Report

on

Utilisation of Hybrid Energy Services in Island and Rural Communities: Indian and European

Scenario

An OPET international action " Studies on RES market, including hybrid systems"

Prepared by

Tata Energy Research Instiute (TERI) OPET-India Habitat Place Lodi Road New Delhi – 110 003 India

Agency for Environment and Energy Management (Ademe) 27, Rue Louis Vicat 75737 Paris Cedex 15 France

Utilisation of hybrid energy services in Island and rural communities: Indian and European scenario 1.0 Background Since mid ‘80s renewable energy options such as solar power, small wind generators and

hydro power have become a viable alternative to the engine generator for remote or off-grid locations. The initial cost of a stand-alone renewable energy option of a stand alone

renewable energy option is higher than a conventional engine driven by fossil fuel, but

has less or negligible operating cost. As the advantages of renewable energy became more, both on the technology reliability & cost front, system designers started looking for

ways to combine both generators (renewable and fossil fuel based into one system and

get the best of them – more commonly known as hybrid systems). The term hybrid power system is used to describe any power system with more than one type of

generator. Usually one of the generators employed is a conventional one (which

necessarily does not depend on renewable energy resource) powered by a diesel engine, while the other(s) would be renewable viz. solar photovoltaics, wind or hydro.

This report on hybrid power systems puts across the current status, barriers for its commercialisation and outlining the void for a case of technology transfer. As a part of

this international work package a study tour was carried out by Mr Chintan Shah of

TERI (OPET – India), while the outcome of this report is a joint effort put in by Tata Energy Research Institute (TERI), Ademe (French National Agency) and Insula/ITER

(from Tenerife, Canary Islands). The work was done as a part of the International work

package commitments, co-funded by the European Commission under the 5 th RTD of the Organisation for Promotion of Clean Energy Technologies (OPET) for the year 2000-

2001. The scope of this paper is limited to power generation options.

2.0 Introduction In rural areas particularly of the developing world, where most of the population – up to

80% is located, more than 1 billion people lack the essential energy services needed to satisfy the most basic needs and to improve economic status. The cost of grid for rural

electrification in rural area extension, sometimes very high, leads often the various

organisations to explore alternative solutions. In case of India, with considerable growth

in the Indian economy and increased mechanisation of agriculture and allied activities

over the last two decades, the commercial energy consumption including electricity has grown rapidly. The state-run utilities have historically satisfied customer demand by

generating electricity centrally and distributing it through an extensive transmission and

distribution network. However, once demand reaches a certain level, the capacity of the generation, transmission and distribution system becomes constrained. The traditional

utility response to these constraints is to build new facilities, leading to a very high

marginal cost. However, due to limited resources, such an approach is not feasible in India, therefore, over the past decades the power consumers have been badly hit by

intermittent power. While, the laying of grid lines to service energy needs in far off areas

can prove to be a very expensive proposition.

Renewable energy sources, such as solar (photovoltaic), wind energy or small scale

hydro, provide a realistic alternative to supplement engine driven generators for electricity generation in off-grid or far off areas. It has been demonstrated that hybrid

energy systems (renewable coupled with conventional energy source) can significantly

reduce the total life cycle cost of a stand alone power supplies in many off-grid situations, while at the same time providing a reliable supply of electricity using a

combination of energy sources. Numerous hybrid systems have been installed across the

world, and expanding renewable energy industry has now developed reliable and cost-competitive systems using a variety of technologies. Research in the development of

hybrid systems focussed on the performance analysis of demonstration systems and

development of efficient power converters, such as bi-directional inverters, battery management units (storage facilities), optimisation of different sources of energy

sources, etc.

3.0 Country report: India India has a large potential for renewable energy (RE), an estimated aggregate of more

than 100,000 MW. In addition, the scope for generating power and thermal applications using solar energy (since most parts of the country receive sunlight almost throughout

the year) is huge. However, only a fraction of the aggregate potential in renewable, and

particularly solar energy, has been utilised so far.

