American solar cell maker First Solar has commissioned a 20-megawatt solar power project in Telangana.
First Solar has been developing projects for total installed capacity of 200 megawatts since last year. The company has entered power purchase agreements with distribution companies to evacuate power from its projects.
First Solar had been selling its thin film photovoltaic panels in India over the past four years.
The Telangana plant is among the first plants to be completed by First Solar as part of its plans. The company is to receive Rs 6.49 per kilowatt hour under a 20-year power purchase agreement with the state.
In February First Solar had declared that it planned to build 5,000 megawatts of solar projects in India. And the 200 MW capacity currently being developed is believed to be part of the larger target.
First Solar also continues to sell its modules in India. The company has already sold modules worth 675 MW in India.
First Solar had recently claimed that it had set a cell efficiency record of 18.6 percent aperture area efficiency with an advanced full size cadmium-telluride (CdTe) photovoltaic (PV) module.
The company claims it was a first and an improvement on the best multicrystalline silicon (m-Si) module.
The record has been measured and certified by the US Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL).
Ajith Kumar S