The state government aims to increase its solar energy capacity to 25,000 MW by 2025. So far the Maharashtra State Power Generation Company Ltd generates only 180 MW of solar energy.
THE STATE government’s plan to switch from coal-based thermal energy to renewable energy is yet to take off. A tender for the purchase of 1,000 MW of solar power was reissued earlier this month after it failed to get responses in the first round last December.
The Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company (MSEDCL) had on December 21, 2017 issued a tender for the purchase of 1 GW solar energy but did not receive any responses. The tender was reissued with relaxed norms on April 9, 2018. While the last date for bid submission was April 27, it has now been extended by a week as the responses were few, said sources.
A senior government official told The Indian Express that the discom had received responses in the second round but the deadline was extended to increase the competition. “We wish to procure 1GW of solar power at the lowest cost from anywhere in the country. We are aware that land costs in Maharashtra are high and there are not many solar projects. So we are accepting tenders from plants across the country,” he said.
The state government aims to increase its solar energy capacity to 25,000 MW by 2025. So far the Maharashtra State Power Generation Company Ltd generates only 180 MW of solar energy. The government has decided to go the private-public partnership way to achieve its goal.
In yet another attempt, the discom is in the process of installing separate feeders powered by solar energy for the agriculture sector. Currently domestic and agricultural consumers receive electricity from the same feeders. However, since the agriculture sector accounts for around 30 per cent of the state’s electricity use, the solar feeders will take some load off the grid, said officials. To this effect, a pilot project was set up in the Sangamner Tehsil in Ahmednagar.
Source: indianexpress
