Doing its bit to help mitigate climate change, India, in the last five years has installed over 1.03 crore smart environment-friendly light emitting diode (LED) streetlights till date, enabling an estimated energy savings of 6.97 billion kWh anually and an estimated greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction of 4.80 million tCO2 annually.
Similarly, over 36.13 crore LED bulbs have been distributed across the country, resulting in estimated energy savings of 46.92 billion kWh per year, avoided peak demand of 9,394 MW, and an estimated GHG emission reduction of 38 million tCO2 annually, said a statement here on Sunday from the Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a joint venture of PSUs under the Union Power Ministry.
ESSL has been given the mandate to implement the LED Street Lighting National Programme (SLNP), the world's largest streetlight replacement programme and The Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All (UJALA), which is also the world's largest domestic lighting project.
"Energy efficiency is vital for India's efforts in mitigating climate change and achieving a sustainable future. These programmes exemplify the Government's vision for a New India, and the empowerment of every citizen, said Saurabh Kumar, Managing Director, ESSL about the progress of the two energy efficient schemes which completes five years on Sunday.The schemes were launched on January 5th 2015 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
In fact, accelerating adoption of Energy Efficiency (EE) technologies, and LED lighting in particular, have been identified as key elements in achieving the ambitious commitments under the recently concluded Paris Agreement on Climate Change and transitioning to a low carbon global economy.
Lighting accounts for nearly 6% of global CO2 emissions. A global switch to energy efficient light emitting diode (LED) technology could save over 1,400 million tons of CO2 and avoid the construction of 1,250 power stations, as per various global studies.
Saurabh Kumar said that UJALA project brought the market transformation in energy efficiency sector. Prices of LED bulbs being distributed under UJALA programme have fallen to one-tenth of their rates in 2015 from Rs 310 to Rs 38 in 2018.
The switch from inefficient incandescent bulbs to LEDs is helping families reduce their electricity bills while also enabling them to access better brightness in homes. With the average household electricity bills down by 15 per cent, the annual energy saving is equivalent to a week's average earning.
Now the ESSL is aiming to replace 1.34 crore conventional streetlights in India with smart LEDs under the SLNP by March 2020. This will enable peak demand reduction of about 1500 MW, annual energy savings of 9 billion kWh, and reduction in 6.2 Million tons of CO2 per year, said the official.
