Judicious land-use for power generation may help India achieve its renewable energy ambitions

Judicious planning of land-use for solar and wind power generation will help India achieve its renewable energy ambitions, according to a report of the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA).

The report examines how much land would be needed for the country to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

IEEFA has calculated that if India were to implement a mid-century net-zero target, solar power generation could occupy in the range of 50,000-75,000 sq km of land, while wind power generation could use a further 1,500-2,000 sq km (for the land area directly impacted by turbine pads, sub-stations, roads and buildings) or 15,000-20,000 sq km (the total project area including space between turbines and other infrastructure).

The amount of land that could be needed for solar power is equivalent to 1.7-2.5 per cent of India’s total landmass, or 2.2-3.3 per cent of non-forested land.

The report’s author Dr Charles Worringham, researcher and IEEFA guest contributor, explains that the higher end of the land-use range is deliberately generous to allow plenty of leeway for planning.

“This is a precautionary approach for the purposes of planning and putting in place smart land-use policies today for future renewable infrastructure,” Dr Worringham said in a press statement.

Comparing the effects of large-scale renewable expansion to those of meeting electricity requirements from additional coal-fired power, Worringham noted that the locations for renewable energy generation can be chosen using India’s preferred social and environmental criteria and can be widely distributed across the country.

“Additional coal can only come from already heavily mined districts or from new coal blocks, which are often in significant forest areas and where displacement of Adivasi communities is an issue. Nor does renewable energy permanently alter land and natural resources in the same way as coal,” Dr Worringham said

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