South Asia Regional Energy Partnership (SAREP) Program is a US government flagship initiative that is closely working with South Asian national and regional government entities to meet their clean energy goals and strengthen their energy-security priorities by providing technical assistance to scale deployment of renewable energy, advancing new technologies and strengthening grid integration. In India, the program is instrumental in supporting the country’s goal to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2070, a commitment which includes achieving 500 GW of non-fossil-based electricity generation capacity by 2030. This aligns with India’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) to reduce the emission intensity of its GDP by 45% within the same timeframe. A notable example of this support is the Indian Railways’ target to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2030, where SAREP plays a key role in facilitating this transition. Similarly, other countries in the South Asian region have also set themselves Net-Zero emissions and Renewable Energy targets. SAREP is instrumental in this regional endeavor, providing technical support and capacity-building interventions to help these countries achieve their clean energy goals.
Key Interventions
- Strategic Policy Advocacy
- Grid Integration
- Regulatory Support for RE Integration
- Institutional & HR Capacity Building
- Achievements
Assisting MNRE in designing new policies and regulatory reforms for advancing rooftop solar (RTS) capacity deployment
Institutionalizing the Vendor Rating Program to ensure the quality, safety, and performance of RTS installations
Scheme design and data analytics support for Pradhan Mantri Suryodaya Yojana that aims to install RTS on 10 million households
Policy recommendations to MNRE on innovative technologies and models such as Behind the Meter Energy Storage and Virtual Power Purchase Agreements
Development and implementation support to MNRE’s National Repowering and Life Extension Policy for Wind Power Projects
Subnational level policy support to Haryana and Gujarat for advancing solar energy
Identifying multiple revenue streams and applications of utility scale BESS (Battery Energy Storage Systems) in Haryana, Assam, and Gujarat
Assessing the market potential, feasibility, and business case for behind the meter solar with energy storage systems
Evaluating different technologies and business models for scaling pumped storage projects (PSPs)
Assisting For working groups on RE Policies, Regulations, and their harmonization
Supporting CERC on Deviation Settlement Mechanism Regulations
Demand Response (DR) framework and Resource Adequacy (RA) implementation roadmap for Assam
Methodology to monitor distribution performance standards for Madhya Pradesh.
Electricity Supply Code Regulation reforms for Haryana and Karnataka
Grid Code Regulation development support for Haryana
Reliability indices benchmarking for generation, transmission, and distribution system for Bhutan
Designing Round-the-clock RE procurement tenders through sensitivity analysis and techno-commercial modeling for Indian Railways
Sector-specific large scale rooftop solar deployment support to Haryana
Implementation support to Gujarat on repowering of wind projects through technical assessment, micro siting, and pilot project
Utility led rooftop solar planning support to Andaman and Nicobar administration.
- Utility led Feeder level solarization procurement support under PM-KUSUM scheme in Haryana
- Implementation support to Gujarat on repowering of wind projects through technical assessment, micro siting and pilot project
- Technical support for one of the largest procurement tenders for solar panels and inverters in India for EESL