The Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) is hoping to get the public interested in wind energy, specifically micro wind energy systems which can boost localised renewable energy generation. Unlike solar power plants, wind energy systems have never really caught on in Kerala. But the State power utility feels that micro wind systems have considerable potential, given Kerala’s long coastline and other windy locations.

Wind projects up to 20 kilowatt (kW) capacity fall under the category of micro wind projects. As a first step towards demonstrating their suitability, the KSEB will deploy eight on-grid micro wind systems (three each of 2 kW and 3 kW and two 5 kW systems) at its own facilities across the State.

Apart from Kerala’s 590-km coastline which offers a lot of potential, the National Institute of Wind Energy (NIWE) has identified a clutch of wind-rich sites in the State, the KSEB noted. “The possibility of installing micro wind systems in these areas is to be explored. If a sizeable quantity of round-the-clock power can be generated from micro wind systems, it will be beneficial to KSEB in meeting the peak load demand and prosumers also will benefit from it,” the KSEB noted in a January 9 order.

Demonstration units

Under a ₹30-lakh project, demonstration units will be deployed at the KSEB headquarters at Pattom, the Vizhinjam sub-station in Thiruvananthapuram district, Mankombu sub-station in Alappuzha, Peermade sub-station in Idukki, Marine Drive sub-station in Ernakulam, the Vydyuthi Bhavanam/Gandhi Road sub-station in Kozhikode, the Ponnani sub-station in Malappuram and the Ezhimala sub-station in Kannur district.

The KSEB calculates that micro wind systems will complement large wind turbines in tapping the renewable energy potential. Kerala’s current capacity in wind energy consists of just 2.03 megawatts (MW) under the KSEB and about 69.25 MW under other players. Whereas, an earlier study by the Ministry of Renewable Energy and the Agency for New and Renewable Energy Research and Technology (ANERT) had pegged the potential at around 605 MW.

A comparison

To compare, Kerala’s solar energy capacity has touched 1,215.68 MW, as per data furnished by the Power department in the State Assembly in October last year.

Wind energy is a major component in the KSEB’s plans to raise the installed capacity in internal power generation to 10,000 MW by 2030. Under this plan, the KSEB hopes to add 370 MW of wind energy through big onshore projects and 50 MW through offshore initiatives.