ELECRAMA 2023 Sees Participation of Indian Power Sector’s Top Brass
ELECRAMA, the biennial flagship trade show organised by Indian Electrical and Electronics Manufacturers Association (IEEMA), and the most significant pan-India exhibition for the Indian electrical and electronics industry, was held from 18th to 22nd February 2023 at Indian Expo Mart, Greater Noida.
The 15th edition of ELECRAMA was inaugurated by Mr. R.K Singh, Union Minister for Power and New & Renewable Energy. The event had ‘Re imagine Energy – For Sustainable Future’, as its central theme.
India’s Largest Event for Electrical Community Post Pandemic
Spread over an exhibition area of 1.1 lakh sq.m, ELECRAMA saw the participation of over 1,000 exhibitors from over 75 countries, which include European nations, USA, Canada, the Middle East and SAARC nations. About 700 global buyers and over 300 domestic buyers participated in the Reverse Buyer-Seller Meet (RBSM) and Domestic Buyer-Seller Meet (DBSM) at the event. The mega-tradeshow witnessed an impressive number of visitors, with footfall crossing the 3.5 lakh mark.
The 14th Edition of ELECRAMA was organised in January 2020 before the CoVID pandemic. The 15th Edition of the event, which was supposed to be held in 2022 was delayed because of the Coronavirus global crisis. Therefore, it was for the first time after the pandemic that an event of such scale for the electricals and electronics industry was held.
Inauguration Attended by Industry Stalwarts
ELECRAMA’s inauguration ceremony, which was held on 18th February 2023, was attended by important names in the electricals and electronics industry from India and abroad, such as Mr. Zhemu Soda, Minister of Energy and Power Development, Zimbabwe, Mr. Jean Pascal Tricoire, Global CEO, Schneider Electric, and Mr. Satish Pai, Managing Director of Hindalco Industries.
IEEMA top brass was also present at ELECRAMA’s inauguration ceremony and included Mr. Rohit Pathak, President, IEEMA, and Mr. Jitendra K Agarwal, Chairman, ELECRAMA 2023.
Chief Guest’s Address Highlights Sustainability, Self-Reliance & New Technologies
Future Challenges to be Met with Innovative Solutions
At the inaugural session of ELECRAMA 2023, Mr. R.K Singh, the chief guest for the occasion said, “In the past 5 years, we have brought great transformational changes in our industry. I am pleased that the focus of ELECRAMA 2023 is on energy transition and future technology”. He further stated that ELECRAMA 2023 would be instrumental in identifying and overcoming future challenges through novel technological approaches.
Massive Capacity Addition to Follow
“India will develop around 400 GW of electricity capacity in the next seven years to 2030, which will increase by 800 GW by 2047, if we have to meet our 2070 net zero target”, said Mr. Singh. Further, addressing the transmission equipment manufacturers at the mega-tradeshow, he said, “Doubling our power generation capacity in just seven years from now is the challenge. Imagine the transmission capacity that we have to add. The challenge for us that we will need to provide the equipment needed for India’s growth.”
Need to Explore New Solutions, PLIs in the Offing
He also stressed the importance for battery storage solutions such as Li-ion and Sodium-ion batteries, saying that Round-The-Clock (RTC) Renewable Energy (RE) facilities are not an option without energy storage systems. “We are coming up with a new PLI for grid-level energy storage. This PLI scheme will have two tranches – for Lithium Ion and Sodium”, he said. The Union Power Minister stated that a PLI scheme to promote the manufacturing of 100GW of electrolysers for Green Hydrogen Production is also being chalked out.
Industry Majors Stress on Key Themes
Speaking at the event, Mr. Rohit Pathak, President, IEEMA, said, “The transition to Green Electricity as the main source of energy has provided us with an excellent opportunity to be Self Reliant on Energy and to Lead the World on some of these new technologies with the scale India provides”. Mr. Pathak added that to support new innovations required for this transition, IEEMA has created a startup platform, ‘ElectraVerse Spark’. He continued, “This year’s ELECRAMA will focus on creating a platform to showcase products & solutions in new energies; discussion forums on R & D and innovation in new technologies; in addition to generation, T & D, and building electrical products”.
At the opening ceremony of the event, Mr. Jitendra K Agarwal, Chairman, ELECRAMA 2023 said, “We’re expecting 700 buyers from 75 countries in RBSM, 15000 pre-scheduled b2b meetings, and 300 buyers from Utilities, Railways, Defence, Real Estate, Smart Cities, and large PSUs. Therefore, ELECRAMA 2023 is a true reflection of the capabilities and aspirations of the Indian electrical industry”.
Mr. Jean Pascal Tricoire, Global CEO of Schneider Electric, which was the Sustainability Partner for ELECRAMA 2023, said at the inauguration, “Our vision is aligned with India’s future goals as it continues to break new ground in the power sector. As the country’s energy landscape continues to grow, we would continue to support rising India on its exciting journey of electrification and digitization”.
Co-Located Events with ELECRAMA 2023
The five-day tradeshow featured four co-located events in addition to the main exhibition, which were World Utility Summit, eTECHnxt, Change Xchange and Domestic Buyer Seller Meet (DBSM).
The 4th edition of the World Utility Summit was a thought leadership forum, which was directed at developing sustainable products and solutions for utilities. This event was attended by policy makers and senior officials of various energy regulators, energy efficiency bodies and standards organisations.
eTECHnxt also followed the larger theme of environmental sustainability, and focused on exploring new technologies which would further the same in the power sector. The 3rd edition of eTECHnxt was held along with ELECRAMA 2023.
Change Xchange was a Reverse Buyer-Seller Meet (RBSM) event, which brought together international buyers seeking to purchase electrical and electronic equipment from India. This was the 6th edition of Change Xchange RBSM.
Domestic Buyer Seller Meet (DBSM) was directed at opening up markets for Indian Micro Small Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). The 4th edition of DBSM, was not restricted to the utility sector, and also saw the participation of non-utility players such as those from real estate, defence and rail sectors.
