WEF 2023: NTPC Chairman Bats For Pumped Hydro Storage
NTPC Chairman and Managing Director Gurdeep Singh on Tuesday said that the pumped hydro storage system is emerging as a potential alternative in the absence of viable storage solutions.
Singh was speaking at the World Economic Forum 2023 in Davos, where he said that India's energy demand is growing at a breakneck pace, but it is difficult to rely only on renewables in the absence of viable storage solutions.
"Pumped Hydro is also something which we are focusing on so that we can somehow alleviate some of the problems of critical minerals," he said during a panel discussion, deliberating on enabling infrastructure for a clean energy economy.
The forum tried to examine the availability of critical minerals and the enabling infrastructure to transition successfully to a more sustainable, accessible, and productive energy system.
Pumped Hydro storage acts like a giant battery that stores power to release it when needed. It is a two-reservoir system at different elevations. In the case of renewable power projects which have surplus power, it can be used to pump water to the higher reservoir during non-peak hours.
When electricity is needed, water can drop through the turbine to the lower reservoir to give back stored electricity.
Singh asserted that if a developer is starting some new renewable project, it is vital that they have the visibility to complete the project.
"Incidentally, the supply side has gone into the hands of a few countries due to which there have been certain disturbances on the supply side leading to delays in completion," he said.
He admitted that supply chain issues related to critical minerals are leading to the non-availability of some equipment for solar and wind projects.
Singh added that the government has been incentivising production in the country for the solar value chain and the wind sector to deal with these supply chain issues.
On moving beyond solar and wind, Singh said that the world must start working on other technologies, such as carbon capture, which in the long run, would also become a part of the circular economy.
He also stressed certainty in policy matters to drive investments in the sector. "Policy should always be at the forefront and should not be for the short term because investments will only come if there is policy certainty for a longer time period," he stated.
He described the recently unveiled National Hydrogen Mission as playing a significant role in India's energy transition and its prospects of becoming a fuel exporter. However, he reiterated the problems associated with the availability of critical minerals and their affordability.
Singh's fellow panellist, Anne-Laure de Chammard, Member of the Group Executive Board and Executive Vice-President, Siemens Energy AG, talked about the enormous potential for critical minerals availability.
She cited Sweden's example, where lithium reserves were recently discovered and said that the world needs to invest in the right explorations.
