWh basis. Its high cycle lifetime, however, can partly compensate for this on a costper- cycle basis. 78 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com Energy storage Electrolyte chemistry In general, as flow batteries mechanically pump around The last part of the battery is the highly acidic anode and cathode solutions, they have two electrolyte system. This facilitates drawbacks: the transport of lithium ions from 1. Decreased round-trip efficiency the anode to the cathode. Typically, the transport medium is made of 2. Increased need for maintenance organic solvents with dissolved Due to the extremely low energy density (lower than lead- lithium salts, with a polyolefin acid), the systems can only be used for stationary pur- membrane between the electrodes poses. The technology is still in its early stages of maturity, (the separator). The separator and large manufacturing companies such as Foxconn, is a critical element defining the Flextronics, and Jabil have only very recently entered the safety of the battery, as it prevents market through partnerships with innovative pioneers. The dendrites (metal slivers) from grow- manufacturing scale-up provided by these players could ing from the anode to the cathode. bring costs down fast enough to unlock a competitive posi- When the separator breaks down, tion in the battery energy storage (BES) market. these dendrites form an internal Sodium sulfur technology’s high power and energy bridge between the electrodes, density, combined with high cycle life, made it one of which shorts the circuit, followed by the most popular large-scale battery storage systems a thermal runaway (an irreversible in the past. These characteristics often forgave the meltdown). This makes the sepa- operating costs of ~10–20 percent of initial capex p.a. rator the Achilles’ heel of every required to keep the system at its 300–350°C operating battery – one that led, for example, temperatures. Today it is rapidly losing market share to the $5bn recall of illions of Sam- to Lithium-ion, as it struggles to keep up with the mas- sung Note smartphones in 2016. sive decreases currently being seen in Li-ion costs. 3. Others Nickel-based batteries, once favored for their safety, Besides the major lead-acid and Li- power and energy, have been replaced by Li-ion bat- ion battery types, other technologies teries in most applications. Originally both Toyota and are either currently used on a large Boeing invested heavily in using nickel-based bat- scale or expected to take significant teries for the Prius and older version of the 787, but market share in the future. Flow bat- both companies have now switched to Li-ion-based teries are an emerging technology technologies. that provides an xceptional lifetime Many other battery technologies exist, which are of up to 100,000 cycles. This is based on other charge carriers such as sodium-ion, more than adequate for their typical magnesium-ion, zinc, and aluminum. All of these application of bulk storage systems, materials are abundant and cheap, but in order to which are designed for an average of become a viable market option, the technologies need two charging cycles per day over a to be able to cross the treacherously deep valley of lifetime of 20 years, totaling ~15,000 death – scaling these technologies to competitive lev- required cycles. Flow batteries have els as currently found in Li-ion requires investments two distinct categories – pure flow of hundreds of millions of dollars. batteries with all active components stored separately from the cell, and These low-cost chemistries generally only appeal to hybrid flow batteries, in which one of the bulk energy storage market, in which cost is the one the active materials is stored inside and only driver (as opposed to the expensive, high- the cell. There are further differ- performance chemistries that can occupy niche areas in ences based on the types of flow or the market). This makes manufacturing scale a necessity, materials used. Currently, the most a risk fewer and fewer investors are ready to make after mature technologies within pure flow a history of bankruptcies in this area. A recent example is batteries is the vanadium-redox flow Aquion, a sodium-ion-based