Two power utilities in Andhra Pradesh have agreed to buy electricity from the under-construction 1,000-megawatt solar power project of National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC).
The large-scale project is coming up at NP Kunta in Anantapur district and its first phase of 250 megawatt is expected to be commissioned next year. The utilities are to draw power from this phase of the project.
Under the agreement, the utilities — Eastern Power Distribution Company of Andhra Pradesh Limited (APEPDCL) and Souther Power Distribution Company of Andhra Pradesh Limited (APSDCL) — will be purchasing power at fixed rate of Rs6.16 valid for 25 years.
NTPC, which currently manages 110 MW of solar energy projects, plans to add 3,000 MW of solar energy to its portfolio this year.
And by 2032, the company expects to grow its total installed capacity to 1, 28,000 megawatts, of which 28 per cent would be from non-fossil sources.
Overall, NTPC currently has an installed capacity of 44,598 megawatts.
And Andhra Pradesh at present has 128 MW of solar power capacity and wind energy projects totaling 1016 megawatts. This year the state government wants to add 1 gigawatt of wind power and 600 megawatt of solar power in the state. AP also has plans to establish another 1 gigawatt solar energy park in Kurnool district.
In sum, the state is targeting installed capacity of 5,000 MW of solar energy and 4,000 MW of wind energy in the next four years. NTPC has already received 1250 acres for the power project in Anantapur district.
The power corporation has reported that while the first phase of its mega project was set aside exclusively for domestic buyers, the remaining phases of the project are to be open for global competitive bidding.
The 1 gigawatt project of NTPC ranks among the world’s largest solar power projects at a single location by a single developer. It is expected to be spread over 5,000 acres. The government of Andhra Pradesh has already identified land required for the project and handed over 1,250 acres for the first phase alone.
Ajith Kumar S