US-based foundation to
set up Rs 20,000-crore Integrated SolarCity.
This could well be the world’s largest solar power project at a single
location if all goes as planned.
The US-based Clinton Foundation is in talks with the Gujarat government
to set up an ‘Integrated Solar City’ project with a capacity to
generate a 5,000 Mw over a period of time.
The project, tagged as one of the largest foreign direct investment
(FDI) into the state, will also be a landmark project as the cost of
power generation is likely to be 70 per cent less — around Rs 20,000
crore — than the conventional cost of generation, say sources close to
the development.
The project envisages an integrated solar city wherein all the raw
materials including glass and panels will be produced by them, bringing
down the cost substantially, said a senior government official.
The cost of generation for thermal energy is about Rs 10-11 per unit.
However, according to estimates of Clinton Foundation, the power
produced in the solar city will cost around Rs 4 per unit, going by the
scale of the project and technology advancement they have on hand.
The Gujarat government has roped in US-based Nobel Laureate John Byrne
for charting the state’s solar roadmap and is considering Kutch and
Banaskantha as favourable locations for the mega project.
“The Foundation, supported by the likes of GE Energy and Microsoft,
already has a war chest of $12 billion which it wants to utilise for
green energy initiatives,” sources said.
The world’s largest solar power plant is currently in Mojave Desert of
California with a capacity that will go up to 900 Mw in few years.
The Clinton Foundation is also in talks with governments of Andhra
Pradesh and Rajasthan for setting up solar power projects.
A number of corporates including Essar, Indiabulls, Reliance, ADAG,
Tata Power, Suryachakra and Euro Group have also lined up solar
projects in the state.
The Mukesh Ambani-controlled Reliance and Euro Solar have already been
given letters of intent of 5 Mw each from the 10 Mw quota allotted by
the Centre to each state.
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Indiabulls plans solar power
plant in Chhattisgarh
Indiabulls Power Services Ltd (IPSL), a subsidiary of Indiabulls Real
Estate Ltd, is planning to set up a solar power plant in Bastar region
of Chhattisgarh.
“The company has submitted a proposal to the state government and
expressed its interest to set up a 50-Mw solar power plant in the
Bastar region,” Chhattisgarh State Renewable Development Agency (CREDA)
Director S K Shukla told Business Standard today.
The state government will send the proposal to the Union government for
its approval, he said, adding that after getting approval from the
Centre, the state government would sign a an MoU with the company to
give a final shape to the project.
The power plant will be based on the solar photovoltaic (SPV)
technology, which will be a new concept of power generation in the
otherwise coal-rich state of Chhattisgarh. Initially, the company plans
to start the plant with 50-Mw capacity and later go for expansion.
http://www.business-standard.com/india/storypage.php?autono=330848
http://www.business-standard.com/india/storypage.php?autono=330846