battery start-up, which went battery (VRFB) and the zinc-bromine bankrupt after receiving $190m of funding. With proven flow battery (ZBFB) within the hybrid technological capabilities and first large-scale orders flow category. While similar in cost, delivered to its customers, it pulled the plug due to the VRFB has a longer cycle life and massive cost reductions in Li-ion. One possible candidate higher relative energy efficiency. with sufficient potential to give Li-ion a run for its money ZBFB technology has higher cell is zinc-air technology. Multiple start-ups such as EoS and voltage and energy density, but at the ZAF Energy Systems are raising millions from venture cost of high self-discharge rates (up capitalists, starting pilots with larger utilities such as Con to 33 percent per day) and the risk of Ed and Engie, and claim to be able to reduce the cost dendrite formation. down to $95/kWh by 2020. www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 79 GoodWe Launches 70 kW MT Series for Utility Projects GoodWe is now rolling out its new compact70 kW MT series inverter GW70KHV-MTfor utility T projects with high output voltage of 500V and maximum efficiency of 99%,which includes four MPP trackers and a wide input voltage rangeto ensure design flexibility and compatibility withhigh-output PV panels.Since GoodWe launched its MT series string inverter last year, 950MW have been supplied to global commercial rooftops. he new 70kW inverter fea- yields even in different PV instal- thanks to its boost function, which tures power line communica- lation conditions, 5% more output offers customers a faster return on tion (PLC) which is suitable compared with the string inverters investment. for ground-mounted solar with one MPP tracker on the market. Compared with equivalent com- Tplants.String level current monitoring The inverter also brings power petitor products, the new GoodWe is also available for measuring each density to unprecedented levels 70kW MT series inverter is the most PV generatorstring current and de- with only 60kg and less than 20% compact and lightweight inverter tecting defective string current.With volume compared to other conven- in the market with the maximum capacity of 70 kW, the new transfor- tional models, which greatly simpli- efficiency of 99%.Equipped with anti- merless, three-phase GoodWe MT fies installation and commissioning, PID function, input reverse polarity series grid-tied inverter is equipped saving time and costs. Moreover, itis protection and SPD on both DC&AC with four MPP Trackers ensuring that able to provide 30% DC input over- terminals, the new MT series maxi- the outputs of connected modules sizing and a continuous maximum mizes profits for utility projects in the are able to generate the highest AC output power overload of 15% most effective and secure way. 80 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com Compact and Powerful: GoodWe ET Series Delivers Independence and Non-Stop Energy! GoodWe has recently launched its brand- new ET Series three-phase high voltage energy storage inverter for both households and commercial applications. The series is the most compact and lightweight inverter in the market with maximum efficiency hen installing ET Series, operation(<30dB) and a long-life of 98.3%, equipped with Uninterruptible battery will not be dam- span.It is also equipped with AC Power Supply (UPS), backup overloading, AC aged by accidental swap charging function whereas alterna- charging functions and open-protocol EMS of the positive and nega- tive current is able to charge the communication system. Wtive polarity which help to ensures battery even when the inverter has safety battery installation. Not only not met its maximum performance. that, GoodWe ET allows backup The brand new GoodWe ET Covering a power range of 5 kW, overloading up to 100%, which al- Series is a three-phase high voltage 8 kW and 10 kW, the ET Series lows quick restart for inductive load energy storage inverter that provides allows 30% DC oversizing to fully such as A/C while it will not cause enhanced energy independence and T maximize yield during extreme harm to any electrical appliances. maximizes self-consumption through hot and cold weather and features The inverter is also in-built with export limit feature and time of use a wide batteryvoltage range of open-protocol EMS communica- shifts for reduced electric bills. 