India targets solar power for all homes by 2019
India's newly-elected Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made renewable energy an early priority and is targetign access to solar power for every home by 2019
The newly elected government of India has taken another step towards its target of giving every home in the country access to solar power by 2019.
The Bharatiya Janata party was voted into power in May’s general election, and the newly-elected Prime Minister Narendra Modi (pictured right) has made renewable energy an early priority.
The new minister for new and renewable energy, Shri Piyush Goyal, speaking at a recent press conference, explained that the goal will be to “expand scope and usage of clean and green energy and to ensure synergy in the power, coal and renewable energy sectors”.
The government is planning to establish four giant solar power plants each with 1,000 megawatt (MW) capacity, in Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and Rajasthan.
India launched the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM) in 2010 and set an ambitious target of installing 10,000MW of solar power by 2017 and 20,000MW by 2022.
Gujarat is the centre of the solar power industry in India, having a solar policy in place before the launch of the JNNSM and the highest solar power capacity of all Indian states.
India experiences on average 300 sunny days a year and the potential for solar power generation in the country is recognised as being enormous.
Minister Goyal said that the Gujarat model will serve as a good example and examples of best practice from around the globe will be studied to help India achieve its solar energy targets.