Karnataka proposed the establishment of a 500 MW solar park in Firozabad in Kalaburagi district, said Prime Minister B S Yediyurappa during the presentation of the 2021-22 State Budget.

He said at a state law conference that Karnataka Renewable Energy Development Limited (KREDL) would develop a 500 MW solar power park on 1,551 hectares owned by Power Karnataka Limited Power Company at a cost of ₹ 500 crores. Independent developers will undertake a project to sell power outside the state through the Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS) network.

Earlier this month (KREDL) had released the ‘Draft Karnataka Renewable Energy Policy 2021-2026’ which aims to make 20 GWs of renewable energy projects with and without energy conservation. According to the policy, for these projects, 2 GW will be solar projects on the roof.

Among other Budget proposals related to clean energy, to promote research on solar power devices and their associated technologies. It is proposed to establish 1,000 electric vehicle charging stations (EV) under public and private partnerships.

In December 2020, the Karnataka government allowed ₹ 22,419 crores to establish an EV production base. It also receives ₹ 4,240 crores for two wind-solar hybrid projects. The EV production facility is expected to generate 4,881 jobs in government, while hybrid wind-solar projects could create 8,480 jobs.

In addition to these measures, the government has also announced the refurbishment and rehabilitation of Karnataka Power Corporation’s less than 400/220 KW facilities. Under this program, equipment replacement has begun, and the first phase is completed. The second phase will commence with the implementation of the project for 100 crores after obtaining approval from the energy department.

The national government has also proposed the commissioning of automatic electricity, meters, and audit work of the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation under the SAMAST Central Government (Planning, Measurement, Accounting, and Settlement of Transactions in Electricity) program to link online access to electronic transactions and payment reports.

The government has also announced the installation of a 1,000 MW ‘water storage’ project at a cost of 4,000 crores.

Source: MercomIndia