Table 1 Renewable energy potential & current status in India Sources/Technologies

Units* Potential

Installed capacity

Wind Power Mwe 45 000 1 267 Small hydro (upto 25 MW) Mwe 15 000 1 341 Biomass power

Biomass Gasifiers Biomass Cogeneration

MW 19 500 16 000 3 500

308 35 273

Urban & Industrial Waste-based Power

Mwe 1 700 15.20

Solar photovoltaics MW/sq km 20 47 MWp Solar water heating (million

sq.m. collector area)

140 0.55

Biogas plants Million 12 3.1 Improved cookstoves Million 120 33 *MW – Mega Watt, sq km – square kilometer, sq m – square meter Source: MNES Annual Report 2000-2001

3.1 Institutional set up The federal ministry of India, namely Ministry of non-conventional Energy Sources

(MNES)1 is the nodal ministry for all matters relating to non-conventional and renewable

energy, through drafting out policies and programmes at the national level. While the policies are made at the central/federal level, the programmes are implemented at the

state (province) level, through state nodal agencies (SNAs). Administratively, the SNAs

are under the control of the respective state governments, but they receive financial support from MNES for programme implementation. MNES also implements certain

programmes through NGOs. In 1987, MNES established an autonomous financial

institution – the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA), in order to promote Renewable Energy Technologies (RETs) on a commercial basis.

3.2 Renewable energy policy The Prime Minister of India has announced a goal of 10 per cent share or 10,000 MW in

the new capacity additions through renewable energy, upto 2012. This was the outcome

of the draft comprehensive renewable energy policy2, formulated by the MNES. The broad objective envisaged in the policy are

?? Meeting the minimum energy needs through RE

1 http://mnes.nic.in 2 Under review by several government agencies

?? Providing decentralised energy supply in agricultural, industry, commercial and

household sectors in rural and urban areas ?? Grid quality power (either in decentralised or grid connected mode)

3.3 Foreign investment policy In order to commercialise renewable energy, there has been a development of a conducive foreign investment policy by the government of India, the salient features of

the same are as follows.

?? Foreign partners can enter into a joint venture with an Indian partner for financial and or technical collaboration and for setting up of RE based power generation

projects

?? Proposal for upto 74 per cent foreign equity participation in a joint venture qualifies for automatic approval

?? Hundred per cent foreign investments as equity is permissible with the approval of

the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) ?? Foreign investors can also set up a liaison office in India

?? The government of India also encourages foreign investment to set up RE based

power generation projects on BOO (Build Own & Operate) basis. Various chambers of Commerce and Industry associations in India provide guidance to the investors in

finding appropriate partners.

4.0 Hybrid energy systems Renewable energy based hybrid systems (RE-hybrids) can be stand alone or in some

instance grid connected, but the scope in this report is limited to first option. As mentioned before, they involve a combination of a diesel generator with battery inverted

sub-systems and incorporating renewable energy sources like solar/wind/hydro

whatever appropriate. Coupling solar/wind/hydro resource with diesel generators offer unique diesel fuel saving advantages while simultaneously ensuring reliable or least cost

power supply.

India has started deploying hybrid energy systems in isolated locations, aggregating to a

couple of kWs’ capacity, which is minuscule to the current potential.

4.1 Rural & Island electrification potential

There are more than 80,000 villages in India that are not electrified, of which, there are

18,000 villages, which are un-electrifiable3. Energising these villages by extending grids or by way of diesel generators alone is non-economical. Moreover, with current resource

crunch with Government of India these villages receive low priority for grid extension

due to the low economic return potential (shown in figure 1).

Stand-alone or decentralised renewable based hybrid systems can provide technically

viable, least-cost/reliable solution in meeting such local energy (electricity) needs. Some of such promising areas include:

?? Electrification of mountainous, forest and desert areas where grid extension is

uneconomic with low population density limited commercial activities and poor incomes. Principal potential sites are in the north eastern states and Himalayas (viz.

Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Jammu & Kashmir)

?? Electrification of delta areas of Ganges, Brahmaputra, etc., and islands like Lakshwadweep, Andamans & Nicobar, Bet-Dwarka etc. with many operational diesel

grids.

