Solar tariffs in India reduced to yet another record low at the NTPC-conducted auction of 250 MW at the Kadapa Solar Park in Andhra Pradesh. The project has been awarded to the Indian arm of French clean energy firm Solairedirect SA which quoted levelised tariff of Rs 3.15/KWh. The earlier record of Rs. 3.30 per unit levelised tariff for Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Power Project in Madhya Pradesh has been broken by NTPC.
At current rates, solar power generation cost is at par with that of thermal power generation. Solar power tariff has been declining on account of sharply declining prices of solar panels, better structuring of the project that reduces risk for project developers and better currency hedging deals that make financing available at competitive cost. This is a shot in the arm for the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of providing 175 GW of power through renewable sources by 2022.
It is to mention that THDCIl has entered in an MoU with Solar Energy Corporation of India limited (SECI) for setting up Grid Connected Solar Power Projects upto 250MW capacity of which it is initially proposed to take up 50MW project in district Kasaragod, Kerala. A tripartite agreement amongst THDCIl, SECI and Kerala State Electricity Board has been signed.
THDCIl is one of the premier power generators in the country with installed capacity of 1513 MW with commissioning of Tehri Dam & HPP (1000MW), Koteshwar HEP (400MW) and Wind Power Projects of 50MW at Patan & 63MW at Dwarka in Gujarat to its credit.