NEW DELHI (Commodity Online) : India, where sunlight is available almost all seasons, could easily meet 5-7 percent of its power requirement from solar power over the next decade, said a KPMG report.
In its report, global consulting firm KPMG says solar power could potentially replace around 30 per cent of India's imported coal requirement and cut over 10 per cent of the country's carbon emission restrictions.
The country needs $110 billion in total investments over the next decade to develop solar energy to the extent that it can meet nearly 7% of the nation's power needs in 2022.
At a time when power shortage is prevalent across the nation, this thrust to develop renewable energy sources is the right move, the report added.
The next few years are critical, the reports' authors say, to shape the future of solar power and urge both federal and state governments to support the efforts through right policy and funds.
Solar power can help India reduce its carbon emission and reduce its dependence on imported coal, said Arvind Mahajan, head of energy and natural resources at KPMG.
Already, the Indian government has taken steps to tap this renewable energy through the creation of the National Solar Mission in 2009, which takes a three-phase approach to increase solar power use and generation across the country.
