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In wake of improved turbine technology and rising fossil-fuel prices, certain parts of India has witnessed a drop in the wind power generation cost that is below the cost of power produced from coal-fired power plants, according to Greenko Group Plc.
This drop in wind power cost is seen as a boost for the wind energy sector in India, and suggests that new wind farms coming up in the country will likely survive without state subsidies. The cost of wind has closed in on coal due to additional advanced turbines, which enable to generate additional electricity even from lower wind speeds, and hence the sector is likely to attract more investors now.
Speaking about this development, Mahesh Kolli, president of Greenko, which is building wind projects with General Electric Co. in India, said, “Today we are able to supply energy below the cost of conventional power. That is the key development for this year.” He added that the abolition of Accelerated Depreciation (AD) tax incentive which was withdrawn n from April 1, 2012 is not going to hamper the wind power industry in the country.
According to Ashish Sethia, an analyst at London-based Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF), the most efficient wind power projects in India are at par with the new coal power plants. The best projects have a levelised cost of energy, which allows for comparison between different fuel sources, of Rs. 2.7 to Rs. 4.4 a kilowatt-hour, compared with power from coal costing Rs. 1.9 to Rs. 4.8.
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