1. Cluster Approach for Effective Decentralization in Off-grid
Energy Project: A Case Study from Dhenkenal District, Odisha
Paper Code: 215
Debajit Palit, K Rahul Sharma, Sudhakar Sundaray
The Energy and Resources Institute, New Delhi
IV th International Conference on Advances in Energy Research
Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Mumbai
12th December 2013

2. Contents
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Introduction and Rationale of Study
The OASYS project in Dhenkanal, Odisha
Study Objectives
Methodology
Results and Discussions

3. Introduction and Rationale
• Decentralised renewable energy power plants have emerged as one
possible solution to providing energy access to remote communities.
• A large number of programmes have been initiated, with varying degrees
of success.
• The design approach including the selection of services to be provided,
technology, local institution and business models vary from model to
model.
• The objective here is to present a design approach for solar mini-grids,
adopted under the OASYS project in Dhenkanal, Odisha: with a focus on
the clustering approach – technical versus institutional clustering

4. The OASYS project in Dhenkanal, Odisha
• A multi-consortium project: ‘Decentralised off-grid electricity
generation in developing countries: Business models for off-grid
electricity supply’, known as ‘OASYS South Asia Project
• Project aims to develop innovative and participatory business
models for decentralised off-grid electricity supply in South Asia
• One component of the project is to develop an off-grid delivery
model framework and implementation of demonstration project(s),
covering un-electrified villages, to test the framework.
• The project area under consideration comprises of four villages and
one hamlet, namely Rajanga, Kanka, Chadoi, Baguli and Rajanga
Hamlet.

5. The OASYS project in Dhenkanal, Odisha
• The village cluster is at a distance of 120 km from the state capital
of Bhubaneswar.
• The households are mostly from the tribal communities and are
completely un-electrified.
• These villages have also not been considered under the RGGVY
scheme have also little chance of getting access to electricity
through grid extension as they lie inside the Kandhara Reserve
Forest which falls under an elephant corridor in the district.
Name of Village
Rajanga
Kanaka
Baguli
Chaddoi
Latitude/
Longitude
N 20o34’07.6”
E 85o16’26.3”
N 20o32’45.6”
E 85o16’0.67”
N 20o33’19.6”
E 85o17’47.2”
N 20o32’51.9”
E 85o16’38.6”
Rajanga Hamlet(Pu
ranaSahi)
N 20o34’26.4”
E 85o16’24.7”
Total households
34
43
35
12
12
Total Population
140
189
142
46
38

6. Study Objectives
• Clustering (along with distribution lines to clustered villages) is the
preferred approach and prescribed by the DDG guidelines.
• Clustering has benefits due to economies of scale
• However, it is important to assess the benefits of clustering, specific to the
sites under consideration – from design, investment, O&M and
institutional perspectives.
• Additionally, clustering methods need to be modified for different
technologies – solar v/s biomass for instance
• Hence this study was undertaken to compare the techno-economics and
institutional benefits of different models of clustering – one which is
technical and another which is institutional

7. Methodology
•
An energy demand and livelihood assessment exercise has already been carried
out using (Participatory Rural Appraisal) PRA techniques, the results of which are
inputs to this paper
•
From the resource point of view, biomass, solar, wind and small hydro were
considered and solar emerged as the most feasible option. Biomass, though
available, is largely in the reserve forest.
•
Components of the project as a whole include: solar PV power plants, civil
construction, public distribution network and household wiring, institutional
overheads, human resources and O&M
•
Costs of components are based on quotations taken from local vendors
•
O&M costs at 0.5% of capex have been considered for 5 years assuming an
inflation of 10%
•
2 cases have been considered:
– Distributed power plants in all 5 sites
– A centralised power plant at Rajanga (most accessible site)

8. Methodology
Appliances
Capacity
Purpose
Grinder
2 HP at Rajanga
For grinding turmeric and chilli powder
Electronic Weighing
Scale and Sealing Machine
Weighing Scale – 10-20
W at Rajanga
Sealing Machine – 150
W at Rajanga
For accurately weighing and packaging of ground turmeric and chilli
powder. These have wider application since users can use the machi
ne for other products as well and bring about standardization throu
gh accurate weighing, delinking them from the middle-men
Saal Leaf Plate Pressing Ma 0.5 HP at Rajanga
chine
Water pumps
The community is currently engaged in the stitching of basic Sal leaf
plates, called Khalis. By pressing two Khalis together in the machine,
a firm plate can be moulded which has a much higher value in the m
arket.
2 HP each at Rajanga an Agricultural is possible only during the monsoon and the farm lands
lie unused during the rest of the year. Hence, to improve agricultural
d Kanaka
yield, especially of high value crops such as brinjal, water pumps are
being provided to initiate activities during the non-monsoon period.
50 LPH, 75 W each at Ra For provision of clean drinking water
janga, Kanaka and Bagul
i
In addition to the above, provision for the following services has been included in the sizing of the power plant:
TV-DVD at the community centres (for educational and training purposes)
Community centre lighting and fans (to create a resource/community centre for people to work and also for meetings,
discussions, trainings, etc.)
2 light points and a plug point at every household
Water Purifier

