The efficiency and cost-effectiveness of LED lighting systems will drive up the demand for more affordable  LED street lighting. In the near future, all aspects of white LED lighting will become more affordable, as the Indian government has an ambitious project to replace all conventional streetlights with LED lights within two years
By Belal Khan
According to the latest report from 6Wresearch, India’s LED lighting market, which is still in its nascent stages, is projected to reach US$ 2.2 billion by 2021. The major driver of this growth will be the government’s initiatives to replace incandescent lights with LED bulbs in homes and also the Smart Cities project under which LED streetlights will be installed.
Reportedly, India has 35 million streetlights which generate a total demand of 3.4GW. With LEDs, this demand can be brought down to 1.4GW, saving 9 billion kWh of electricity annually, worth over US$ 850 million. To put this into perspective, the electricity deficit in India during 2014-15 was 38.138 billion kWh and 7GW.
The National Programme for LED-based Home and Street Lighting was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in January last year. At its inception, the plan was to cover 100 cities by March next year, and the remaining ones by March 2019, targeting the replacement of 770 million bulbs and 35 million streetlights.
What’s in demand?
LED streetlights are designed for specific needs and requirements, such as efficiency, longer life, the ability to withstand extreme weather conditions along with the overall need to save energy. Understanding these needs and requirements, the current trend in LED product development and advancement is focused on the efficiency of the product, wherein the lumens output, longevity, thermal management and control systems are key. Over time, the most obvious change in technology has been the movement from discrete/emitter LEDs to chip-on-board (COB) based LEDs.
How to make a purchase
The purchase decision for LED streetlights needs to be done carefully, as the investment is high.
Product quality: This covers the streetlight’s life, efficiency, ability to withstand extreme environments/weather conditions and the maintenance needed, including after sales service.
Watts: The lower the watts, the less electricity the LED will consume.
Lumens: Lumens are a measure of brightness or light output. The more the lumens per watt, the better the light. Lumens per watt vary with the beam angle.
Beam angle: Typically, an LED light has a beam angle of 120 degrees but down lighters have different beam angles, so it’s important to choose the right beam angle for your specific needs.
Colour: LEDs are available in various colours from white (day light) to yellow (warm light). Choose the colour as per your preference.
Industry’s take
Eon Electric Limited (EEL) has completed LED street lighting projects in Jodhpur, Aligarh, and Varanasi. Now the company has bagged a further contract worth around ₹ 400 million for installing LED streetlights in Rajasthan. Under this project, Eon will install over 100,000 LED streetlights across various cities in the state, including Jaisalmer, Gangapur, Sri Ganga Nagar, etc. In this phase, Eon Electric will install high lumen LED streetlights across the state.
Philips, the global leader in lighting and India’s leading lighting company, has won two major LED solar street lighting contracts for UPNEDA (Uttar Pradesh New and Renewable Energy Development Agency) and MANIREDA (Manipur Renewable Energy Development Agency). The two projects will provide more than 76,000 solar LED street lights across 800 villages in UP and across the main areas of the state capital as well as small towns and villages of Manipur.
Opportunities
LED streetlights will offer substantial business opportunities in the long run for lighting companies, primarily because of the government’s ‘100 Smart Cities’ programme. LED street lighting systems will be a key contributor in this programme, ensuring greater returns through turnkey projects. According to the report by 6Wresearch, Central and state governments are replacing the traditional sodium vapour streetlights with LEDs in several ongoing pilot projects across cities and states including Chandigarh, New Delhi, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Punjab.
Major Buyers
- Municipal corporations
- PSUs
- Railways
- Educational institutions
- Hospitality industry
- Housing societies
- Defence institutions/set-ups
- NHAI (National Highway Authority of India)
- Corporates
Certifications
- IES LM-79: Luminaire: Electrical and photometric measurements of solid state lighting products
- IES LM-80: Â Method for measuring lumen maintenance for LED light sources
- IS 10322: For general safety, insulation resistance, high voltage, overvoltage protection, environmental tests, endurance tests, etc.
- IS 1944: General illumination requirements of the road
- IS 16104: Performance requirements for electronic control gear for LED modules
Our vision has always been to enhance LED lighting efficiency per watt and provide cities with energy efficient and long lasting lighting solutions. We continue to maintain our focus on quality and consistency in our LED lighting products, ensuring timely delivery.
V.P. Mahendru, chairman, Eon Electric Limited
India has close to 300 million people who have no access to electricity. Through such solutions, we believe that we will be able to bring far less expensive, healthier and environment-friendly lighting to this large population.
Harsh Chitale, CEO, Philips Lighting, South Asia
