Indian Wind Resource Atlas: Value and Features

Indian Wind Resource Atlas: Value and Features

Question: GoI recently launched the Indian Wind Resource Atlas with tracking level of 100m. Discuss its features and value for the Indian environment.

Value

- GoI recently launched the Indian Wind Resource Atlas with tracking level close to 100 m that can be used for measurement of solar radiation.

- The atlas can also be used for enhancing project efficiency and grid management

- New atlas is an online GIS or geographic information system took to assess wind energy potential in India on a regional and local basis

- It can also be used for solar power projects to choose parameters for selecting the site

- Atlas will also assist policy makers at centre and state level to meet issues pertaining to tariffs, transmission, grid frequency and provision of better infrastructure for investments

- Government has equal focus on all forms of renewable energy and will including solar, wind or biogas

Features

- New Indian Wind atlas is an important tool which contains annual average values of wind speed(m/s)

- Wind Power Density and Capacity Utilisation Factor is calculated for average 2MW turbine at 100 m

- In the atlas, resultant layers are generated at extremely high resolution and joint frequency tables have been derived for the entire nation at 500m resolution

- High resolution re-analysis data set has been put to use for the study

- Atlas uses dynamic mess micro coupled WRF modelling technology

- MNRE, Government of India, through NIWE, an autonomous institute of MNRE, announced the “Indian Wind Resource Atlas : Online GIS”, using scientific blend of satellite and one of the world’s largest number of measured (1300 locations ) ground data.

- Under MNRE, the NIWE has created an online GIS based wind resource atlas at 100m hub height

- with scientific precision based on available data sets of wind and land geographically spread across India

- NIWE previously known as C-WET performed the potential estimation study corroborating the mesoscale derived wind maps and micro-scale measurements

- The Indian wind atlas has been previously released in 2010 at 50 m in collaboration with RISO DTU from Denmark

Facts and Stats

- Installed capacity of renewable power is around 36,500 MW

Wind power has contributed to 24,000 MW installed capacity in states like the following:

- TN

- Maharashtra

- Gujarat

- Karnataka

- AP

- MP

- Wind electric generators of unit sizes 225 KW to 2.50 MW have been deployed across India

- India is 5th in the world for renewable energy generation after China, US, Germany and Spain.

- Government is targeting 60,000 MW of wind power by 2022