Assam ties up with TERI to harness solar potential

Assam has tied up with The Energy Resource Institute (TERI) for application of solar energy in the state, Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said Thursday.

Noting Assam has tremendous potential in this vital renewable energy resourcs, he said it can help to provide electricity to each and every poor household and remotest corner of the state.

"We have tied up with TERI in the use and application of solar energy. We want to go in a big way on the solar energy front which will help to meet our power requirements and at the same time help conserve our environment," said Gogoi in his address at a seminar on "Empowering Assam: from Deficiency to Abundance - Tapping Small Hydro, Biomass & Solar Potential" here.

He exuded optimism that the power plants coming up from renewal energy sources in the near future would bring in faster development in the state, particularly in the tea gardens and char areas.

Assam Electricity Regulatory Commission chairman N.K. Das said Assam Power Distribution Corporation Ltd has been aiming towards the development and growth of renewal energy as an alternate source of energy in the state and to meet its renewable purchase obligation (RPO) requirements.

"The growth of solar market has been driven by the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM), an initiative under the National Action Plan for Climate Change (NAPCC). It has set a target of installing 22 GW of solar by 2020.

"NAPCC has made it mandatory for every State and other large power consumers to fulfil 20 per cent of their power requirements from renewable resources. The power purchase obligation of 20 per cent from renewal energy must have a 3 per cent share of power drawn from solar energy sources," Das said.

He further said connecting solar power to the grid would bring about further improvement in power position and make solar power more economical and affordable.