MP govt inks India’s lowest-tariff solar power park

The Dollar Business Bureau

The Madhya Pradesh state government formally signed strategic agreements to fuel India’s ambitions of cheaper solar tariff. A formal function at Delhi, presided by Piyush Goyal, Union power minister, Shivraj Chouhan, Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh and Venkaiah Naidu, Union Minister for Urban Development, saw signing of deals for the Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Park (RUMSP).

RUMSP is a joint venture between the Madhya Pradesh Urja Vikas Nigam Limited and Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited, aimed at a 1,590 acre solar park in the Gurh tehsil of Rewa district.

Official release from the ministry as well as International Finance Corporation (IFC), a World Bank affiliate confirmed the development. IFC, the official transaction and auction advisor, shared in an official note that the state government signed deals yesterday at New Delhi with solar power companies- namely Mahindra Renwables, ACME Solar and Solnergie Power. The development on the 750 MW plant was auctioned in three phases, and each vendor has been commissioned 250 MW each.

Official sources indicated that the IFC and the state government conducted a 33 hour long reverse-auction process to arrive at power-cultivation costs of Rs. 2.97 per unit, breaking the previous Rs. 4.34/unit record held by NTPC’s Bhadla Solar Park in Rajasthan. The official note from IFC added that the deal would help the state government produce power at the cheapest rate in the country.

The plant besides empowering the state would also be charging the Delhi Metro. A Power Purchase agreement between the state and Delhi Metro would provide 24% electricity generated from the Rewa facility. Power minister Goyal stressed during the function that Delhi Metro would leverage cost-savings as power-procurement cost would dip from Rs. 4.50 to Rs. 3.30, and it would also meet 80% daytime energy requirements.

The power minister explained that the emphasis was on renewable energy, and that under Modi’s leadership renewable energy has seen a growth of over 370% in the last 3 years. The minister highlighted that against the installed solar power capacity of 2,600 MW in 2014, the country achieved 12,200 MW today, and could achieve the targeted 20,000 MW capacity by end of 2017, 5 years ahead of schedule.

Chouhan, the Chief Minister shared that Madhya Pradesh had become theleading state in renewable energy in the country. The state adopted a principle of equitable growth, social empowerment and sustainable development which has resulted in an agricultural growth of 25%. Union Minister Naidu appreciated the state-govt’s development spree in the areas of affordable power and smart-cities. Seven of twenty cities qualified in the first round of smart-cities program belonged to the state.