Over 2.30 lakh rural households were brought under the solar power system in last five years by Infrastructure Development Company Ltd (IDCOL) as alternative source of energy.

Executive Director of IDCOL, a company under the Ministry of Finance, M Ehsanul Haque yesterday said they have set a target to install one million Solar Household Systems (SHSs) by 2012 to help government achieve the target of providing electricity to all by 2020.

President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom on Saturday proposed four measures to address the energy crisis facing countries of the eight-member regional body, whose leaders focused their inaugural speeches, at the 15th summit meeting, on a wide range of topics from terrorism and climate change to rising food prices.

Noting that high demand for energy was a consequence of rapid economic growth in South Asia, Gayoom said that first, reliance on fossil fuels need to be reduced and tangible targets should be set to harness alternative energy sources.

A total of 30,000 biogas plants have so far been installed in rural areas in the country as an alternative source of energy to reduce the use of firewood.

People are using biogas for cooking, lighting and generation of electricity while residues from the plants utilised as organic fertiliser for crop production.

Ajay Modi / New Delhi July 30, 2008, 0:03 IST

The introduction of 10 per cent mandatory blending of ethanol with petrol is unlikely to happen from this October, as decided by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) in October 2007.

The government has not notified the decision and the oil marketing companies are yet to float tenders for procuring the additional quantities of ethanol.

Makarand Gadgil / Mumbai July 22, 2008, 3:32 IST

There is a big buzz around ethanol blending with petrol as it is seen as providing relief for the consumers of this scarce commodity when international prices have seen unprecedented spike in the last few months.

But ethanol manufacturers are an unhappy lot as petroleum firms in the country are delaying commitment for ethanol purchase. They have now up the ante by seeking to open petrol pumps for ethanol-mixed petrol and direct sales to bulk consumers.

Shastry V. Mallady

MADURAI: A bio-diesel plant, with a capacity to produce 1,000 litres a day, has been sanctioned for the State by the Department of Science and Technology, New Delhi. Southern Railway is likely to buy the product from the plant.

The Tamil Nadu State Council for Science and Technology took the initiative and got clearance for the Rs.75-lakh plant at a meeting held in New Delhi last week, said S. Vincent, Member Secretary of the council. Steps are being taken to educate farmers on the benefits of

There is an urgent need for tapping the potential of alternative energy in Pakistan particularly and South Asia region in general because of acute shortage of energy crisis. This was sated by Tariq Saeed, President Saarc Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Saarc CCI) in his meeting with Arif Alauddin, the newly appointed CEO, Alternative Energy Development Board (AEDB) in Islamabad.

Sujay Mehdudia Owing to political instability at the Centre NEW DELHI: With international crude oil prices touching a whopping $147 a barrel, the search for alternative sources has intensified. However, the political uncertainty over the India-U.S. nuclear deal has delayed the announcement of a bio-fuel policy, outlining incentives for those undertaking such activity. Although Minister of State for New and Renewable Energy Vilas Muttemwar declared last month that the government would come out with a new bio-fuel policy by July second week, this now looks a distant dream.