Roof Tops or Highways ?

To generate 1 Kw of solar power you need , approx. 10 Sq Meter ( 100 Sq ft ) of roof top

So , if you want to generate 817 Kw , you would need 8,170 Sq Meter of flat roof

But the Chinese have just managed to generate 817 Kw , using only 5,875 Sq Meter space

And , that too , on the highway surface  !  In 28 % less area as compared to Roof Top

But the breakthrough has nothing to do with mere reduction in area

It brings the World , one step ( - actually , one Km ) closer to :

A Reverse  Toll ?  Possible  [  07  May  2017  ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/05/a-reverse-toll-possible.html

For a proof , read following news :

China successfully tests its first photovoltaic highway

·         The Hindu Business Line

·         30 Dec 2017

·         ASIAN NEWS INTERNATIONAL

·          

Roads with solar panels are no surprise. But a road with built-in wireless charging systems for electric vehicles and other sensors for drones is surely taking things to the next level and looks like China has successfully achieved that feat.

According to Xinhua, China has successfully tested its first photovoltaic highway based on home grown technology, in the country’s eastern Shandong province.

The road is constructed using solar panels which have a thin sheet of clear concrete on top, protecting the surface. The panels were built to transfer energy to electric vehicles passing on top of them.

 The one kilometer-long segment of the solar-powered highway covers a surface area of 5,875 square meters.

The special section has three layers. The bottom is an insulator to prevent moisture from getting to the photovoltaic devices in the middle. At the top is the protective, transparent concrete layer.

The tested segment of the highway can generate 817.2 kW of power and is expected to generate 1 million kWhr of electricity each year.

The electricity generated through this will be connected to China’s national power grid.

China becomes the second country to construct a photo-voltaic highway.

In late 2016, the world’s first photovoltaic road fitted with solar panels debuted in France.

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Shri Gadkriji may want to challenge ISRO / NHAI , with this  !  

30  Dec  2017

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

Buck Stops Here !

U.S. president Harry S. Truman had a sign with this inscription on his desk.

This was meant to indicate that he didn't 'pass the buck' to anyone else but accepted personal responsibility for the way the country was governed.

I got reminded of this when I read in today’s news papers :

“ Crypto-currencies are a Ponzi scheme , warns FinMin “

The spurt in the prices of Bitcoin and other crypto-currencies seems to have rung an alarm bell, with the Finance Ministry expressing concern and likening them to Ponzi schemes.

An official statement issued on Friday cautioned against investing in them.

Noting the “phenomenal increase” in the price of virtual currencies (VCs), including Bitcoin, in India and globally, it said,

“VCs don’t have any intrinsic value and are not backed by any kind of assets. The price of bitcoin and other VCs... is entirely a matter of... speculation resulting in spurt and volatility in their prices.”

“Consumers need to be extremely cautious so as to avoid getting trapped in such Ponzi schemes,” the statement added.

The government said VC transactions are encrypted and are likely being used for terror-funding, smuggling, drug trafficking and money laundering.

The government, however, sounded a note of caution, stating that ,

“VCs are not backed by government fiat” and are not legal tender.

VCs are neither currencies nor coins, and the government or the RBI has not authorised them as a medium of exchange, it noted.

Is government so helpless that the most it can do to “ protect the consumers “ , is to keep issuing “ Warnings / Caution Notices “ ?

Could it not have come out with an  ORDINANCE  banning Crypto-Currencies , as suggested by me in my following email to Shri Jaitleyji ?  Is  it  too late , even today  ?

 Whatis holding back ?  [  06  Dec  2017  ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/12/what-is-holding-back.html

 

I have not had an opportunity to shake hands with Shri Jaitleyji so I cannot say about him the way I can say about ( Ex ) President Truman with whom I did shake hands in his library ( Independence – Mo - 1957 ) :

 

“ The Buck Stops Here “

 

30  Dec  2017

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

Free Electricity ? Possible

Oh !  To  be  in  Fatherland  !

Germans call their country, “ Fatherland “

Germans are also known for their very high standard of Discipline / Efficiency / Productivity – and , in recent past , have bailed out , some “ about to go bankrupt “ European countries

But it is also a very cold country and I would avoid going there ( - fortunately , I have no reason to go there ! )

But the reason behind the title of this blog , is the following news :

Now, Germans get paid to use power

·         The Times of India (Mumbai edition)

·         28 Dec 2017

·          

Germany has spent $200 billion over the past two decades to promote cleaner sources of electricity.

That enormous investment is now having an unexpected impact — consumers are now actually paid to use power on occasion, as was the case over the weekend.

Power prices plunged below zero for much of Sunday and the early hours of Christmas Day on the EPEX Spot, a large European power trading exchange, the result of low demand, unseasonably warm weather and strong breezes that provided an abundance of wind power on the grid.

Such “negative prices” are not the norm in Germany, but they are far from rare, thanks to the country’s effort to encourage investment in greener forms of power generation.

Prices for electricity in Germany have dipped below zero — meaning customers are being paid to consume power — more than 100 times this year alone, according to EPEX Spot.

What causes negative prices ?

Basically, when the supply of power outstrips demand for it.

