The Indian state of Odisha has finally zeroed in on 1,415 acres of land where 400 MW of solar power capacity can be developed. The 400 MW is part of a 1,000 MW solar park that the state needs to develop under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM).
In the absence of any contiguous stretch of land, the state government had sought permission from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) to break up the total capacity and develop 400 MW in the first phase. With permission granted, the state government has now found suitable land in Sambalpur and Boudh districts, reported Indian business daily Business Standard.
The combined capacity of the solar park in Sambalpur and Boudh is pegged at 225 MW in phase 1, according to the report. Once necessary approvals are in place, the nodal agency for solar power projects in the state, Green Energy Development Corp. (GEDCOL), will take over this land. Currently, the state is in the process of preparing a detailed project report (DPR) and will submit the same to the MNRE by March this year.
To balance solar capacity, the state has identified 600 acres of land in Jharsuguda and Deogarh districts. Local resistance in the regions is a problem, which makes the land "unsuitable," according to the report.
Recently, hydropower generation company NHPC Ltd. expressed interest in developing a 100 to 200 MW solar power project in the state under the 1 GW solar park, according to Business Standard. The 1,000 MW capacity is important for Odisha to achieve its target of 2,200 MW of solar power capacity by 2022, based on its Renewable Energy Policy 2016.
In addition, there have been reports about state mining company NLC India setting up a 300 MW solar power plant in Balasore district. It has apparently been checking the feasibility of the project and the site (see 300 MW For Odisha).