Reliance Power and the Rajasthan Government, on Thursday, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to develop 6,000 MW of solar power projects in the State in the next ten years.
The MoU was signed here in the presence of Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje and Reliance Power Chairman Anil Dhirubhai Ambani.
The Chief Minister also dedicated to the nation the company’s 100 MW concentrated solar power (CSP) project, located at the Dhirubhai Ambani Solar Park at Pokaran in Jaisalmer district.
The park is the integrated utility-scale solar power generation complex, comprising CSP and photo voltaic (PV) plants. This is also the largest plant in the world based on compact linear fresnel technology (CLFR).
Rajasthan Sun Technique Energy Private Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Reliance Power, was awarded the CSP project in December, 2010, based on international competitive bidding conducted by NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam (a subsidiary of NTPC). The CSP plant is expected to generate about 250 million kilowatt hours of clean and green energy annually, equivalent to consumption of 2.30 lakh households, contributing to the country’s goal of energy security. The project will reduce India’s CO emissions by about 2.40 lakh tonnes a year. The project is the largest investment undertaken by any private sector entity in CSP technology in India. It is financed through debt from multilateral agencies such as the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the Export Import Bank of the United States, Financerings Maatschappu Voor Ontwikkelingslanden of the Netherlands and Axis Bank.
The state-of-the-art CLFR technology for the project is provided by Areva Solar, the U.S. subsidiary of AREVA SA of France, which is having minimal environmental spill, lesser land requirement, and is more efficient than other solar thermal technologies available.
Speaking on the occasion, Ms. Raje said Rajasthan was making all efforts to promote the State as investor-friendly. Mr. Ambani said his company was planning to invest Rs.50,000 crore in solar power generation alone in the coming years.