?? Electrification of households at inland rural areas through distributive grid based on the concept of electricity supply companies (ESCOs)

4.2 Rural Industries Encouragement of small-scale industries contributes significantly to the rural economy

(which is very important for a country like India and other developing countries). As far

as possible, these should be based on locally available raw materials, talent and energy sources. The reliable power provided by the hybrid power systems could result in the

improved economic productivity of the rural industries in the following ways:

?? RE-hybrids powered handicraft industries would allow for varied and increased production (cottage or home produced items can be made during off-peak seasons of

agricultural cycles)

?? RE-hybrids would provide employment opportunities, especially for women, in commercial non agricultural industries (women with reduced homemaking chores-

with electricity, will be able to earn much needed extra income either on full-time

basis or part-time basis) ?? RE hybrids could provide market/stores utilising refrigeration-decreasing spoilage of

perishable especially in a tropical country like India.

??Development of small industries to meet created demand for simple electrical appliances

3 Not accessible, viz. island communities, forest & hills etc.

?? Employment opportunities created by co-operatives, contractors, auditing and

accounting firms. 4.3 Hybrid systems in India Hybrid renewable energy 4 systems are defined on the basis of 100% renewable energy sources (no fossil fuel back up). As mentioned before, the hybrid power installations in

India is in the range of couple of kWs’, while the potential is tremendous. In order to

propagate hybrid power deployment the government of India offers some lucrative schemes both in combination of capital subsidy and low interest financing for the users,

as follows :

4.3.1 Capital subsidy In order to promote hybrid power systems, an upfront capital subsidy to a maximum of

Rs 0.2 million ($4400) or 80% of the project cost is available (whichever is the lowest) for community applications and government bodies. On the other hand, it is Rs 0.125

million ($2700) or 50% of the project cost (whichever is the lowest) for private

companies & individual users. The cap on the cost limits the project size in the range of 400-500 Watts, making it ideal for domestic or light load applications.

4.3.2 Fiscal incentives & Low interest loans Apart from the capital subsidy, there is a provision of fiscal incentive in terms of 100%

accelerated depreciation in the first years, which leads to a tax savings in the tune of

about 35% of the project cost. This is aided with a soft loan from Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA) to a maximum of 85% of the project cost. The

repayment period is 10 years (with one-year moratorium on the capital recovery), at a

low interest rate (2 to 5% per annum5).

4.3.3 Hybrid industry The current market for hybrid power systems is essentially driven by the government led incentive mechanism, targeting rural electrification and island communities. This has led

to culmination of about 9 entities in to hybrid systems manufacturing, of which are

government owned public sector units (PSUs), namely Central electronics limited (CEL) & Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL). The private sector is represented with

Unitron Systems, Tata BP (India) limited and others. More information on the same can

be found at http://mnes.nic.in . 4 Generally wind-solar hybrid 5 The market rate of capital in India is in the range of 12-14%.

Country Case-study: France

France has a particular position in the international country panel, no real fuel resource exist in France and the development of electricity production has been mainly based on

Nuclear energy: 78 % of the electricity comes from nuclear energy, 12 % is provided by

large hydro power plants, 8% by fossil fuels and only 2 % are generated by alternative solutions which include Renewable Energy Sources.

But, in the other hand France has one of the largest renewable energy potential among the European countries. French forests cover the largest surface in Western Europe, the

wind resource is second ranking (60 TWh on earth, 90 TWh including off shore. The

hydraulic and geothermal potential is large, France takes benefit of a temperate climate which favors solar applications.

In that context, both rural electrification and off-grid application in France is very limited. It can be evaluated that no more than 5000 households are worthwhile to be

equipped with a stand-alone system (which in this case is mainly a hybrid system). On

the other hand, there is no need for additional power to meet France’s total consumption (500 TWh/year for 60 millions of people in 1999).

Table 1 France energy production (sources IEA, Observatoire de l’Energie) Sources Type of installations Production

(1999) Nuclear Nuclear power plants 380 TWh Large hydro Barrages 70 TWh Fossil fuels Thermal power plants 50 TWh

Small hydro Weirs Paddle wheels Bio mass Wood Waste 10 Mtep Geothermal Heat grids 3 TWh Solar heating Water solar heaters 450 m² Wind Wind generators 25 MW PV Off-grid Grid connected Total : 9

MW

But the situation changes dramatically if overseas territories are included in the France

experience. In this case, the national grid is supplied with thermal power plants, whose

price is higher and quality lower. A large potential exists for renewable, potential, which is supported by legislative advantages both for the system supplier and the end-user.

