VSP unveils renewable energy policy

Lines up Rs 100 cr spend to generate 12 Mw

Visakhapatnam Steel Plant (VSP) has earmarked about Rs 100 crore for generating 12 Mw power through renewable energy sources.

The steel plant, which commenced its strategic energy management in 2000 to reduce the cost of steel and improve its bottom line, has drawn up a renewable energy policy to fulfil its vision of becoming a world-class energy efficient unit.

Y Siva Sagar Rao, chairman and managing director of VSP, who unveiled the renewable energy policy here on Monday, said, VSP would substitute 5 per cent of its total electrical energy and petro-fuel requirements through renewable energy sources.

As part of this, it has proposed to generate about 12 Mw of electricity from non-conventional energy sources, regardless of cost, to realise its goal of achieving energy independence. VSP proposes to generate about 0.4 Mw from solar energy sources, 0.9 Mw from bio diesel plants, 0.4 Mw from urban waste and about 10 Mw of wind energy.

As part of its initiative to generate power from bio-diesel plants, VSP has launched plantation of 'jatropha' and 'pongamia' varieties and aims at raising the two varieties of plants in 1,140 acres by 2008. By 2011-12, the steel plant expects to produce 2,550 tonnes of bio-diesel plants.

Apart from this, it proposes to install solar lighting system to illuminate parks, steel plant and township.

The steel plant is aiming at producing green energy, which is sustainable and contributes to the welfare of society, according to Siva Sagar Rao. The launch of the renewable energy policy at VSP is the first of its kind in any steel plant in the country.

"The steel plant is putting in a lot of effort to tap renewable energy to replace conventional energy," Rao said.