Coal India to set up 1,190-MW solar power plant in Rajasthan

Industry Outlook Team | Friday, 14 October 2022

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Coal India Ltd (CIL) will set up a 1,190-MW solar power plant in Bikaner district of Rajasthan. For this, CIL has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) of Rs 5,400 crore with the Rajasthan Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Ltd (RUVNL) in the presence of Union Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi and Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot in Jaipur.

Speaking at the programme, Union coal minister Joshi said that sufficient reserves of coal are available in the country and adequate coal supply will be ensured to states as per their requirement. He said that alternate options for the transportation of coal via road and sea are also being provided to states to ensure smooth transportation of coal. Joshi said that the central government has laid special emphasis on promoting renewable energy generation. "Along with this, by adopting new technology, the government is also working towards producing electricity from coal without pollution," he said.

Joshi said that per capita electricity consumption in the country will almost double by 2040 and to meet future needs, there is a need to pay special attention to electricity generation from renewable

sources. Chief minister Gehlot said that the state government has always encouraged renewable energy resources. "With the establishment of solar park, uninterrupted power supply can be made to the common man along with saving coal and reducing pollution," he said. Gehlot said that the work of production and assembly of necessary equipment for setting up solar power plants should be done in the state itself in order to pass on the benefits of increasing investment in the field of solar energy to the people of the state in terms of employment and development.

The chief minister said that the coal supply has been affected due to the interruption of mining in the coal mines allotted to Chhattisgarh, but the number of coal rakes available to the state has been increased in coordination with the central government and Coal India. "We have a captive coal mine problem in Chhattisgarh. We are not getting all the coal from them. I thank all of you for meeting the shortage of coal in Rajasthan at such a time," he said.

Gehlot also welcomed the withdrawal of the order given by the central government to the states to import coal. "This has also reduced the economic burden on the state," he added. Gehot said that the national target of developing 500 GW capacity renewable energy by 2029-30 would be achieved only with good coordination between the central and state governments.

He said that the state has made exemplary progress in the field of power supply despite these difficulties. While only 13 MW of electricity was available in Rajasthan at the time of independence, today more than 23,000 MW of electricity is being produced in the state. The solar plant of CIL will be set up in a 2,000-MW solar park being developed by RVUNL in Poogal, Bikaner.

The state government has allotted 4,846 hectares land to develop the park in which the RVUNL will set up its own solar project of 810 MW, and a power project of 1,190 will be set up by the CIL. Chairman and Managing Director of RVUNL R K Sharma and CIL's Technical Director V Reddy signed the MoU.