One sun, one world, one grid

Theme:

• At United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), India launched the ‘Green Grids initiative‘ – One sun, One world, One grid (OSOWOG) to create a global solar power grid.

What is ‘One sun, One world, One grid’ project:

• The OSOWOG project is a trans-national electricity grid that allows the transmission of solar energy among the member countries.
• Some places get abundant sunlight, whereas some other places do not get much sunlight. The global solar power grid will transfer the solar energy from solar resource-rich countries to others. Moreover, a global grid will ensure a 24-hour energy supply by sharing energy. When one side of the world faces the sun, the other side will be in the dark. So, a global grid will ensure a 24-hour power supply without the need for storage.
• Currently, 124 countries agreed to become the members of International Solar Alliance (ISA).
• Although the name mentions solar power, OSOWOG aims to put investments to utilize all the renewable energy sources such as wind energy.

Benefits:

• It will reduce the usage of fossil fuels and hence can slow down climate change.
• The OSOWOG project can provide access to clean and sustainable energy.
• It will accelerate the energy transformation from fossil fuels to clean energy. And hence it will attract green investments.
• This project will significantly reduce energy prices. This will give an affordable power supply to even the low-income groups. So, this will improve living standards.
• It will reduce the need for storing solar energy and save storage costs.
• Plenty of green jobs will be created.
• It will reduce carbon footprint.

Challenges:

• The practicality of OSOWOG should be studied thoroughly because transmission to long distances can be expensive. The efficient way of transmitting energy must be studied.
• The project requires huge capital investment.

Conclusion:

One sun, one world, one grid will revolutionize the energy sector. It will accelerate energy transition to clean and sustainable energy. If the OSOWOG is implemented well, power will be accessible and affordable to everyone.

Your Turn…

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Photo by Caspar Rae on Unsplash

References:

• One Sun, One World, One Grid: All you need to know about mega solar plan

• ‘One Sun, One World One Grid’: PM Modi calls for global solar grid at COP26

• How India-UK ‘green grids’ initiative can boost transition to clean energy

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