An analysis of costs of parabolic trough technology in India

There is a global resurgence in solar thermal power across the world. This paper provides a transparent framework for calculating the cost of generated electricity from a concentrated solar power (CSP) plant and the internal rate of return on equity. The different factors contributing to the capital cost and generation cost of CSP technology have been discussed. The effect of variation of plant size, solar insolation and discount rate has been shown. India has launched the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM) and plans to install 20GW of grid connected solar power by 2022. An analysis of the bids received in the National Thermal Power Corporation’s Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Ltd. (NVVN) bidding process, indicates that successful companies have access to low interest capital (effective discount rate ranging from 6.3–12.2%). With the current generation cost of 11–12 Rs/kWh (24–25 US Cents/kWh), an achievable target for CSP in the future is likely to be 6.5–7 Rs/kWh (14–15 US Cents/kWh). This may be possible through reductions in solar field and power block costs combined with increases in collector and overall plant efficiency.