Andhra Pradesh is going to come up with an integrated renewable energy policy for the State with a focus on sustainable development. The State proposes to incorporate global best practices and insights from India’s Renewable Energy (RE) rich States to achieve the ambitious targets set under the ‘Viksit Andhra 2047’ initiative.
A decision to this effect was taken at a high level meeting on formulation of new integrated RE policy called by the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, Nara Chandrababu Naidu, on Tuesday.
Andhra Pradesh is one of the leading states in RE adoption. The State’s total installed RE capacity has grown from 1.3 GW on June 2, 2014 to 10.8 GW by July 31, 2024, an official statement said.
The State boasts of significant resources that support RE adoption, including solar power potential of approximately 38.50 GW, wind power potential of 74.9 GW at 100 m and 123.34 GW at 150 m, 300 sunny days annually with solar insolation exceeding 5 kWh/m²/day, a 974 km coastline, the second largest in India.
With these abundant resources, Andhra Pradesh aims to frame an integrated policy for renewables (solar, wind and hybrid) and RE manufacturing, energy storage (BESS and PSP), Green Hydrogen and its derivatives, Biofuels, EV charging infrastructure, the statement said.
Net-zero targets
The proposed policy is to focus on harnessing the State’s rRE potential to increase the RE mix, promoting clean energy solutions to reduce emissions and support national net-zero targets. It aims to optimise power procurement costs by maximising renewable energy use, develop power evacuation and distribution infrastructure, and attract investors to establish manufacturing facilities and clean energy plants, the statement said.
It also proposes to create investment opportunities, facilitate a circular economy around clean energy solutions, and generate both direct and indirect employment opportunities.
According to the statement, the policy will be regularly evaluated to assess its impact and ensure the inclusion of new RE market guidelines from the Government of India and the Government of Andhra Pradesh. The New and Renewable Energy Development Corporation of AP Ltd (NREDCAP) will act as the nodal agency under this policy, as decided by the State Government.
On promotion of electric vehicles, Naidu directed energy department to establish at least 500 EV charging stations across various locations of the State.