Telangana Kicks Off Work For India’s Largest Solar Park!

Telangana is going to challenge Gujarat for the title of the State with India’s largest solar park. Telangana has started the due process for setting up a 1000 MW plant in Mahbubnagar.

The Telangana Government has earlier decided  to set up an integrated 1,000 MW solar power generation park at the backward district of Mahbubnagar. The project is being taken up by Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TSIIC) in partnership with the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI).

After getting SECI’s approval, Telangana has been moving quickly to put together the action plan to go ahead. About 5,000 acres has been allocated for the park. The developers of projects will bring in the investments. The Government’s role will be limited to facilitation and creation of necessary support infrastructure.

On Saturday, Telangana government and Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) have convened a preliminary meeting of solar power producers before issuing tenders for the proposed 1,000 megawatt solar power plant at Mahboobnagar. About 20 potential bidders have met SECI chairman Rajendra Nimje and director Ashwini Kumar and APIIC (which would divide into APIIC and TSIIC in future) vice-chairman Jayesh Ranjan. “Most companies were eager to participate in the tender for the solar power project,” Narendra Surana, the president of Solar Power Producers Association of India and the managing director of Surana Ventures, is reported to have said.

The companies whose representatives attended the meeting include Tata Solar, Surana Ventures, Emvee Solar, Waree Energy, Photon Energy, and Welspun Energy. Mr Surana said the infrastructure for the project – the largest solar power park in India- is already in place and the power could be evacuated in just six months after its project’s commencement.

The park will be built on plug and play model and solar developers will be able to set up power plants in a much shorter time frame of 3 to 6 months.

Apart from the 1,000-MW project, Mr Surana said the Solar Power Producers Association has requested the Telangana government to set up smaller 200-MW solar power project in all 10 districts, which could put to use barren land in the state and help the government to tide over the power crisis in the state.

Right now, the 590 MW capacity park in Charanka, Gujarat is the largest in the country. It has an installed capacity of 214 MW right now.

(With Inputs From DC)