In addition, French companies have participates for years to the development of the French cooperation actions in Developing Countries which are within the French sphere

of influence (Africa, French-speaking countries). In that extend, most of the experience

in renewable energy for rural electrification can be found abroad.

5.1 Renewable energy policies in France French policy regarding Renewable is included in part of several frameworks: ?? the law for the electricity public service modernization (10th February 2000), which

translate the European directive for the insider electricity market

?? the new European directive for the promotion of Renewable

In February 1998, the French Government formally approved a policy regarding energy

management and development of renewable energy sources. The Cabinet acknowledged that renewable energies could contribute to sustainable development, to limit green

house effect, to save non-renewable resources, to create jobs and to contribute to local

and regional development.

The government organization, ADEME with its partners from industry and public

research set up new programs of activity.

The Solar electricity case Solar resource is generally quite good in France. However most other forms of energy are low cost and abundant. Photovoltaic (PV) power systems are not cost competitive with

conventional technologies as a base load source. Nevertheless, several factors triggered

the development of a competitive industry: ?? few well-motivated small and medium companies,

?? tradition of public research in solar energy,

?? demand for a diversification of energy sources in French Overseas Departments (Guadeloupe, Martinique, Reunion, Guyana) where energy is expensive to produce

?? the entry of the national electricity utility Électricité de France (EDF) into the field in

1993

National programme The French Agency for Environment and Energy Management (ADEME) -a Government Organization- is in charge of promoting the development of renewable energy sources

including photovoltaics (PV). The ADEME's promotion strategy is twofold:

?? to support research and technological development (RTD) on PV components, photovoltaic systems and applications

?? to subsidize demonstration and dissemination projects

ADEME's four-year RTD programme on PV system components aims at reducing the

manufacturing costs and improving performance and reliability. The European Commission also contributed to the RTD and demonstration/dissemination of

photovoltaics in France. ADEME has put in place mechanisms for promoting national

cooperation between industry and public research and share the financial costs (up to 50%) of applied research and technological development projects on all the components

of PV systems and their application. ADEME sponsored the first photovoltaic hybrid

power systems conference organized by Genec in Aix en-Provence (7-8 September 2000).

ADEME also participates with its partners in international activities such as those of the International Energy Agency (IEA) cooperative programme on photovoltaic power

systems or those of the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) for

standardization.

5.2. Renewable energy industry: France trends There are three photovoltaic cell and modules vertically integrated manufacturers in France: Photowatt International S.A., Free Energy Europe S.A. and Solems S.A. There

are four main system companies: Total Énergie, Apex, Fortum AES and Sunwatt, two

battery manufacturers: CEAC/Fulmen and Hawker and one electricity utility, Électricité de France (EDF).

Transénergie, Cythélia, PHK, IED, SERT and Tecsol are active companies of consulting engineers specialized in PV technology and project management. They participate in

strategic, feasibility and marketing studies funded by the European Commission,

development banks, utilities and ADEME. Other actors are also involved who combined the technical and social aspects of rural development (Fondem).

Battery manufacturers have designed storage batteries that are more suitable for the charging regimes associated with photovoltaic and hybrid applications. CEAC/Fulmen

Company is developing with photovoltaic system firms and Genec new concepts of

energy management of photovoltaic lead-acid storage batteries. Legislation pieces The main legislative framework that favors the development of the French PV market is

supported by a law which allows the owner of a PV system to declare its investments

(accelerated depreciation) and thus decrease its tax level. This law is still valid until 2006

and only applicable in French overseas departments and territories (Guadeloupe,

Martinique, Reunion, Guyana, and Polynesia).

