With a major power deficit of around 5.4 percent and 400 million people without any access to electricity in 2013, the Indian Power sector requires immediate and efficient solutions.
Increased Demand for Power and Supply Shortfalls
A growing population stresses the power systems in the country and further increases the power demand. India’s peak power demand continuously outpaces the supply.
In 2013, the peak demand was 135,918 MW, out of which 128,578.5 MW was met, leaving a deficit of 5.4 percent. Power demand is expected to increase by 8.7% to 147,815 MW in 2014-15.
With the projected increase in the power demand and limitations for making investments in power generation applications, harnessing the power of smart grids appears to be the only viable option. “Intelligent” load control through direct control or economic pricing incentives as a part of smart grid implementation would help mitigate the power deficit and peak load by at least 5 percent.
High Power T&D and AT&C Losses
T&D losses are high in the Indian distribution network and power systems. AT&C losses accounted for over 22 percent of the total power generation in 2013. This translated into financial losses amounting to more than US$22 million in 2013, which is highest in the world. Therefore, it continues to be the top priority of both utilities and the government to address this issue.
Technical losses occur because of lack of investment in system improvement, unplanned extension of distribution lines, overloading of the system, and lack of reactive power support. Commercial losses are primarily because of low metering efficiency and pilferages and theft. Unmetered power to the Agriculture sector has depleted the financial health of electric boards significantly.
The solution to mitigate AT&C losses is to implement smart grid technologies in the power systems. These smart grids will monitor, measure, and control power T&D on a real-time basis. These can be used to identify losses and control them by implementing appropriate technical and managerial actions.
The Government of India plans to reduce AT&C losses in distribution utilities to below 15 percent by 2017 and T&D losses to below 4 percent through the implementation of smart grid programs.
Smart Grid Market in India
The Smart Grid Market in India is expected to witness significant growth during the 2014-2018 period, growing at a CAGR of 16.4 percent. Supply shortfalls with an increased power demand and urgency to bridge the demand-supply gap drive the growth of this market.
Appropriate policies, roadmaps, and regulations are expected to further stimulate the growth of the market. Low per capita consumption and the lack of access to electricity despite rapid growth of the power systems have led to an increased development of smart grids in the country.
Renewable generation programs initiated by the government such as the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (initiated in 2010) and wind power programs initiated in states such as Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and Gujarat will increase the share of renewable energy in India from 12 percent to 20 percent.
Smart grid solutions are required to facilitate the integration of renewable power plants with the grid system to ensure a stable and efficient power supply. Smart electric distribution infrastructure and V2G technology are required to control, monitor, and prevent the simultaneous charging of several EVs from the same feeder. The National Mission on Electric Mobility, which was initiated by the government in 2013, targets to achieve six million EVs by 2020.
In addition, smart grid solutions are also being used by the government to control, monitor, and measure T&D and commercial losses. Programs such as the R-APDRP, initiated in 2008, plan to implement the smart grid technology in more than 1,401 towns across India in the 12th five-year plan (2012-2017).
