Sustainability Outlook Headlines

EIL eyes water, waste water management as high growth areas

The follow-on public offer of Engineers India has been subscribed 0.51 times till day two. The issue, which has a price band of Rs 270-290 per share, will remain open for subscription till July 30.
Commenting on the same, Ashok Kumar Purwaha, Chairman, Engineers India, said the company intends to use the cash for equity stake in a gas-based plant and city gas distribution.

He said the company has posted a 47% compounded annual growth rate in sales and profit after tax for the last three years. "We also witnessed lumpsum turnkey growth of 100%. Our consultancy business saw a... Read more..

Rajarhat to be first zero-energy town

 Rajarhat is set to become India’s first near-zero energy satellite town (ZEST), thanks to efforts by the US department of energy (DOE) and the renowned Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL).

The BNL and DOE have initiated a special project that involves turning Indian and Chinese cities into energy-efficient hubs. A team led by Vatsal Bhatt, research engineer and energy policy analyst, BNL, was in the city on Friday to launch the project, which will be replicated in townships across India. Rajarhat is expected to house around one million people in the near future.

According... Read more..

Sulfercell closes 16MW supply agreement for customers in China and India

Sulfercell will be supplying 10MW of its copper indium sulfide (CIS) thin-film panels to a Chinese company and over 6MW of the same modules to Prime Group of New Delhi, India. The supply orders reach just over 16MW for delivery to its customers.

“Sulfurcell’s innovative solar energy solutions have been met with great interest in the Asian market,” says CEO and company founder Dr. Nikolaus Meyer. “The new supply agreements in China and Asia for over 16MW of our CIS modules mark an important stage for us as we expand into the global market.”

Sulfercell’s Chinese customer will... Read more..

UK assures support to India's civilian nuclear projects

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a panel discussion at IIT-M Research Park here, he said extending UK's support to five nuke projects would be be one of the high points of discussions with Indian authorities, he added.

''We are committed to supporting India’s civilian nuclear projects and we have specific proposals. The UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council and India’s Department of Atomic Energy are combining on five new projects, including areas like plant safety and nuclear waste management,'' he added.

Mr Willetts is in India as a part of the... Read more..

UN declares access to clean water a human right

The United Nations on Wednesday declared access to clean water a human right, voicing "deep concern" about a human necessity denied to almost 900 million people worldwide.

The 192-nation body approved a resolution put forward by Bolivia and signed by 33 other states. There were 121 votes in favour and 41 abstentions.

The resolution also calls for access to sanitation systems, currently out of reach for nearly 40 per cent of the world's population.

The decision has no legal standing, and is not part of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. But the Assembly urged... Read more..

India, Myanmar Boost Economic, Energy Ties

India on Tuesday signed five accords with Myanmar aimed at boosting counter-terror cooperation between the two countries. India also offered millions of dollars of soft loans to military-ruled Myanmar for its developmental and transport projects.

 
The accords came amidst India’s concerns about China’s growing influence in the region. However, New Delhi tactfully balanced world powers’ criticism and gently pushed Myanmar, which is often criticized for its human rights record, towards democratic reforms. In a joint statement after the talks, India stressed the need for a... Read more..

Rice husk power stations electrify rural India

Biofuels are steadily growing in popularity as a way of reducing CO2 emissions by dramatically shortening the carbon cycle. But they still have their issues -- biofuel crops displace food crops, and turning them into a burnable fuel can be an energy-intensive process.

So why not skip it entirely? A company called Husk Power Systems is building a series of miniature, off-grid power stations across India's rice belt that use rice husks, an agricultural by-product of the rice growing process, as their fuel.

The husks, which are normally discarded into landfill, where they rot... Read more..

Waste vegetable oils could be used to make fuel of the future: Study

The vegetable oil that is often discarded as waste by restaurants and pubs could be a vital source of hydrogen, and therefore, fuel - says a new study.

Although it's a greener fuel, making hydrogen may consume vast amounts of energy, use scarce natural resources, or spew out high levels of greenhouse gas.

Researchers at the University of Leeds have found a new method that uses waste vegetable oils to produce hydrogen through a process that is carbon neutral.

Dr Valerie Dupont and colleagues have perfected a two-stage process that is essentially self-heating.

... Read more..

Indian Ministry makes new grid connected solar projects guidline report public

The much awaited guidelines from the Indian New and Renewable Energy Ministry for new grid connected solar projects under Phase 1 of the JNNSM have been made public. Please find a summary, but please request a formal guideline report from the Indian authorities.

Please find a summary of the guidelines:

Size: Minimum 5 MW  Maximum 100 MW

NVVN
NVVN will invite project developers to participate Request for Selection (RFS) will be floated

Developers will submit applications for RFS in 30 days

Processing Fee
Developers may be... Read more..

CII organizes National Conference on Green Homes.

IN THE background of global warming and vital need of creating and maintaining green space, Confederation on Indian Industries (CII) is organizing the ‘National Conference on Green Homes’ on 30th & 31st July, 2010 at India Habitat Centre, New Delhi.
 
There is an urgent need of saving our planet from varied natural disasters and among the initial steps towards this is building green homes, green buildings and thus, increasing green  space.  The two day national conference will see discussions and debates on affordable housing, Architects perspectives on green homes, Energy... Read more..

Vodafone brings solar power mobile phone to India

Vodafone Essar Ltd. has unveiled a solar-powered mobile handset in India to better serve the nation's energy-starved rural masses.

India has been adding nearly 20 million mobile subscribers each month, many of them in rural areas, where electricity supply can be patchy at best.

A third of Indians don't have access to electricity, but they do get plenty of sun.

Samsung launched a solar-powered handset about a year ago, and Vodafone is now joining in the effort to bridge that infrastructure gap.

"This launch is likely to enable more people in rural India to go... Read more..

Bangladesh signs power transmission deal with India

Energy-hungry Bangladesh will begin importing power from India by late 2012 after the two countries signed a landmark electricity transmission deal, an energy official said Tuesday.
India will export up to 500 megawatts under the 35-year deal signed by the state-run power companies of both nations, the head of Bangladesh's Power Development Board, Alamgir Kabir, told AFP.
"It's a landmark deal as far as we are concerned. It will help ensure energy security for our country and ease the acute power crisis," he said.
Bangladesh has long suffered severe power outages because... Read more..