As far as in European countries, the main application for Renewable is grid-connection,

the French legislation is somewhat delayed with respect to what has happened in Germany, the Netherlands, Spain or Italy. However, within the framework of the

European directive dealing with Renewable (for which the amount of Renewable in the

energy production must be increased from 15 % to 21 % of the total energy production)- France is going to promote the use of renewable in the grid. The incentive is to award a

buy-back price of 1 French Franc (1 FF = 0.15 USD) per one kWh, and 2 French Francs in

the French overseas territories.

Since 1993, ADEME, in collaboration with EDF, has launched a large program (FACE

programme: electrification taxes sinking fund) to finance the realization of low-voltage local grid extension,. The programme promotes renewable energy powered energy

installations. Each such project is evaluated on the basis of the comparison of the

electricity grid extension costs and the costs of the service-equivalent stand-alone PV, wind or micro-hydro installation.

Électricité de France (EDF) plays a role in remote area power supply markets. The agreement signed in 1993 between ADEME and EDF, to promote the use of PV in sectors

where it proved to be commercially viable, allowed photovoltaic power systems to access

to a public source of subsidy called FACE. By the beginning of 2000, EDF acknowledged that photovoltaic electricity would be paid 0.096 Euro per kilowatt-hour (corresponding

to net metering system) to the on-grid PV system owners.

Market development The main stream of photovoltaic activity in France is that of off-grid applications where

PV has proven to be a cost-effective solution. The ADEME and the Regional Authorities along with FACE fund and the tax exemption contracts in Overseas Departments are

contributing to the growth of domestic applications that represent 60% to 70% of

installations. The off-grid non-domestic (also called professional) market represents 30% to 40% of business and does not receive any public subsidy. The grid connected

built-integrated applications are an emerging market through demonstration operations

(400 kWp installed). The total installed capacity in continental France and its overseas departments/territories is around 10.5 MWp, while the average annual installation is

pegged at 1 MWp per year.

ADEME's policy consists of implementing conditions for preparing efficient products

offering quality service to users who are beyond the reach of electricity networks. The implementation of suitable structures taking up concessions through EDF on PV

installations, and the access to various sources of financing (FACE fund, Tax exemption,

Regional Authorities, etc.) were decisive factors of progress. Photovoltaic rural electrification programmes are financed up to 95% with FACE fund.

FACE (Fund for amortization of electrification costs) is a public fund traditionally

devoted to extending and reinforcing electricity networks in French rural areas.

Until the end of 1999, grid-connected PV domestic power systems were not promoted by

ADEME and EDF as a priority but a private initiative of a user's association installed around 230 "PV roofs" in the peak-power range of 1 kWp with partial funding from the

European Commission. By the beginning of 2000, ADEME set up a targeted

demonstration programme on dispersed on-grid built-integrated photovoltaic systems in cooperation with European Commission program (DG TREN) aiming at installing in

continental France 500 kW in three years.

The International Energy Agency has made a detailed collection of installation in France:

?? off-grid installations : 8772

?? grid-connected installations : 349 ?? Centralised PV- power plant : 0

In the recent past, ADEME was involved in rural electrification cooperation projects in Morocco (training programmes), selected African countries and Indonesia (Transindo

project of 4 hybrid PV/diesel village power systems).

5.3. Hybrid energy systems: French experience The experience of leading French companies in the field of hybrid energy systems can be

divided in to four typical applications ?? Rural electrification

?? Island power supply

?? Village power supply ?? Decentralized power systems

5.3.1. Rural electrification (FACE) Rural electrification or off-grid application deals with the electricity supplied to isolated

households. In this case, the system is mainly designed with a combination of PV system

with a diesel generator. In many cases the diesel generator existed before the PV system

was installed. As a whole, the system is fully off-grid and deliver electricity to a single or

more than one household.

More than 500 sites have been equipped with photovoltaic installations within the

French FACE program. Amongst them, a majority uses a diesel generator owned by the user, while the rest are the property of EDF.

A recent balance of the project showed that: ?? 1383 projects have been accepted

?? 95 % of the projects are PV (most of them are hybrid PV/diesel), 5 % are wind

?? 66% are located in France, while the rest in French overseas territories.

As an example, of a typical isolated household supplied by a hybrid PV/Diesel system.

