Energetica India Magazine October-November 2021

By design, hydropower is ideally suited to cater to the specific demands of the Indian power system. Thus, there is a need to focus on responsible and accelerated hydropower development, which will address the collective con - cerns of hydropower developers while ensuring sustainability and addressing socio-economic concerns around developing projects. Abstract: On April 5, 2020, India carried a nine-minute-long electricity experiment to express solidarity and combat Covid-19. Hydropower heralded its heroic capacity to manage the safety and stability of the nationwide electricity grid system despite an unexpected load depression of about 31,089 MW. Hydropower is clean and cheap in long run. It has features like quick ramping, black start and reactive absorption — required for ideal peaking power or spinning reserve. Propelled by large-scale capacity additions in the past decade, India is likely to experience an energy surplus of 8.8% and a peak surplus of 6.8%. While this achievement is a milestone in India’s journey towards ensuring long-term energy security, it must be noted that the per capita energy consumption of India is still 1,075 kWh, which is well below the global average of 3,144 kWh. To ensure sustainable and equitable socio-eco- nomic development, the Government of India has launched the ‘Power for All’ programme with the objective of ensuring 24x7 power supply. This programme, India’s increasing urbanization and the rapid growth of the manufacturing sector are expected to be the three key factors that will drive power demand in the country. By design, hydropower is ideally suited to cater to the specific demands of the Indian power system. Thus, there is a need to focus on responsible and accelerated hydropower de - velopment, which will address the collective concerns of hydropower developers while ensuring sustainability and addressing socio-economic concerns around developing projects. 1. Introduction: HYDRO POWER Delay Analysis and Compression Schedule of Hydro Projects Dr. Mukulesh Debnath Vice President (Structural)/Hydro & Bridges Texmaco Rail & Engineering Ltd, Kolkata 16 energetica INDIA- Oct-Nov_2021 Hydropower planning and subsequent project development in India are generally carried out on a case-to-case/individual project basis. Moreover, with water being categorized as a state subject, the consent of states impacted by the projects is required. As a result, a large number of hydropower proj- ects with common river systems between adjoining states are delayed due to the lack of interstate agreements on water usage. As water and water power being State subjects, the construction of HEPs is often delayed due to conflicts among riparian States — the Subansiri HEP is a prime example of this. Ongoing conflicts in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh over the utilization of the Brahmaputra River, and the Mulla- periyar Dam conflict between Kerala and Tamil Nadu are also some well-known instances. Furthermore, in the absence of an integrated river basin development plan, there is always the risk of multiple projects being developed on the same riv- er, often leading to possible reductions in peaking capacities and additions of avoidable costs for siltation treatment.