Tamil Nadu is making significant strides towards a sustainable energy future, supported by announcements of adding 20 GW of solar energy capacity and 10 GW of battery energy storage capacity by 2030. The state’s policy and regulatory frameworks, including the Tamil Nadu Solar Policy and the Generic Tariff Order, are driving the adoption of grid-connected distributed solar energy. As the adoption of distributed generation systems increases, the importance of smart grid integration becomes evident. Studies that provide an avoided cost assessment offer an opportunity to network operators to identify the most appropriate distribution network nodes and distributed renewable energy (DRE) capacities

This report focuses on evaluating the network and societal impacts of introducing distributed solar energy in the Karungalpalayam HT Feeder under the Erode substation. This analysis provides valuable insights into the distribution of active power and voltage, allowing operators to optimize network performance. The report utilized the Solva tool. Solva is a web-based tool with the aim to assist grid operators in assessing the network and societal value of distributed energy resources (VODER). Solva assesses both network benefits and societal benefits. Network benefits encompass the avoided costs associated with energy, distribution capacity, transmission capacity, and generation capacity. Simultaneously, societal benefits factor in the avoided costs of CO2 emissions, SO2 emissions, NO2 emissions, and PM2.5 emissions.

For the selected feeder a 4.50 MW solar energy system interconnected at the tail end of the feeder results in a VODER benefit of INR 12.84 per kWh. These benefit is subdivided into network benefitss and societal benefit. The societal benefits achieved from the integration contribute to 8.84 INR/kWh or 69% of the total benefit. Network benefits are found to be at 4.00 INR/kWh or 31%. With the integration of distributed solar energy, the distribution line losses show a reduction, particularly if interconnected at the middle end or tail end of the HT feeder. When the solar energy system is interconnected at the tail end or at the middle end of Karungalpalayam HT Feeder, a deferral of feeder upgradation is found.In particular to Karungalpalayam HT feeder, interconnecting the distributed solar energy system close to the point of consumption offers the highest benefits.