The 3rd Renewable Energy India 2009 Expo held in New Delhi during August 10-12, 2009, had an impressive turnout from around the world. The Expo organized by the Exhibitions India Group had over 385 exhibitors from 27 countries, 12,000 trade visitors and over 1500 delegates attending the international exhibition and conference.

The event echoed the mood of the renewable energy industry in India, upbeat, yet uncertain.  The participants were very excited about the future of renewable energies but were unsure about the effects of the global recession and the support the renewable energy sector will receive from the Government of India.

Speaking at the Opening Ceremony of the event, Deepak Gupta, India’s Secretary for the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, said, “The Government is likely to roll out a plan to add 20 gigawatt solar-based power generation capacities by the year 2020. The solar mission has been approved in principle, now we have to work on the roll-out. Hopefully, we will go to the Cabinet in the next couple of months so we can roll-out the plan this calendar year.” He stressed on the challenges of new and changing technologies and encouraged participants in the exhibition to take advantage of the platform and help meet challenges ahead. Ernst & Young made the theme presentation of the show, which stressed the need to explore the avenues of financing and access to growth capital needed for much needed infrastructure development. It was interesting to know, the Ernst & Young Renewable Energy Country Attractive index pegs India at number 4 globally.

The show featured an impressive array of technology from the sectors of solar, wind, hydro, bio, geothermal energy, cogeneration and energy efficiency. There was a good showing of international companies looking to take part in the future of India’s renewable energy markets.  The exhibition hosted pavilions for Germany and the U.S., and there was good attendance from companies representing China and Taiwan as well as a few other European countries.  As expected, Solar was the predominant sector at the conference; however, representation of wind companies was commendable.

The event also hosted several parallel events including:

1. CEO Round Table: “ Financing renewable energy projects – Current experience, Challenges and Roadmap for the future”. The interactive and thought provoking conclave of industry leaders provided insights to this sector, investment outlook and enabling policies for future growth.

2. Green Jobs Fair 2009: To highlight emerging career opportunities offered in the renewable energy industry.

3. Workshop by the Solar Energy Society of India (SESI): “Latest trends in designing, manufacturing and testing of PV modules”

4. Workshop by German India Cluster Network: “Industrial Growth Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energies”

5. Workshop by Structural Solutions: “Environmental testing of solar photovoltaic modules”

The German Federal Ministry of Economics & Technology celebrated the German day at their pavilion on the second day of the expo with enriching presentations by experts from Germany.

In a move to integrate the innovators of tomorrow with the renewable energy sector, an interactive Youth Summit invited panellists from the industry, academia, R&D experts to a discussion on challenges facing the Industry today and how the "Youth…(can help) Building a Sustainable Future”. The forum discussed various education programs and the industry support given to viable green initiatives.

Sponsored by Garrad Hassan & Partners Ltd (UK), the Youth Entrepreneurial Green Awards 2009 highlighted innovative concepts& projects including the display of the Solar powered car. 10 shortlisted projects were on display at the expo and the winner was announced following the Youth Summit.

The exhibition concluded on August 12, 2009 with participants looking forward to the Delhi International Renewable Energy Conference (DIREC) 2010, which will be held in the NCR during 27-29 October 2009. The show is a part of the IREC series previously hosted by the governments of Washington, Beijing and Bonn. The 4th global ministerial level conference with concurrent trade show will be organized by the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) and managed by the Exhibitions India Group and expects the participation of 250 speakers, over 500 exhibitors from 40 countries.