The system is installed in the “Corbières” Mountains in southern France. It is a private house of retired people. The technical description of the system is :

?? 900 Wp of PV modules

?? 15 KVA Genset ?? 12 KWh of storage

?? all appliances for domestic applications (lighting, cooking, washing equipped with an

energy dispenser) Figure 1: PV/Diesel installation in the Mountains of the southern France in winter

In addition, a large number of installations are located in overseas territories both for private houses or professional applications (telecommunications, Hotels, Departmental

administration). The local authorities and Europe dissemination programmes fund these

installations.

Another example, of a typical isolated house equipped with a hybrid PV/Diesel system is given in the next picture. The installation is a coaching inn located at the top of the “Pîton de la fournaise” volcano in the reunion island. It serves as the starting point of the expedition for the volcano. It is composed of : ?? 6 KWp of PV modules ?? 10 KVA Genset

?? a 115 KWh of storage

?? all appliances needed for an hotel, included an electric owen

Figure 2: PV/Diesel installation in the top of the “piton de la fournaise” volcano in the Reunion island 5.3.2. Island electrification Island electrification is of a major concern for French companies, mainly in overseas territories in which a lot of small islands need electrification (Polynesian islands, Fiji

islands). In such case the design of the system includes a wind generator, to take the

opportunity of the Aeolian (wind energy) potential of the island, a PV system and a diesel generator set to provide a continuous service. The whole set-up behaves like a mini

power plant and a local grid delivers electricity to a limited number of houses.

Several systems have been installed since 10 years, whose size ranges from 1 to 20 KWp

PV modules, 1 to 20 KW wind generator, 5 to 40 kVA diesel generator set and batteries, according to the end-user specifications. France also participates to European projects

for which islands electrification is the target (mainly in the Mediterranean Sea).

One typical example of an island hybrid system installed in the French Brittany

(Northwest Atlantic ocean), in a preserved area called “Les Glénans” island. The center

serves as training center for sailing and diving, along with an ornithological reserve in wintertime.

The system is composed of : ?? 11 kWp of PV modules

?? 10 kWh of wind generator

?? 32 kVA of Genset ?? It supplies electricity to more than 20 houses.

5.3.3. Village power The concept of village power can be elaborated by the model project, called “TransIndo”

for “Transmigration Indonesia” in which a lot of French actors have participated (Photowatt, Total Energie, Transénergie, Genec and ADEME). The operating principle of

the project was to consider a location (limited area) having a high density of households

enough to make the operations profitable, in opposition to install solar home systems.

Figure 3: Wind energy based hybrid system

Such a situation is economically viable as soon is end-users themselves are involved, to

evolve a well adapted scheme.

In addition, this solution could be seen as a temporary situation waiting for the national

grid, in this case, the extension of the grid is facilitated and the quality of the service provided by the final grid will be higher than in the case of a star-extension grid.

Some other projects have been also leaded by French companies in Africa (Mauritania, Morocco and Madagascar), which try to take advantages of the lessons learned in the

TransIndo project, aiming at standardized the components of the system and reproduce

the exploitation scheme.

By 1997, in the framework of a inter-governmental agreement between France and

Indonesia, four Indonesian villages (300 to 400 households each) were equipped with a large hybrid system, whose prototype was tested in Genec. Each system is composed of :

?? 23.5 KWp of PV modules

?? 40 KVA gen set ?? 360 KWh of storage bank

?? a local 3-phases mini grid

?? domestic and craftsman appliances

Figure 4 : PV/Diesel installation in Indonesia

5.3.4 Decentralized power systems A recent approach has been emphasized in Europe with the coming of new energy sources, which aim at integrating Renewables in the national or private large electricity

grids. Within this approach, apart from hybrid energy systems, combined heat and

power systems, fuel cells and other storage technologies, biomass, micro hydro is being

studied in the context of distributed generation. Also, French utility EDF and research

centers are actively participated to research projects and also thematic networks (EnirDG where Genec is involved).

