Pune,  Govt. of Maharashtra has also proposed to amend in DC rules for energy efficiency in Building sector said Mr. Ganesh Naik,Minister for State Excise and Non-Conventional Energy. In the developed countries, the per capita energy consumption is ranging from 10.000 to 12000 kWh whereas in our country it ranges between 600 to 700 kWh. Because of the increasing demand for energy, the conventional fuels like petroleum, natural gas and coal are being used in large quantities.

The unlimited use of such non-renewable resources may lead to the complete depletion and energy efficient buildings are the need of the hour, he said. Mr. Naik was speaking at the inauguration of RENEWTECH India 2010: International Conference & Exhibition organized by the India Tech Foundation and MCO Winmark

Ms. Christa Thoben, Minister for Economic Affairs & Energy, North Rhine Westphalia, Germany H.E. Mr. Walter Stechel Consul General of Germany in Mumbai , Mr. Bernhard Steinruecke, Director General, Indo-German Chamber of Commerce and Mr. Indra Mohan President, India-Tech Foundation, Mr Asish Gupta of Winmark were present on the occasion.

Mr. Naik added that Govt. of India has recently announced the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission, Under this mission a target of 1000 MW grid connected solar power projects has been set and Maharashtra needs to achieve a pie of 10% target within this mission.

In line with the policies announced by the government the state has installed projects worth 2462 MW capacity through renewable energy sources .

These projects are implemented through private, co-operative and public sector participation in Wind energy, Bagasse based Co-generation, Agriculture based , Industrial based and Micro-hydro sectors.

Because of energy conservation programmes state has achieved energy audit of 477 industrial units and from that an energy equivalent to Rs. 50.00 Cr. has been saved, he added.

Mr. Naik added that the ministry was looking at possibilities of generation of energy from sea waves. In remote and hilly areas of the state, where there is no supply of electricity to various villages and their hamlets, such villages / hamlets are being electrified through non-conventional energy mainly through solar energy. At present 340 villages have been electrified by solar energy by which 25,206 families have been benefited.

Ms. Christa Thoben, Minister for Economic Affairs & Energy, North Rhine Westphalia, Germany said that she expected the area of renewable energies grow above-proportionately and cater for 20% of power requirements by 2020. The European Union has set itself the same target. Germany is even aiming for 30%.

She added that with its energy policy, North Rhine-Westphalia is tackling the global challenges in energy supply and at the same time strengthening itself as an internationally competitive location for industry.

She also mentioned that North Rhine-Westphalia gave importance to Reduce energy consumption, Increase the share of renewable energies used to supply power, Increase efficiency, especially -in converting fossil sources into electricity, Conduct research into, develop and market thetechnologies necessary for this, and Step up international transfer of energy technology.

She added that We intend to more than double the electricity produced from regenerative energies by 2020 compared with 2005. Heat produced from these energies is even to be quadrupled in North Rhine-Westphalia by 2020.

Ms. Thoben said that the greatest potentials are countless in wind power and the use of biomass for producing energy. In India, wind power is experiencing an unprecedented boom in comparison with other renewable energies.

The installed output is 11,000 MW. Germany began developing wind power earlier and now has an installed output of 25,700 MW from more than 21,000 plants.

A further example of our high-tech in the field of renewable energies is the solar tower plant in Julich. More than 2,000 moveable mirrors follow the course of the sun and focus its rays onto an approximately 22 square metre receiver installed atop the 60 metre solar tower.

We are making an important contribution to developing this technology so that solar power generation can become a cost-effective alternative in the energy mix of countries where the sun shines a lot, such as India.

Indias energy requirements to increase by 3.6% a year by 2030. TheIndian government aims to tackle the resultant challenge of an energy deficit of currently 10 to 17% by adapting and modernising the power transmission and distribution network.

As far as I am informed, the Indian government has launched the National Solar Mission, a major initiative to promote solar power -an area in which there are bound to be good opportunities for cooperation, Ms Thoben added

Mr. Naik and Ms. Thoben presented the RENEWTECH India 2010 Awards for excellence in implementing Renewable Energy activities in their respective states. to Tamil Nadu State (Bio-Mass Energy),Punjab State( Solar Power-(On Grid), Chhattisgarh State and Assam (Solar Power-(Off Grid), Mr. Torsten Fuhrberg, Managing Director MCO GmbH proposed the vote of thanks