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in such a canal will rotate at a low speed, which can be used to produce electricity.However, this demands proper conversion systems and controls to provide qualitypower to local consumers. The task ahead is to consolidate the existing technology,expertise and industry base to standardize on such off-grid hydro systems for largescaledeployment in the Himalayan region and on river basins.3. Wind energyAs already mentioned, both input wind power and output electric power vary randomlyand the challenge is to match them at all instances through a control mechanism. Inits simplest form, connected load can be varied through a switching mechanism tomatch with wind speed. It can be noted from typical wind turbine characteristics fordifferent wind speeds that for any given wind speed, there is one generator speed atwhich the extracted power has maximum value. A maximum power point tracking(MPPT) mechanism is required to take advantage of this. Turbine type, powertransmission and generator should be standardized. The main challenge is to developa suitable control mechanism for energy balance and this needs R&D efforts.4. Solar energyIndia targets 200 MW of off-grid solar energy by 2013 but has so far sanctioned projectsonly for 45 MW. Within the off-grid component, there is a separate target of covering 20million rural households with solar lighting. Similar to wind-based power, the poweroutput from a PV panel varies with the intensity and temperature of sunlight. Fromtypical volt-ampere characteristics of PV panels, the apt load for maximum power canbe determined. Here too, MPPT could be used to adjust the load with the availablemaximum solar power.IVAPPLICATION OF ADVANCED FFT FOR POWER GENERATIONA World Energy Council (WEC) document has made the following observations andsuggestions while discussing realistic energy targets for 2030 and 2050:• At present, 2 billion people do not have access to commercial energy and thisnumber will be halved by 2035;• At present, there are obstacles for transferring “energy sources from where theyare plentiful to where they are needed and converting them to sustainable stationary,electricity and transport”;• The energy sector will need an investment of US$20 trillion by 2030;• International energy trade requires new set of rules to be set to strike a compromisebetween the interests of producers and consumers;• Closer integration of regional and global energy markets is required;• A new international framework for technology transfer is needed;• There is a need to develop local skills;• A global dialogue on security of energy supply and demand needs to be initiated;and• Taxation and legal and commercial frameworks must limit investment risks andfoster realistic expectations for risk and return.47