India’s 1st Large-Scale Solar & Storage Project On Defence Land

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) in India has approved the development of a 250 MW solar power project with an integrated battery energy storage system (BESS) at Sitapur in Uttar Pradesh. The ministry describes it as the 1st large-scale solar power project on defence-owned land.  

Approved by India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, the project will be built on around 850 acres of vacant defence land in Sitapur (Ex-Cantonment).  

According to the MoD, the project aims to strengthen energy security for defence establishments across Uttar Pradesh while supporting the government's clean energy and sustainability goals. It is also expected to lower long-term expenditure on conventional grid electricity.  

“Besides strengthening long-term energy security for the Defence Forces, the project is expected to substantially reduce expenditure incurred on procurement of conventional grid power for defence establishments, resulting in significant savings to the Government exchequer over the life cycle of the project,” stated the MoD.  

State-owned utility NTPC Limited will implement the project through a competitive bidding process to determine optimal energy pricing and savings for defence establishments. It will be implemented in close coordination with the Integrated Headquarters of the Ministry of Defence (Army) and the Directorate General Defence Estates (DGDE).  

NTPC’s renewable energy arm NTPC Green Energy Limited’s subsidiary NTPC Renewable Energy Limited (NTPC REL) separately announced that it will develop the said project. 

According to the ministry, the project is part of efforts to make productive use of vacant defence land while advancing renewable energy deployment. Once completed, the Sitapur facility is expected to serve as a reference model for future solar-plus-storage projects on defence land across the country.