Current Affairs 2022: Green Grid Initiative

The Initiative is backed by over 80 countries. It will allow areas with excess solar power to send it to areas with deficits.

Green Grid Initiative

We have all been mindful of the importance of renewable energy sources for a long time. Renewable energy stands out as a viable source of clean and limitless energy. India is the fifth largest country in renewable energy capacity and hence has a mega plan of ‘Transnational solar electricity grid’, a system in which different countries can generate electricity through solar power and share it with one another. As an initiative, PM Narendra Modi proposed the ‘One Sun, One World, One Grid’ (OSOWOG) in the first assembly of ISA (International Solar Alliance) in October 2018. The United Kingdom has agreed to merge their Green Grid Initiative (GGI) and India’s One Sun, One World, One Grid (OSOWOG) initiative during the UK-India Virtual Summit held in May 2021. 

Reports suggest “In a single hour, the amount of power from the sun that strikes the earth is more than what the entire world consumes in a year”. The countries that lie between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn are known as the Sunshine Countries. These sunshine countries alone can generate enough power through solar energy to fulfil the demand of the whole world. But it has its own disadvantages.

Disadvantages of Green Grid Initiative:

1. The solar power is intermittent. On cloudy days or at night, this plan seems to fail.
2. The solar energy is not concentrated in a place, it is diluted and solar power plants can take up a lot of space. Smaller countries that don’t have enough land may not consider investing in such a project.
3. One of the major problems is that electricity can’t be stored. We need to match the demand with a constant supply and with solar energy as a choice, this vision may seem sceptical. 

What is Green Grid Initiative?

However, as it is said “Change helps you to adapt to various situations that will come your way” and that is where Green Grid Initiative- OSOWOG initiative comes in place. Among the most ambitious solar projects in the world, it aims to build a transnational solar electricity grid. 

With the goal to provide clean energy, this project will connect 80 countries allowing excess renewable power to be sent to areas with deficits. The basis of this project lies in the process of rotation of the earth. When one part of the earth receives sunlight, the other side is dark and hence the electricity generated in the sunshine hit areas at that time can be transferred to the countries having nighttime at that point. This way there will be a constant and surplus amount of energy supplies throughout the world. 

How will Green Grid Initiative work?

The Green Grid Initiative announced at the recent Glasgow summit by the UK COP26 was backed by 90 countries to accelerate the construction of the new infrastructure for the world powered by clean energy. This would include a massively expanded energy generation capacity in the energy-rich locations, which will be connected through a common grid (continental grid). These smart grids would connect millions of solar panels, charging points and micro-grids for rural communities and ensure pliability during extreme weather. With India in the middle, the solar spectrum can be divided into two broad zones- the far East including Myanmar, Vietnam, Thailand, Laos & Cambodia and the far West including the Middle East and Africa. The project has proposed three phases. The first phase will connect the Indian grid with the Middle East, South and South-East Asian grids. The second phase will include the connection of first phase countries with the African grid. The final phase will allow a global solar power connection. 

Impact of Green Grid Initiative

Despite knowing the importance of renewable energy, India produces 60% of electricity from coal. According to Vibhuti Garg, Head of Energy Economist for India at the Think Tank, IEEFA, the OSOWOG will reduce dependency on coal. It will attract investments, resulting in economic gains thereby positively reducing poverty and other socio-economic challenges. The OSOWOG can be a way to reduce the demand for storage hence lowering the price of the energy transition. It is a part of the broader attempt to roll out affordable low-carbon technology. 

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I am Tanieya,  a juggler of words and works. I am a graduate in ELL from St. Xavier's College, Ranchi, and currently training as a teacher. Along with being a student, intern and freelance writer, I have discovered my interest in writing poetry as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Note: The views expressed in this article are solely the author’s own and do not reflect/represent those of Shiksha.