Paper Example on Solar Energy Generation in India

Introduction

India is among the top ten countries in the world that have heavily invested in the production of solar energy. India is ranked the fifth in the globe with the highest production of solar energy. The generation of solar energy is fast growing and developing as many solar production projects are spread among several states in India. Kurnool Ultra mega Solar Park is ranked as the largest world's solar park with a coverage of 5.93 square acres in Andhra Pradesh District.it is through investing in solar energy that India is trying to be the leader in the production and use of clean energy hence reducing the need for the use of fossil fuel (Kapoor et.al 475). To attain this, India targets to be in a position to generate approximately 100GW by 2022. This paper aims to discuss the generation of solar energy in India, setbacks of solar energy production, the advantages and factors that influence the need for solar energy production in India.

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Brief History of Solar Energy Generation and Use

Briefly, the production of solar energy can be described as follows. The solar cells present in the solar panels are built of silicon which serves as a semiconducting device that that the sunlight and converts it to electricity. For the last five years, the capacity of solar energy capacity in India has increased by nine folds. In the year 2017 all the way to 2018, a total of ten GW have been generated, and this is twice India's solar base. To expand on the generation of solar power, several solar parks have been established with the largest one in the world being in India. Examples of the solar parks include Pavagada and Bhadla Industrial solar park. The two parks each can produce 2,000MW. To allow for widespread use of solar energy, solar LED street lights, solar pumps, and other solar lighting systems are widely established in the rural setups. Today, approximately 185.9MW of power packs, 53.86lakh solar lighting systems have been installed in India (Luthra et al. 773). Around 20GW tenders for solar projects are in place, and about 12GW projects are implemented. To expand solar energy production projects, the government of India is encouraging investors and private sectors to focus on the industry of renewable energy. Technological advances such as wind-solar hybrid and floating solar projects are being promoted.

Factors that Influence the Production of Solar Energy

The first factor influencing the production of solar energy is the high demand for electricity in India. Considering the large population of people in India, the consumption of electricity is high. India is ranked as third among the countries that consume a lot of electricity in the world. Both the rich and the poor are after accessing power in their workplaces and homes. Power shortage is prevailing in India and has happened for a long time over the years. Significant losses are experienced via theft which is common in the urban sections and has led to the frequent power cuts being suffered from time to time (Kapoor et.al 482). India is also among the many countries trying to fight climate change, and it does this by investing in solar energy production. To support the solar energy production projects, the World Bank contributes huge funds that amount to more than one billion US dollars. With the money, solar panels are purchased and installed on the rooftops countrywide.

The second factor is the geographical location of India. India is located within the tropics hence it receives adequate sunlight throughout the year. Solar radiation is received for 300 days, and this equates to 5000 trillion kWh. India is therefore ranked among the best areas that adequately tap solar radiation. The third factor is the economic value associated with solar energy. Solar energy is highly tapped during the day, and this coincides with the demand for electricity as it is at its peak during the day (Kapoor et al. 480). This means that the bills associated with energy will be lowered and there will be no need to generate additional power. Lastly, solar radiation is a clean source of energy and using it can be equated to killing two birds with a single stone. Solar radiation provides energy with no environmental pollution hence the issue of climate change is minimized.

Factors That Limit the Expansion of Solar Energy Generation

Much as India is striving to lead in the production of solar energy, several setbacks limit the expansion of the projects. One of the most significant delays being the continued utilization of fossil energy and in this case is coal (Luthra et al. 765). People still prefer to use fuel as a source of energy as it produces more energy than solar radiation even if solar power is combined with wind energy. Most companies also prefer coal energy to solar energy as it involves the use of minimal human resources as compared to solar energy production which needs more workforce. Other factors are such as costs involved in establishing infrastructures such as transmission lines and land for developing the solar energy generation facilities.

With the growing concern over climate change, India is among the many countries striving to cut down the emission of CO2 through opting for clean sources of energy such as solar energy. India is among the top countries that have significantly invested in expanding solar energy generation as it has its benefits. Some of the factors that have driven India into investing in solar energy its suitable geographical location, economic value and increased demand for electricity. Some of the limitations associated with solar energy production as discussed above include a preference for coal energy and high costs associated with developing the infrastructure (Luthra et.al 770). Despite the constraints, India continues to strive to invest more in solar energy as it anticipates excellent benefits related to it soon.

Works Cited

Kapoor, Karan, et al. "Evolution of solar energy in India: A review." Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 40 (2014): 475-487.

Luthra, Sunil, et al. "Barriers to renewable/sustainable energy technologies adoption: an Indian perspective." Renewable and sustainable energy reviews 41 (2015): 762-776.