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Anil Kadam, Schneider Electric, in an exclusive interaction with Electrical Monitor
As a way to predict where India’s smart grid will be by 2020, we must look no further than India’s National Smart Grid Mission (INSM), which insists that quality power will be available on demand for everyone in the country by 2027. In order to get this rolled out in time India will need to transform its power sector into a secure, adaptive and digitally enabled ecosystem that is able to provide quality energy to all participants. To accomplish this, INSM has set deadlines for all smart grid projects throughout the country involving smart customers, utilities, generation and transmission, and policies. These projects are the determining factors in making this transition a reality and include, but are not limited to, 100 percent of households receiving electricity and rolling out smart grids in all urban utilities by 2020.
Additionally, INSM is looking to advance the development of microgrids, virtual power plants, vehicle to grid, solar to grid, and building to grid technologies in order to manage peak demand and optimize use of installed capacity while reducing load shedding, AT&C losses and black-outs. These strategies are also part of a broader strategy to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions, including an ambitious plan to build new thermosolar plants to diversify generation sources and reduce the CO2 impact of the country’s electrical system.