Punjab Aims for 43% Renewable Energy by 2030

Chandigarh, Nov 30 (PTI) Punjab New and Renewable Energy Sources Minister Aman Arora on Thursday said the state government is aiming to increase the share of renewable energy in electricity generation to 43 per cent by 2030.

Addressing the second edition of Monaco Hydrogen Forum in Monaco, Arora said Punjab is a power surplus state, having an installed capacity of 15,000 MW, of which 20 per cent (3,000 MW) is being generated by renewable energy projects, according to a state government statement.

Punjab is eager to set up a pilot project for producing green hydrogen from paddy straw, he said.

The state government is targetting to increase the share of renewable energy in electricity generation to 43 per cent by 2030, the statement said.

The state is committed to leading the nation in producing green fuel to meet the future challenges, which will not only bring prosperity but will also ensure energy security for the country, Arora said.

Arora said the state is promoting and facilitating green hydrogen projects from biomass by providing several incentives to industries, like 100 per cent electricity duty exemption, no change of land use charges and external development charges (EDC), 100 per cent stamp duty exemption for land registration and 100 per cent stamp duty exemption for land lease.

Arora said the Punjab government is encouraging paddy straw-based Compressed Biogas (CBG) projects in the state.

As many as four projects with a total capacity of 85 tonnes per day of CBG are in operation, consuming about 0.28 million tonnes of paddy straw per annum at full capacity, he said.

Six more projects are likely to be operational in the next six months and 28 other CBG projects are at various stages of execution, which will consume about 1.6 million tonnes of paddy straw annually once commissioned, he said.

Arora said two leading public sector undertakings -- Gas Authority of India (GAIL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation of India (HPCL) have also signed a memorandum of understanding with Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) to establish 20 CBG plants with a capacity of 10-15 TPD each.

"The state has already allotted 11 biomass-based power projects of total capacity of 100 MW, which are in operation and consuming about 1.2-million-tonne biomass annually," he added.