180 – 550 V to ensure customers tion system as it ensures intercon- flexibility choices and compat- nections between grid companies ibility with different type of lithium and batteries to dispatch electricity battery. Furthermore, it features freely. UPS to inductive loads such as air Besides, new GoodWe ET series storage inverter ismanufactured conditioners or refrigerators with to be very compact with dimen- an automatic switch over time of sions of 415*516*160 mm and less than 10 milliseconds, provid- lightweight(25kg)which makes it ing grid-tied savings when the grid easier for installation and mainte- is up and off-grid independence nance both indoors and outdoors. and security when it is down or Thanks to its cooling technology compromised. design using natural convection, the inverterruns reliably with quiet www.EQMagPro.com EQ September -Part C 2018 81 ADVERTISERS SUBSCRIBE Subscribe “EQ International” at www.EQMagPro.com or INDEX fill your complete address and Email to :- Aster...... 09 [email protected] or Call 0731 4222268 ARaymond...... popup Yes! I would like to Subscribe to EQ International Magazine Axis Electrical...... 17 EQ ...... INSIDE BACK RIGHT For 1 Issue: o Indian citizens Rs. 200 o International $ 25 / € 20 goldi green ...... popup For 1 Year (12 issues): o Indian citizens Rs. 2400 Goodwe...... front Gate Fold o International $ 300 / € 240 guangdong yihua ...... 29 Please Mail the coupon to: HUAWEI...... 27 Name:------LUBI ...... 13 Job Title:------ Department: ------Nirmitee Solar...... INSIDE FRONT RIght Company:------Perfect energy ( DAKSH)...... 11 Description of the Company: ------ Adress:------Refu Sol...... 19 ------Redington...... 15 City/State/Zip Code:------ Country:------Suntech...... back COVER Phone:------Solis...... FRONT COVER Fax:------Sungrow...... 21 E-Mail. ------ Web site:------Think Energy ...... INSIDE FRONT Left PAYMENT Tatablue scope...... 23 1.- My Cheque/DD in favour of “FirstSource Energy India Private Topsun Energy...... 25 Limited” for Rs…………………………………………………………………… Drawn on………………………………………is enclosed here- with. Date/Signature: 2.- I will pay by Credit Card Type:...... Name on Card:...... Number:...... Security Code: ...... Expiration Date:...... Mail this coup on to: FirstSource Energy India Pvt. Ltd. Subscription Department. 95 C, Sampat Farms, Bicholi Mardana Distt-Indore 452016 Tel. + 91 96441 22268 9 82 EQ September -Part C 2018 " www.EQMagPro.com HAPPY TO OFFER UPTO 50% Discount On Subscription of EQ Magazine in Printed Copy Delivered to Your Doorstep One Year 12 Editions + 1 EQ Solar Map of India Current Price Rs.2400 Discount 10% Two Years 24 Editions + 2 EQ Solar Map of India Current Price Rs.4800 Discount 20% Three Years 36 Editions + 3 EQ Solar Map of India Current Price Rs.7200 Discount 30% Four Years 48 Editions + 4 EQ Solar Map of India Current Price Rs.9600 Discount 40% Five Years 60 Editions + 5 EQ Solar Map of India Current Price Rs.12000 Discount 50% Offer is for Limited Time and Bank Account Details for Cheques/Demand Draft Limited Number of Subscriptions Direct Payment/Deposit can be couriered to the on First Come First Serve Basis. following address Beneficiary First Source Energy India Pvt Ltd Bank Name Bank Of India Address : 95C Sampat Farms, HURRY...SUBSCRIBE NOW. Bank Address At - Bicholi Mardana Branch, Village Barda, Post Ali, 7th Cross Road, Bicholi Mardana, Indore-452001 (M.P) NDIA Indore 452 016 (M.P.) India Subscription Price Includes Account No. 882920110000386 Swift Code BKIDINBBPAL Shipping in India. IFSC Code BKID0008829 MICR Code 452013002 Online Payment by Cred- Payment Can be it/Debit Card at Beneficiary First Source Energy India Pvt Ltd Done by PayTM Bank Name HDFC BANK Bank Address Shop No.9,10,11, Shehnai 2, Kana dia Road, Indore-452016 (M.P) PAYTM Numbers INDIA Account No. 50200011285202 Swift Code HDFCINBB +91 986244496 IFSC Code HDFC0001772 MICR Code 452240008 [email protected] R.N.I. NO. MPBIL/2013/50966 I DT OF PUBLICATION: SEPTEMBER 20 I POSTAL REGD.NO.MP/IDC/1435/2016-2018 84 EQ September -Part C 2018 www.EQMagPro.com