5.4. Research and development activities France has a well-established research base in the field of photovoltaic. Collaborative

efforts are pooled in to maximize technology advancement under ADEME's financial

incentives. Apart from ADEME, other organisations like CNRS, CEA and EDF are also the financial contributors to PV RTD projects, and some selected research topics receive

pre-competitive RTD funding from the European Commission programmes (DG

Research).

Main goals of ADEME's RTD programme are cost reduction for photovoltaic cells and

modules by decreasing their manufacturing costs and by increasing their conversion efficiencies through innovative manufacturing processes or technical optimization of

existing low cost processes.

Thin layers of (micro or poly-) crystalline silicon or so-called poly-morphous (a mixture

of amorphous and microcrystalline) silicon material deposited on foreign substrates

(glass, ceramic) are a priority topic for CNRS public research laboratories (involved in a jointly funded CNRS-ADEME multidisciplinary research programme called ECODEV).

In addition, ADEME supports small and medium size photovoltaic companies in developing new products for domestic and export markets. Companies such as Apex and

Total Énergie have developed microprocessor-based energy management units that not

only incorporate battery charge/discharge controllers but also new functions with varying degrees of sophistication and built in diagnostics including advanced data

logging and remote communication capabilities.

Specific studies and testing of photovoltaic components including PV modules (energy

rating approach), lead-acid storage batteries aging and other PV related products are an

important part of the ADEME's programme. Hybrid PV/diesel village power systems are studied by Genec and Armines for testing and standardization purposes. Other studies

carried out by Genec, EDF and partners contribute to the drafting of International

Energy Agency's reports on recommended practices (IEA-PVPS cooperative programme, Tasks 1, 2, 3 and 9) and pre-normative work that feed elaboration of international

Standards within the International Electrotechnical Commission/Technical Committee

82 (IEC/TC82).

In the field of hybrid systems, the research and development activities in France are mainly gathered in two research institutes: Armines and Genec. Both are located in southern of France, where the averaged daily irradiation is 4.5 KWh/m². The main topics are: ?? Rural electrification development programs (SIG)

?? Design and architecture of hybrid systems

?? Energy and storage management ?? Electronic devices for hybrid systems

Genec is playing an active role in monitoring the results of the TransIndo project in Indonesia, right from the design of the system to the optimization of the energy

management algorithm. Functional and performance tests have been performed in the

Genec solar platform to evaluate and improve the overall efficiency of the system and its components, both in the lab and on-site.

5.0 Study tour on hybrid energy installations Under the current work package under International actions, Mr Chintan Shah of OPET -

India (TERI) did a study tour to France & Canary Islands. The tour was made to have an

insight on the technological developments in the field of hybrid energy systems, testing standards, field installations and co-operation between EU and India in the field of

renewable energy based hybrid energy systems. The study tour also presented the Indian

scenario to European actors and stakeholders.

Mr Chintan Shah visited hybrid energy facilities and installation in the France and

Canary Islands. The visit consisted of a visit to laboratories and facilities of Ademe and Genec in France and ITER in Canary Islands.

Genec Laboratory, Cadarache (near Aix en Provence), France

Genec is a laboratory housed in CEA (French Atomic Energy Authority). Genec has been

working in the field of PV based hybrid energy systems, battery/storage technology & solar thermal energy from about 20 years. Currently, the laboratory is optimising a PV

and diesel generator based hybrid energy systems at the test station in Cadarache.

Further, the laboratories has a separate group work on battery technology, and have

improved upon lead-acid type of batteries for hybrid system applications, such, that the

battery life has been enhanced from an average of 6-7 years to 12-13 years.

A detailed discussion with Dr Pascal Boulanger, was done, by presenting scenarios for

hybrid energy applications in respective countires. It was concluded that the experience and technologies developed by Genec, can be judiciously applied in India. It was

suggested to test run the prototype PV-diesel generated based hybrid energy systems for

Indian conditions, by inducting wind energy generator at a test site in Mithapur in India. TERI has its own testing facility in India for wind battery chargers and hybrid energy

systems.

Further, Genec has extensive experience in interphase electronics used in hybrid energy

systems. There is felt a huge vaccum of such components for the applicability of hybrid

energy systems in India, hence its possible to have a trans-national co-operation in this field.

