IOC's Lotus Xangpo petrol pump world's highest altitude outlet

Indian Oil Corp's (IOC) petrol pump, Lotus Xangpo Memorial filling station, in Leh has become the world's highest altitude retail outlet to be powered by solar power.
A solar power generation system has been installed at the petrol pump situated at 11,500 feet above the sea level to replace polluting diesel generator, the company said in a statement here.
Besides cutting greenhouse gas emission, "the solar power generation system enables the retail outlet to save about Rs 30,000 per month," it said, adding that the investment in putting up the solar system is recoverable in about 18 months.
IOC already has two other solar powered retail outlets operating at Chuglamsar and Leh-Manali Road in Ladakh region.

"These outlets face extreme weather conditions like minus 25 degrees Celcius during winters and thin oxygen density, yet the solar power generation systems function smoothly as the region gets bright sunlight due to dry weather conditions for most part of the year," the statement said.
IOC is increasingly using solar power to light up its petrol pumps across the country. In the year ended March 31, 2015, 1,398 new outlets were solarised, taking the total tally to 2,663.

The company plans to add another 1,500 petrol pumps and Kisan Seva Kendras in the current financial year and envisions touching 5,000 solar-powered outlets by 2017-18 and 10,000 by 2022.

IOC has 24,405 petrol pumps and 6,230 rural outlets called Kisan Seva Kendras.
"By installing solar power, the dealers of the outlets are assured of power supply at a constant voltage. Even fuel dispensing units, fan, tube lights and other essential electrical fittings can be operated at optimal capacity, which in turn ensures that a dealer is able to provide consistent and quality service to their customers," the statement added.
As on date, the total installed solar panel capacity at IOC retail outlet is around 5.5 Mega Watts, leading to a saving of 6,750 kilolitre of diesel per year, amounting to around Rs 40 crore.