The energy supplies that Germany depends on, are less predict- able than they used to be. Wind power, in particular, is highly dependent on changes in weather patterns.

 Giant spinning turbines produce, on average, about 12% of Germany’s power, but on windy days, they can generate several times that amount.

At the same time, other mainstays of the electricity supply, especially some coal and nuclear power plants, are unable to dial back quickly enough, leading to negative prices on electricity trading markets.

I believe this  EXTREMELY  LOW price of electricity is , one more reason ( apart from discipline / efficiency / productivity , cited above ) , why Germany is a very prosperous country

What do this “ Near ZERO “ electricity prices mean to the German Economy ?

·         Costs of manufacture of “ products ”  and delivery of “ services “ , go down

·         Industrial robots consume a lot of electricity. These become cheaper to operate

·         Cheaper “ operating cost “ of robots encourage companies to replace “ high wage “ workers with more robots – further reducing manufacturing costs

·         Rapidly increasing demand for robots leads to more manufacture of robots , which generates jobs for more skilled workers

·         Ave annual work-hours in Germany has dropped from 1371 ( 2014 ) to 1363 ( 2016 )

·         “ Electricity cost as a percentage of total manufacturing cost “ for Steel , comes to around 30 %. This percentage is much higher for Aluminum / Copper etc

What happens if this Electricity cost drops drastically ?

Raw material costs drop

And when Raw Material Costs drop, costs of ALL products drop !

When Product Costs drop , it becomes a  LOW  COST  ECONOMY – enabling greater exports  !

Even in some distant future , can we expect such a scenario in India ?

It is possible if our Policy Makers , implement :

FROM GREED TO GREAT ?  [  01  Oct  2015  ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2015/10/from-greed-to-great.html

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Unlimited Power : and round theclock ?  [  29  July  2016  ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2016/07/unlimited-power-and-round-clock.html

=============================================

Sun : Our Soul ( A New SOS )  [  02  Jan  2017  ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.in/2017/01/sun-our-soul-new-sos.html

=============================================

Solar Power at Rs 1 per Kwh ?  [  29  Jan  2017  ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/01/solar-power-at-rs-1-per-kwh.html

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How Cheap can it get ?  [  14  March  2017  ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/03/how-cheap-can-it-get.html

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INDIA : the NEW LAND OF THERISING SUN ?  [  01  April  2017  ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.in/2017/04/india-new-land-of-rising-sun.html

===============================================

Green Buildings ? Put Greed to Work !  [  05  June  2017  ]

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/06/green-buildings-put-greed-to-work.html

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To figure out how far we are from Electricity Price of  Re 1 / kwh , read :

http://www.dnaindia.com/business/report-wind-picks-up-sun-shines-in-india-s-power-sector-in-2017-2571308

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http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/economy/renewable-energy-sector-adds-12-gw-capacity-in-jannov/article10004762.ece

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http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/national/wind-power-generation-to-reach-9500-mw-in-current-financial-year-renewable-energy-minister/article10004697.ece

29  Dec  2017

www.hemenparekh.in / blogs

SIAM seeks SOPS

Indian Express ( 26 Dec ) carries following news :

 

======================================================

 

 

In a white paper submitted to the government, SIAM ( Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers ) has asked the government, in respect of Electric Vehicles Policy  :

·         5 per cent GST on Electric Vehicles

·         One-time income tax deduction amounting to 30 per cent of vehicle price from total taxable income of individual consumers who have not availed of a bank loan to promote usage of electric vehicles.

·         Exemption of Road tax for EVs,

·         Bridging the viability gap

·         Enabling charging infrastructure build-out

·         Encouraging domestic manufacturing besides providing other enablers

·         Power tariff for charging of EVs could be 50 per cent of the existing domestic rate for home

·         Workplace charging to enhance utilisation of EVs.

·         Exemption from paying toll charges

·         All electric vehicles used for commercial purposes be fully exempt from state entry taxes

·         All electric two-wheelers and passenger vehicles used for personal purposes be exempt from parking charges.

·         On interest rate of finance, it sought a favourable treatment similar to priority sector lending for EVs.

======================================================

Not having read the original White Paper , I am unable to say whether SIAM overlooked one of my suggestions in respect of Electric Vehicles, as listed in :

 

Auto Industry : Policy  Inputs

https://myblogepage.blogspot.com/2017/12/auto-industry-policy-inputs.html

 

 

But , may be SIAM / Government may want to consider following alternative for incentivizing individual buyers to purchase Electric Cars in their own names :

·         Just as in case of Corporate Buyers , grant “ depreciation “ to individual buyers for owning an Electric Car / Bike / Truck etc

·         This could be 33 % per year ( on straight line method )

·         This could be “ set off “ ( deductible ) against Personal Income Tax payable by the buyer for that year

·         In case where income tax payable is less than the depreciation amount , balance should be allowed to be carried forward to the next year

I have a feeling that such a provision , if introduced by Shri Jaitelyji in his forthcoming budget ( 01 Feb 2018 ) , would give a tremendous boost to the manufacture / sale of Electric Vehicles

There may not be any need to grant any other subsidy / incentive to buyers !

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28  Dec  2017

www.hemenparekh / blogs