Ademe, Valbonne (near Nice), France

Ademe is an apex organisation of the government of France in the field of renewable

energy and energy efficiency, housing more than 3000 professionals. Ademe has a number of centres, almost one per province,

and the Valbonne centre is dealing in the field

of renewable energy, including hybrid energy systems.

A meeting was done with Mr Jean-Michel Sers, who represents Ademe (OPET), and Mr Fabrice

Juqouis of Valbonne centre. Ademe is keen to

work in the field of hybrid energy sy stems and its applications in India. This is in continuation

with a MoU signed with the government of

India in February 2001. In this regard, it has been decided to carry and prepare a detailed

action plan for energisation of Lakshwadweep

isalnds through hybrid energy systems in India. In this regard, Ademe also showed willingness

to co-finance a hybrid energy demonstration

project, involving French companies. The

Figure 5: Control panel of a Hybrid energy test station

system can be tested for Indian conditions by coupling it with a wind energy converter.

Meeting with other French companies showed a positive response in tying up with TERI

for Indo-French co-operation project in the field of hybrid energy systems. 6.0 Insula OPET – Tenerife, Canary Islands

A visit was made to Tenerife, Canary Islands, along

with Mr Cipriano Marin and representatives from ITER

(Institutio Technologia de y Energie Renovables). The Cabildo (local government) formed ITER in 1990, with

a mandate to maintain the demonstration wind farm,

and earn revenue from the sale of electricity. Over the years, the revenue surplus from the wind farms has

lead to expansion of the institute (about 70 people) and

more wind farms.

The main activity ITER is in the field of wind energy,

photovoltaics, hybrid energy systems and desalination. Together with other island organisations (viz. In Italy

and Greece) they have formed a consortium known an

INSULA (International Scientific Council for Island

Figure 6 : Mr Cipriano Marin of Insula & Mr Chintan Shah of TERI (OPET -India) at ITER facilities in Tenerife

Development), to exchange and work together in island communities. ITER has been

working with the local government for 100% electrification in Tenerife islands.

ITER has been working in the field of hybrid energy systems, and they have also

developed an interphase electronics for the same for hybrid energy systems for both off-grid and grid connected applications under the COPERNICUS programme of the

European Commission.

The climatology parameters and economic development in the Canary Islands is

comparable to most of the island communities in south Asia (including India), along

with the energy resource and demand. Hence, ITER is keen to work with TERI for developing an action plan for island communities in India, along with Ademe.

It was also learnt that AECI (Agencia Espanola de cooperacion internatiocional or Spanish International Development Co-operation Agency), may co-finance

demonstration projects for hybrid energy systems by involving spanish

companies/ventures. 7.0 Conclusions The hybrid energy market in India is chiefly driven by government led incentives, while they are not designed with the economic returns of the populace at the local level. Such

an approach would create the dependence of the hybrid market on the subsidy

mechanism. Further, the restriction of hybrid power systems to 100% renewable energy back-ups is also no logical, for hybrid systems of bigger sizes6. During the study tour to

different facilities in the France and Canary Islands the following things came out.

1. Genec, has developed a PV-Diesel hybrid power systems, which is currently under monitoring & testing, possibly such a system can be tried out in India by coupling

with wind generators

2. There is a requirement felt for transfer of know-how and technology in hybrid energy systems to be used for rural electrification. Possible joint proposal for setting up

demonstration units for rural electrification should be tried out.

3. ITER in the Canary Islands have put up hybrid based desalination plant and suitable electronics for power generation. The transfer of technology in the balance of

electronics in the hybrid systems is not fully developed in India developed.

6 Where wind-diesel makes a greater sense

Figure 7: Experimental Darrius wind turbine at ITER

4. List of contacts France

1. Dr Pascal Boulanger, Genec

2. Mr Jean-Michel Sers, Ademe 3. Mr Fabrice Juquois, Ademe

4. Mr Guy Oliver, Total Energie

5. Mr Lecourt Marc, Sunwatt France 6. Mr Jean-Christian Marcel, Transenergie

Tenerife, Canary Islands 1. Mr Cipriano Marin, Insula

2. Mr Guillermo Galvan, ITER