GUVNL inks PPAs with 54 solar cos for 537 Mw

Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Ltd (GUVNL), a state-run power generation, distribution and transmission company, has recently inked Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) with as many as 54 solar power generation companies for 537 Mw. Earlier, the apex electricity company had signed PPAs for 396.5 Mw with over two dozen firms.

The companies which entered into purchase agreements with GUVNL also include Tata Power, Monnet Ispat Solar Energy, GMR Gujarat Solar, Alex Astral, Ganges Entertainment Pvt Ltd and Ujjwala Energy Pvt Ltd. All these companies have signed PPAs for 25 Mw each, while Hira Co India Pvt Ltd and Kiran Energy Pvt Ltd for 20 Mw each.

Apart from this, state PSUs such as Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation (GMDC), Gujarat Industries Power Company Ltd (GIPCL) and Gujarat Power Corporation Ltd (GPCL) have signed agreements for 5 Mw each. With this, Gujarat’s solar purchase commitment stands at 933.5 Mw.

The latest agreements have come in the wake of Gujarat government allotting addition 565 Mw solar power generation capacity to various solar power project developers in the second round of allotment. In the first round, the Gujarat government had allocated 716 Mw of capacity to 34 national and international companies.

Gujarat government has set the ambitious target of installing 1,000 Mw solar power capacity by the end of 2012 and 3,000 Mw in the next five years.

It may be mentioned here that Gujarat government is focusing aggressively on green energy. In order to promote power generation from solar power plants, Gujarat came up with solar power policy in 2009. Clinton Foundation, NTPC, Adani Group are some of the leading solar power project developers who have expressed the intention of setting up solar projects in the state. As many as 74 solar power project developers are either in the process of setting up their power projects or have committed to do so in Gujarat.

As part of the government policy, Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Authority (GERC) fixed a tariff of Rs 15/unit for power to be purchased from solar photovoltaic generators and Rs 11/unit for solar thermal power for the first 12 years.