Gujarat State dedicates 600 Mw of solar power projects to India

18th April, Patan district, Gujarat, India: Gujarat, India’s most industrialised State, situated on the west coast of the country, will be announcing the dedication of 600 Mw of solar power projects at a ceremony tomorrow. The park will be commissioned by the Hon’ble Chief Minister, Mr Narendra Modi, at Gujarat Solar Park in Patan district. The dedication of 600 Mw of commissioned solar power projects in the short span of just one year represents a very major contribution towards the fight against global warming. This achievement has put up the State on the global map as a renewable energy hub.
 
The Solar Park is the world’s only multi-developer park with an aggregated capacity of 214 Mw of solar projects commissioned at a single location. The rest of the solar projects are at various locations spread across the Gujarat State. This solar park is also Asia’s largest solar power park.
 
Gujarat Solar Park is an innovative concept from the Government of Gujarat to promote solar installations within the state. The State Government has allocated developed land to the project developers with the entire infrastructure including power evacuation, roads, and water for commissioning of the power project.
 
As the Chief Minister always says, “Fighting climate change calls for innovation, cooperation and willpower to make the changes that the world needs.” Gujarat State declared action against global warming and towards energy security by announcing the India’s first Solar Power Policy in January 2009. Over the last two years, the State has signed 968.5 Mw of solar power projects under its Solar Power Policy and took the initiative to launch Gujarat Solar Park with a vision to build it as the Asia’s largest solar power park. The foundation stone of the Solar Park was laid in December, 2010.
 
Talking on the occasion, Mr D.J. Pandian, IAS, Principal Secretary, Energy and Petrochemicals Department, Government of Gujarat said, “Gujarat recognises renewable energy as one of its key sectors. Gujarat has already taken the lead over other Indian states in renewable energy initiatives, particularly in solar power generation. It is the first State in India to achieve its renewable energy purchase obligation (RPO, in the U.S. known as a Renewable Portfolio Standard). It has the highest solar generation potential in India – solar radiation 300 days 5.6-6.0 kilowatt hours meter per day (kWh/m2/per day).”
 
As of 31st January 2012, Gujarat became the leading state in India with installed capacities from renewable sources of solar power at 600 Mw and wind power at 2580 Mw.

The ceremony was attended by eminent personalities like Hon’ble Peter Hass, Consul-General of the United States to India; Mr. Dana Younger, Chief Renewable Energy Specialist, International Finance Corporation (IFC), World Bank Group, USA; Mr. Peter Ballinger, Director, Clean Energy Finance, Renewable Overseas Finance Investment Corporation (OPIC), USA; and, Mr. Naoki Sakai, Senior Climate Change Specialist, Asian Development Bank, amongst others.
 
This 600 Mw Solar Power Project Dedication Ceremony will be followed by the India Solar Investment and Technology Summit and Exhibition to be held at Mahatma Mandir, Gandhinagar, the State capital of Gujarat, on 20 and 21 April, 2012. The Summit will have large number of Indian and foreign speakers and delegates. 
 
The Summit will have sessions and discussions on the global solar market; investment opportunities in India; financing of the solar industry; new uses of technology, infrastructure and innovation for successful projects; the potential for solar R&D and technology development; and the future of Indian solar sector more generally.