Centralized vs decentralized solar: A comparison study (India)

• Published in: Renewable energy Vol. 194; pp. 687 - 704
• Main Author: Thapar, Sapan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01-07-2022
• Subjects: Distributed plants; India; Just transition; Landed cost; LCOE; Solar; Landed cost; Solar; Distributed plants; LCOE; India; Just transition
• ISSN: 0960-1481; 1879-0682
• DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2022.05.117

Growth of solar in India has been remarkable, with the installed capacity crossing the 50 GW mark. However, most of the assets are in utility format, with negligible share of decentralized plants. Centralized projects are preferred due to their competitive generation cost, or LCOE. Our study compares a centralized solar project with a decentralized plant on economic, social and technical aspects. Economic assessment reflects competitive cost of energy near to the point of consumption (landed cost) for both these plant types after accounting for transmission losses and associated charges. On technical aspects, we discovered a shifting solar curve, as the plant locations move from east to west of the country, thus providing an enlarged window of solar power generation. Utility scale projects preclude participation of smaller entities and leads to asset concentration. In contrast, decentralized plants promote community participation, generate higher employment, while enabling energy access for the local community. A balanced policy approach needs to be followed, promoting both types of project configurations. We propose setting up spatially dispersed solar plants along the longitudinal stretch of India, co-located within the substations using standardized templates. This shall enable fulfilment of climate goals, while ushering in a just transition.