Hindalco to set up Rs 150 crore solar park in Odisha

The company plans to invest Rs 150 crore in the project to be spread over 120 acres of land

Aditya Birla Group-owned Hindalco Industries is planning to set up a 24 Mw solar power plant within the premises of its aluminium plant at Lapanga in Sambalpur district.

"The 24 Mw solar plant planned by Hindalco will come up at its campus in Sambalpur. The company intends to invest Rs 150 crore in the project to be spread over 120 acres of land available with the company", said a government official.

The power produced is likely to utilized by the company as renewable purchase obligation (RPO). The company has applied to the investment promotion agency- Industrial Promotion & Investment Corporation of Odisha Ltd (Ipicol) for approving the project. Ipicol has sought the clearance of the project from Green Energy Development Corporation of Odisha Ltd (Gedcol), the nodal agency for implementation of renewable energy in the state, he added.

Hindalco runs the smelter-power plant complex at Lapanga in Sambalpur with an annual capacity of 360,000 tonnes supported by a 900 Mw (6 x 150) coal based captive power.

"Every Mw of renewable power added in the state is a step towards achieving the goal of achieving the target of the state government", said another official .

Odisha receives an average solar radiation of 5.5kWh/sqm area with an average CUF (capacity utilisation factor) ranging from 15 to 17 per cent across the districts and around 300 clear sunny days every year.

As per Odisha Renewable Policy-2016, the state hosts a high capacity of captive power plants (CPP) which are obligated entities and are required to meet the solar purchase obligation (SPO) specified by the Odisha State Electricity Regulatory Commission (OERC).

The obligated entities can either set up their own solar projects or purchase power from state projects to meet their SPOs.

The state government has set a target to generate 2,200 Mw of solar power by 2022 by developing land based solar projects and projects utilising water bodies.