Dealing with a capacity shortfall: options for exceeding power requirements

In an exclusive interview with EPR Magazine, Narsing Agrawal, Vice President of Modern Hiring, discusses the impact of diesel generators in the industrial and power sectors. He also expands on the industry’s transition towards PV-diesel hybrid systems to mitigate environmental effects.

Can you explain how solar power solutions work and the advantages and disadvantages of using them compared to gensets?
Rural communities looking for a source of electricity usually have minimal options. Though it is broadly agreed that solar generators are cheaper in the long run compared to diesel generators, diesel remains a very popular choice. Access to electricity can be a tremendous boon to rural communities. Water pumps save hours of manual labour when transporting water. Indoor lighting or air conditioning extends the length of the working day. Refrigeration allows for the storage of medicines and vaccines. Lighting decreases the need to burn fuel, reducing fire risk and inhaling harmful fumes (estimated to have caused 4.3 million premature deaths in 2012). Welldesigned electrification projects can free up valuable time and labour, allowing people to focus on other economic or social priorities.

Rural communities far from the national grid require self-contained generators to provide their electricity. Unless they are close to a large body of flowing water where they can build a hydropower scheme, their options are mostly limited to solar or diesel generation.

Solar installations have a large initial capital cost but very low running costs. Washing the panels, replacing the inverter (which is usually sold with a warranty of 5–10 years), and doing some standard electrical maintenance are generally all that is required.

Why use diesel generators despite solar power advantages, and what factors contribute to solar investment risks?
Solar panels also have a very long lifetime. Manufacturers advertise a lifetime of 20 to 25 years, with output decreasing to around 80 percent of the original yield after this time. The reason for this longevity is that solar panels have no moving parts. It is only the slow-degrading effects of UV that wear the panels down.

On the other hand, diesel generators have a constant running cost due to the need for fuel, cleaning, and filter changes. Though diesel generators are cheap, to begin with, their net cost slowly accrues over time. Diesel generators are also unreliable and often require expensive overhauls to be repaired. For this reason, a range of case studies concludes that solar generators are a cheaper option over the long term.

Despite this, diesel generators remain a very common choice for electricity generation. Why? Because the initial cost of a solar generator can be anywhere from 5 to 10 times higher than a diesel generator, Communities with limited access to capital do not have the resources to pay the high upfront costs for solar. Additional factors like the risk of theft, the difficulty of repair, and vulnerability to lightning strikes also increase the financial risk associated with investing in solar instead of diesel.

How to create hybrid solutions with diesel generators and solar panels?
As the dawn of industrialisation brought a demand for power generated by diesel generators, we are now seeing an increase in interest in alternative energy sources for these generators. The rising fuel cost, environmental awareness, and additional transportation and storage may jeopardise their primary energy source. It is also known that the power grid can sometimes be unreliable and unavailable. This is why oil and gas companies and some remote areas use alternative energy sources.

As companies look to the future, they are concerned about the reliability of their current energy sources and their ability to meet increasing demands for electricity. Diesel generators have been a popular choice due to their relative ease of use and flexibility in fuel consumption. however, these benefits come at a price: diesel generators produce harmful emissions that can harm people’s health and the environment. In recent years, PV system and battery storage costs have steeply dropped, making them an affordable energy source for companies in remote areas. But solely relying on a diesel generator isn’t enough for an industrial consumer. This is why industries resort to PVdiesel hybrid systems, especially oil and gas companies.

What are the different types of gensets that Modern Hiring offers for rental, and what are their advantages and disadvantages?
As you know, Modern mainly provides equipment rental solutions in power, cooling, testing and lighting. Regarding power rental, we mainly provide a genset based on diesel and natural gas depending upon area, application and load. The range of diesel and gas-powered genset available on rental with Modern will be as follows:
• Diesel genset rental from 15KVA to 2450KVA in single unit and upto micro power plant rental upto 50MW in synchronisation in any Voltage anywhere in India
• Natural Gas genset rental from 1500KW to any capacity and any voltage
• As mentioned above, diesel/gas genset on rental can be offered based on area, application and load, so both technologies have their advantages. Some are listed down below
• Capex is high in gas genset vs diesel genset
• Opex is low in gas genset vs diesel genset
• Block loading/step loading is better in diesel genset as compared with gas genset
• Due to pollution norms, usage of diesel genset is restricted/banned in Some Areas, and preference is given to natural gas gensets due to less pollution

How do you determine the appropriate generator capacity for a client’s needs, and what factors are considered in the decision-making process?
As indicated above, many factors play important roles while deciding the capacity of a generator, like a load, application, usage, area, and sometimes the budget.

Can you describe a scenario where a client’s power requirements exceeded their rented generator capacity? How did you handle the situation?
In most cases, once an inquiry is received, we do a lot of sizing calculations by taking data from the customer, like load lists, sequences of starting, starting currents, etc., before deployment of equipment to avoid any issue post-installation. However, if any issue arises, our units are modular, which can be synchronised and capable of scaling up or, in some cases, scaling down, so flexibility is always available for clients.

How do you ensure that power solutions comply with environmental regulations and minimise their impact on the environment?
To reduce the environmental impact, Modern Hiring is maintaining the available fleet of gensets as per the emission guidelines set by the pollution control board norms, investing in new genset technologies, and exploring new fuel options such as natural gas and battery energy storage systems.