Indian Zero Carbon Energy Pathways Optimization Model (IDEEA)- Maharashtra

The Indian Zero Carbon Energy Pathways Optimization Model (IDEEA) Maharashtra is an open-source, least-cost modelling tool developed to analyse pathways for decarbonizing the power sector. The model provides a comprehensive analytical framework for evaluating electricity system transitions by integrating spatial, temporal, and climate data with power sector resource information.

Methodology of Development

The IDEEA model adopts a bottom-up approach to power system planning. To evaluate long-term energy transition pathways, IDEEA’s modelling framework integrates least-cost optimisation, data-driven analysis, and assumptions from literature. Model assumptions and scenario developments are informed by the knowledge gained from studies on renewable integration and electricity planning.

Electricity demand is projected over a defined planning horizon using hourly load data, enabling the model to capture variations in demand across time. The framework also incorporates spatial datasets such as wind speeds, solar irradiance, and power plant locations to represent resource availability and infrastructure across regions. The objective of this model is to minimize the total system costs while satisfying constraints such as supply-demand balance, emission targets, installed capacity limits, ramping factors, and other policy targets.

Key Features and Outputs of IDEEA Maharashtra

The key feature of IDEEA is its high temporal resolution of 8,760 hourly time steps per year, which enables detailed modelling of electricity demand and renewable generation variability. The model integrates geospatial and meteorological inputs to represent long-term weather patterns affecting solar and wind resources. It also incorporates system flexibility and balancing mechanisms such as battery energy storage systems (BESS), demand-side management, and alternative energy sources including biomass, hydropower, green hydrogen, and geothermal energy, allowing detailed assessment of grid reliability and infrastructure requirements.

Under predefined scenarios, IDEEA generates key outputs including the optimal generation mix across technologies, along with corresponding installed capacity and storage requirements over the planning horizon. The model also estimates economic indicators such as the Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE) and cost components including capital, fixed, and variable costs, while analysing electricity trade between regions and changes in emission trajectories under different transition pathways. These outputs help identify optimal investment strategies in generation and storage technologies while assessing system costs, infrastructure needs, and long-term decarbonization pathways.