CEE Oct-Dec 2012

7 \ • • ' • The State Government of Gujarat took an initiative and announced its Solar Power Policy in January 2009, allowing investors to set up MW· scale solar power projects within the State at Rs. 12.58 kW. national and international developers. And in this continued effort to combat environmental degradation and promoting clean energy, the State has received investments worth Rs. 61289 crore through the 66 MoUs signed at the Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors Summits (VGGIS) for setting up 7761 MW power generation projects in the renewable energy sector. PUPlJ I MW Solar Power Projccr By December 2011, power purchase agreements (PPAs) for projects aggregating a capacity of 971.5 MW were signed. Of the allotted capacity, as of March 2012, solar power capacity of 600 MW has been commissioned and another 370 MW is likely to be commissioned within the next few months. The State has emerged as the largest solar power producer with its share of 600 MW which is two-thirds of the country's total generation at 800 MW, as of March 2012. The Gujarat Solar Park, set up with an investment of Rs. 9,000 crore by private companies is spread across a desolate 3,000-acre (1,200-hectare) swath of desert, and can supply 214 megawatts of electricity daily from a single location, making it larger than China's 200- megawatt Golmud Solar Park. Its foundation stone was laid down in December 2009 and the State government plans to set up solar power manufacturing, assembling, research and development facilities in addition to a manpower training institute envisaged to train local people and create job opportunities. Shri Narendra Modi Chief Minister, Gujarat inaugurated the Asia's largest solar power park, at village Charanka in Patan district in April 2012. Patan which is home to Patola textile craft now also houses the solar park. In 10 other districts, where similar but smaller projects were convinced, another 390 MW is being produced using the virtually inexhaustible source of renewable energy. The 1 GW solar power plants will annually generate 1554 million units of green power, reduce 1.55 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions and help avoid the use of 1.09 million tonnes of coal that would have gone into generation of electricity through coal. These power plants would bring in annual employment generation of 5000 jobs besides other ancillary activities. The average electricity generation is in the range 5000 - 5500 kW per MW per day, which is close to the estimated generation. Wind power: The big player Gujarat with the longest coastline in the country and inland windy sites has a potential of over 10,000 MW of wind power. Over a period of more than 25 years, more than 65 sites have been monitored for wind speed and wind power density, and over 50 sites have been found feasible for harnessing of wind power. In fact, Gujarat was the first to set up the largest demonstration windfarm of 10 MW at Lamba, in Jamnagar in 1990. Demonstration windfarm projects of 16.295 MW were established with financial assistance from the Centre and the state. The experience gained by the early demonstration windfarm led to the formulation of the first of its kind Wind Power Poli cy in the country, by Gujarat in January 1993 followed by revised policies in 2002, 2007 and 2009. Since then the capacity additions as of March 2012 is 2884.850 MW of wind capacity. These windfarms have generated 13,450 million 29