 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
| Completed EMPower Projects |
EMPower India 2007 - 2009 Updated 14 May 2010
The EMPower India Project was a collaboration of the Asia Pacific
Partnership on Clean Development and Climate (APP), Tata Power
and the EMPower Program. The EMPower team received a grant from
the APP to facilitate, over an 18-month period, the development of a
pilot 1MW grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) pilot project to be
integrated into the Tata Power utility system. The project capacity
was later increased to 3MW to maximize project benefits. The
EMPower Team completed its facilitation efforts and the project is
currently under development by Tata Power.
The 3 MW 'Mulshi' PV project is located north of Mumbai and site
preparations are currently underway. Once completed, this EMPower
India project will provide clean, renewable energy to the utility system
and support the goals of the APP to accelerate the development and
deployment of clean energy technologies.
EMPower Program Phase I 2005 - 2007
The ultimate goal of the EMPower Program was to identify large-scale,
world-wide markets for grid-connected PV and CSP to bring about,
through economies of scale, significant reductions in the cost of
electricity generated from these solar technologies. The sponsoring
agencies for Phase I were UNEP, the GEF, the Solar Electric Power
Association, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation
and Development (BMZ) and the German Development Bank (KfW).
In Phase I, seventeen utilities from 10 different countries (Algeria,
Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, India, Mexico, Peru, the
Philippines, Thailand and the United States) were selected for visits
by PV and/or CSP experts. The experts worked with the staff of each
utility to make a preliminary assessment of their strategic planning
opportunities to add large-scale solar to their utility systems and at
what price would solar be a cost-competitive resource for each utility.
A wide variety of potential opportunities were identified.
Phase I culminated in a workshop (Berlin, 2006) to review the results
of the utility work and discuss next steps for the program. Key
members of the solar industry participated in this findings workshop
and expressed their support for the program. Many of the utility
participants expressed their interest in continuing their partnership
with the EMPower Program and in pursuing additional, more detailed
work with the solar experts, in anticipation of the development of solar
projects.
EMPower Program Pre-Launch Effort 2003 - 2005
Prior to the formal start of the EMPower Program, the basic objectives
and program plan for EMPower were developed. Stakeholders were
contacted and programmatic support was sought from various
sponsoring agencies. After lengthy and very extensive discussions
among the various stakeholders, the EMPower Project was approved
for funding by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) in November,
2003.
The goal of EMPower is to bring about dramatic reductions in the cost
of electricity generated from photovoltaics (PV) and concentrating
solar power (CSP), by aggregating sufficient utility demand.
The EMPower Program was officially launched at a meeting in Paris
supported by the GEF, the United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP), International Energy Agency PV Power Systems Programme
(IEA PVPS), SolarPACES and the CSP Global Market Initiative.
If you are interested in participating in an EMPower project, or would
like additional information on past or current EMPower projects, please
contact Cynthia Hunt Jaehne at chj@empowerprogram.com.
The EMPower India Project was a collaboration of the Asia Pacific
Partnership on Clean Development and Climate (APP), Tata Power
and the EMPower Program. The EMPower team received a grant from
the APP to facilitate, over an 18-month period, the development of a
pilot 1MW grid-connected photovoltaic (PV) pilot project to be
integrated into the Tata Power utility system. The project capacity
was later increased to 3MW to maximize project benefits. The
EMPower Team completed its facilitation efforts and the project is
currently under development by Tata Power.
The 3 MW 'Mulshi' PV project is located north of Mumbai and site
preparations are currently underway. Once completed, this EMPower
India project will provide clean, renewable energy to the utility system
and support the goals of the APP to accelerate the development and
deployment of clean energy technologies.
EMPower Program Phase I 2005 - 2007
The ultimate goal of the EMPower Program was to identify large-scale,
world-wide markets for grid-connected PV and CSP to bring about,
through economies of scale, significant reductions in the cost of
electricity generated from these solar technologies. The sponsoring
agencies for Phase I were UNEP, the GEF, the Solar Electric Power
Association, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation
and Development (BMZ) and the German Development Bank (KfW).
In Phase I, seventeen utilities from 10 different countries (Algeria,
Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, India, Mexico, Peru, the
Philippines, Thailand and the United States) were selected for visits
by PV and/or CSP experts. The experts worked with the staff of each
utility to make a preliminary assessment of their strategic planning
opportunities to add large-scale solar to their utility systems and at
what price would solar be a cost-competitive resource for each utility.
A wide variety of potential opportunities were identified.
Phase I culminated in a workshop (Berlin, 2006) to review the results
of the utility work and discuss next steps for the program. Key
members of the solar industry participated in this findings workshop
and expressed their support for the program. Many of the utility
participants expressed their interest in continuing their partnership
with the EMPower Program and in pursuing additional, more detailed
work with the solar experts, in anticipation of the development of solar
projects.
EMPower Program Pre-Launch Effort 2003 - 2005
Prior to the formal start of the EMPower Program, the basic objectives
and program plan for EMPower were developed. Stakeholders were
contacted and programmatic support was sought from various
sponsoring agencies. After lengthy and very extensive discussions
among the various stakeholders, the EMPower Project was approved
for funding by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) in November,
2003.
The goal of EMPower is to bring about dramatic reductions in the cost
of electricity generated from photovoltaics (PV) and concentrating
solar power (CSP), by aggregating sufficient utility demand.
The EMPower Program was officially launched at a meeting in Paris
supported by the GEF, the United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP), International Energy Agency PV Power Systems Programme
(IEA PVPS), SolarPACES and the CSP Global Market Initiative.
If you are interested in participating in an EMPower project, or would
like additional information on past or current EMPower projects, please
contact Cynthia Hunt Jaehne at chj@empowerprogram.com.