India’s Center Releases Offshore Wind Energy Lease Rules as Part of Clean Energy Drive
Following extensive consideration, the Center has published the offshore wind energy leasing regulations, marking a major advancement in India’s efforts to harness the potential of offshore wind energy. The government plans to shortly offer bids for leasing the seabed regions, thus this current announcement sets the way for the next phase.
According to the regulations, no individual or organization may establish offshore wind energy projects or offshore transmission projects without a lease issued in accordance with these regulations. All offshore wind energy sites will be solely given by the government. Following a review of wind resources and maritime spatial planning, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy will choose the lease area. Nonetheless, prior to the lease being granted, approvals from a number of ministries, including the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways, the Environment, Defense, Home Affairs, and External Affairs, must be secured.
It is anticipated that the government will shortly release the bids for the first offshore wind seabed lease in India. However, it will likely take a few years for the offshore wind projects to be operational. Because of the increased price and complexity required, the first installations are expected to take place around in 2030. Due to their delicate nature, offshore wind projects present difficulties and need approvals from many ministries, according to Binit Kumar Dass, Deputy Program Manager for Renewable Energy at the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE).
As per the regulations, the lease is valid for resource measurement and associated study/survey operations for a duration of three years, with the possibility of an additional two-year extension. But if the lessee hasn’t begun construction to install wind energy capacity in accordance with the conditions of the lease, the lease will expire after five years and all permissions will be revoked.
However, the lease may be extended for a further 35 years for the purpose of building and operating offshore wind energy projects. This extension may be granted on a case-by-case basis, contingent upon the project’s practical viability and safety. Generally speaking, a lease will encompass between 25 and 500 square kilometers, however, this might change according to the scope of the project.
In comparison to onshore wind turbines, offshore wind turbines are more expensive and have a bigger size. While the geotechnical surveys will involve drilling boreholes to ascertain the soil conditions and its load-bearing capacity in order to set up the offshore wind projects, the geophysical surveys will involve physical examination of the water column and seabed conditions to aid in the design of the foundation’s structures for such offshore wind turbines.
Despite the government’s October 2015 notification of the “Offshore Wind Energy Policy,” India currently has no offshore wind generating capacity under commission.
Power Minister RK Singh said in Parliament earlier this year that the ministry has identified possible offshore wind zones off the coasts of Tamil Nadu and Gujarat for the first stage of development. Additionally, a LiDAR was deployed by the National Institute of Wind Energy (NIWE) off the coast of Gujarat in 2017 to gather wind data for two years. The 1.0 GW project capacity in Gujarat’s 365 sq. km. geophysical survey has been finished. Along with the construction and commissioning of a LiDAR off the coast of Tamil Nadu, a rapid environmental impact assessment (EIA) study and geotechnical investigation at three bore-hole sites have also been completed. Additionally, in July 2022, the ministry released a “Strategy Paper for Establishment of Offshore Wind Energy Projects,” which included a number of development models.
