Energetica India Magazine -October 2020

POWER SECTOR 41 energetica INDIA- October_2020 Figure 1: NTPC Average Tariffs Source: NTPC Presentation FY2019/20 NTPC’s average tariffs increased 15% from Rs3.39/kWh in FY2018/19 to Rs3.90/kWh in 2019/20, whilst renewable en - ergy tariffs in India and globally continue on a consistently downward (deflationary) trajectory. In June 2020, Solar Energy Corporation of India’s 2GW solar auction delivered India’s lowest-yet renewable energy tariff at Rs 2.36/kWh (US$31/MWh) with zero indexation for 25 years. We estimate the levelised cost of electricity for discoms for this tender to be Rs1.13/kWh (US$15/MWh) if India experienc - es 5% annual inflation over the 25-year length of the project. In a move that could potentially reduce its overall fuel costs, NTPC recently invited bids for supply of 6Mtpa biomass pel- lets made out of stubble and husk to co-fire in its 17 coal-fired power plants across the country. NTPC plans to have 10% of biomass co-fired with coal. This will materially reduce stubble burning – a major cause of air pollution in northern India while also providing farmers a much needed second source of income. NTPC has 11.7GW of coal-fired power plants under construc - tion and 7.4GW of coal-fired capacity under pre-construction development stages with various regulatory and environmen- tal approvals pending (See Figure 2), according to data from Global Energy Monitor’s (GEM) Global Coal Plant Tracker (GCPT). against its target of 5.2GW. In July 2020, it also added 0.8GW of Unit 2 of Lara Super Thermal Power Project in Chhattisgarh. The addition of new coal-fired capacity amidst no growth in power demand during FY2019/20 cannibalised performance of NTPC’s own capacity. Based on reported Plant load Fac - tor (PLF) and Plant Availability Factor (PAF), IEEFA estimates that NTPC’s coal plant utilisation factors reduced to 61.2% in FY2019/20 from 66.9% in FY2018/19. Moreover, increasing landed fuel costs and capacity charges from the incremental capacity saw NTPC’s average thermal tariff soar in FY2019/20 (See Figure 1). Figure 2: NTPC Coal-fired Power Project Pipeline Source: GEM 1.13 1.22 1.29 1.28 1.28 1.67 2.15 1.96 2.01 1.95 2.11 2.23 3.28 3.18 3.30 3.23 3.39 3.90 0 0.5 1 1.5 2 2.5 3 3.5 4 4.5 FY2014/15 FY2015/16 FY2016/17 FY2017/18 FY2018/19 FY2019/20 Rs/kWh Fixed Charges Fuel Charges Average Tariff