9. Methodology
Case 1
- Based on the load profiles and one day of autonomy for night time loads, the total
PV and battery size have been calculated
-
5 independent systems have been designed
-
The three power plants catering to a larger number of households, community,
productive and/or agricultural loads (in Rajanga, Kanaka and Baguli) are designed
as AC power plants. Taking costs into consideration, the two smallest sites (with
12-15 households with basic 2 light points and mobile charging requirements) are
being provided with DC micro grids. However the quality of service (lumen output
of lighting and hours of operation) are the same in AC or DC
-
The pumps have been connected to the main power plants (rather than an
independent solar PV set) via a distribution line (at a slightly higher cost):
-
-
(i) cater to any future requirements of increase in pump size and
(ii) cater to inrush current required by the pump when it is switched on.
Demand side management (alternating pump with other livelihoods) has been
factored in to optimise PLF

10. Length of the distribut Total length of th
ion line along the long e distribution lin
est feeder (meters)
e (meters)
6 kWp SPV power plant, 6 kVA inv
1500
2100
erter (grid tied), 48 V 500 Ah batte
ry bank
5 kWp SPV power plant, 5 kVA inv
900
1400
erter, 48 V 600 Ah battery bank
Site
AC/DC
Plant Design
Rajanga
AC
Kanaka
AC
Chadoi
AC
2.5 kWp SPV power plant, 2 kVA in
verter, 48 V 500 Ah battery bank
700
1100
Baguli
DC
200 Wp, 24 V 100 Ah battery bank
, 15 A charge controller
200
300
Rajanga
Hamlet
DC
200 Wp, 24 V 100 Ah battery bank
, 15 A charge controller
200
300

11. Methodology
Alternative Designs: Cases 2 and 3
Case 1 was arrived at with the objective of optimizing system design,
reducing losses and minimizing projects costs
In cases 2 and 3 we consider the alternative of a central power plant at
Rajanga since it is the easiest to access and leads to lowered transport costs
and reduction in delays

12. Methodology

13. Results and Discussion
Case 2:
Village/ Hamlet
Rajanga hamlet
Kanaka
Chadoi
Baguli
Economic Voltage (kV)
as per allowable standar
as per calculation
d voltages
3.4
3.3
7.3
6.6
6.7
6.6
7.3
6.6
As expected, the design becomes unfeasible
Cost of transmission cables, step-up and step-down transformers and protection
devices would be several times of the power plant cost

14. Results and Discussion
Case 3
-
High power loss unto 11% in one case occurs
To compensate for this loss: For option -1, where same local cables are extended,
the size will increase by 1,660 Wp and for option - 2, where a 45.6 mm2 cable is
used, the power plant size would need to be increased by 830 Wp
Site
Rajanga
AC/DC
AC
Length of the distribution
line along the longest fee
der (meters)
14.6 kWp SPV power plant, 2*9 kV
3,700
A inverter (one grid tied), 96 V 800
Ah battery bank
Plant Design
Total length of the
distribution line (m
eters)
13,800
Cost (INR)
Particulars
Solar Power Plant
Distribution Line
Household connections
Construction Requirements
Annualised O&M cost over a 5 year period
TOTAL
Case 1
3,162,229
1,748,000
272,000
1,983,923
241,894
7,166,152
Case 3
2,926,000
5,244,000
272,000
1,523,861
100,948
9,965,861

15. Results and Discussion
- 40% higher cost of implementation with O&M costs factored in for a 5 year period
- Transmission costs however have increased 3 times
- There may be some operational benefits from a centralised system, however a strong
case can be made for distributed systems (with a single entity to manage the cluster)
owning to increased capex and overall reduction in system efficiency. Also for such a
community, maintaining the health of such a long PDN will be difficult.
- This may be the case for solar (which is highly modular) but not for biomass or other RE
where there is a limit on the minimum capacity of power plant and a clustering of loads
around a single power plant is preferred
- Population density is another factor where results will vary, owing to the sparse
population of the area under consideration
- Future research can look into similar techno-economic analyses of implementation
costs and can have useful implications for programmatic implementation of renewable
energy technologies.

16. Thank you
k.sharma@teri.res.in