The International Trade Administration, under the United States Department of Commerce, has recommended levying a countervailing duty against wind energy equipment manufacturers from India. The recent steps are a stark reminder of Obama era fight in the World Trade Organisation between India and the United States to protect their local renewable energy industries. With the Joe Biden-led Democrats now in office, the US clean energy lobby appears to be back in action. According a notice by the Enforcement and Compliance, International Trade Administration agency said, “The Department of Commerce preliminarily determines that countervailable subsidies are being provided to producers and exporters of utility scale wind towers (wind towers) from India. The period of investigation is April 1, 2019, through March 31, 2020.”
Auctions for 1,200 MW conducted by SECI on Monday saw wind power tariffs dropping to as low as Rs 2.77 per unit, sources said. According to the sources, Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) on Monday conducted auction for a total of 1,200 MW of wind power generation capacity. SECI is the nodal agency for auctioning of renewable energy projects. Companies like JSW Energy, Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL), Ayana Renewable and Evergreen Power participated in the auction, one of the sources said. Adani Renewable (a subsidiary of AGEL) and Ayana Renewable got 300 MW each. The companies had quoted Rs 2.77 per unit and Rs 2.78 per unit tariff, respectively, while Evergreen Power got 150 MW for Rs 2.78 per unit, the source said.
A race where boats powered solely with wind energy held in Surat s Magdalla port on Sunday saw enthusiastic participation by locals from coastal areas of Dumas and Hazira. The 20 km long race that began from Magdalla on the bank of the river Tapi, has been organised for the last 50 years, and this time too was a crowd puller with people from across the city thronging the Magdalla bridge to watch. Organisers National Fighters Sports Club said around thousand spectators had gathered to view the spectacle. Avinash Patel a participant told ANI: It is a 15 to 20 km long race where 8 to 10 boats participate every year. These boats run without an engine, solely on wind energy.