Wind Energy Body Proposes 4 Measures To Boost Capacity

Indian wind industry body Wind Independent Power Producers Association (WIPPA) has proposed four measures to boost progress in the wind energy sector in the country.

“At the central government, we request the implementation of the four policies implementation of the bidding plan, ISTS (inter-state transmission system) open access, fixing the missing links in LPS (late payment surcharge) and greater facilitation of offshore wind bids,” said Parag Sharma, President, Wind Independent Power Producers Association (WIPPA).

The statement came on the occasion of Global Wind Day on June 11, 2023.
Total wind power capacity in India currently stands at 43198 MW, well behind solar at over 67 GW. Till 2021, Wind had led Solar in total capacity, in fact, before ceding ground and falling well behind over the past two years.

Now, the industry is hoping for a revival of sorts, as hybrid renewable projects are pushed to meet RTC demand, besides key policy moves like an end to reverse auctions, which had squeezed margins and, eventually, interest in the sector significantly over the past few years.

India remains much more self-sufficient in wind energy when compared to solar, with equipment firms having exported for a long time in the segment. Recently, there has also been an uptick in domestic orders, as the C&I market has picked up with a demand for RTC power, where developers have gone for a combination of wind+solar and energy storage.

The measures suggested, other than the bidding condition, would actually benefit the broader renewable sector itself.
In May, Gujarat has also become the leading Indian state in terms of wind energy capacity, overtaking Tamil Nadu, the long-standing leader. These two states are also expected to lead the push for offshore Wind, where the first installations will happen only post-2026-27.