State to set up solar power clusters for tubewells

Sukhbir asked the Non-Renewable Energy Minister Bikram Singh Majithia to get a study including technical as well as financial viability of the solar power clusters done.

“Under this proposed initiative,a cluster of tubewells and their power requirement will be identified. Based on this,solar power panels with one time investment can be installed to supply it power,” state-owned Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) Chief Executive Officer T P S Sidhu said.

The government supplies free power to farmers and the subsidy burden arising out of free power is expected to grow to Rs 5,700 crore this fiscal.

Majithia informed that PEDA was considering a proposal to create land pools in Kandi as well as Kalanaur area of Gurdaspur district to attract investment for setting up of big solar power plants.

Sukhbir also asked PEDA to set a target to generate 500 MW of power,each in biomass and solar power sectors in next two years. He also asked PEDA to analyse reasons for slow implementation of setting up such plants and directed to remove the bottlenecks.

The Deputy CM said it was high time for the state to replicate the success solar power stories of Gujarat and Rajasthan in the state.

He also directed for the cancellation of permissions to those companies which were dilly-dallying their projects on one and another pretext. He underlined the need to encourage both new entrepreneurs and big players by giving permission to them up to 2 MW and up to 25 MW,respectively.

Majithia informed that PEDA would soon invite bids for 400 MW solar power plants. He said that the process for identifying the canals and roof tops for setting up of solar panels has already begun.

He said the state has potential of more than 50 MW solar power productions from roof tops while the canals have the potential of setting up of solar panels for more than 500 MW of power.