Solar power neglected: KSEB faces blackout risk as BESS projects lag

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala is struggling to address its worsening power crisis as coal shortages and climate change continue to affect electricity generation. The state is also failing to make full use of solar power as a possible solution. In several places, people who come forward to install rooftop solar panels are being denied connections because of transformer capacity constraints.

Five Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) projects are currently under construction in the state. Together, they are expected to store 500 MW of solar power, which can be used for four hours. However, there are complaints that the projects are not progressing fast enough.

The state is heading towards a summer that could see reduced rainfall and heatwaves. Unless the BESS projects under construction are completed soon and decentralised BESS systems are implemented across the state, the night-time power shortage could become difficult to address. Even on days when peak power consumption remains below 5,000 MW, the current situation could require power cuts lasting more than an hour.

With the arrival of summer, peak demand is expected to cross 6,000 MW, which KSEB is currently not in a position to meet. Although efforts have begun to speed up the construction of hydropower projects, their benefits will take years to materialise.

Remove hurdles to solar power

Officials say new solar plants cannot be approved in many areas because solar generation has already reached up to 90 per cent of transformer capacity. For example, in an area served by a 100 kVA transformer, total solar-grid connectivity is limited to a maximum of 81 kW. KSEB argues that this limit is necessary to prevent transformers from being damaged if excess power is fed into the grid from solar panels. Increasing transformer capacity is the way to address the problem. There are also cases where people who have already installed solar panels are unable to obtain net meters.

Benefits of BESS

The new state government's Budget had announced a ‘Community-Based Battery Energy Storage System’ (BESS) scheme as a measure to address the power crisis. The government had said the system would be implemented in all panchayats along with large-scale storage facilities. Another Budget proposal, floating solar projects on reservoirs, also has significant potential.

The BESS projects will initially come up at Mylatty, Sreekandapuram, Mulleria, Areekode, Pothencode and Brahmapuram. Even after including storage costs, electricity stored through BESS can be supplied at a maximum rate of around Rs 6-7 per unit.

Centre allocates 150 MW till December

Amid the severe power crisis, Kerala has received some relief, with the Centre allocating an additional 150 MW of electricity to the state until December 31. The power will be available to Kerala from today through the Western Region Unallocated Pool.