Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister inaugurates foundation for three renewable energy projects

YS Jagan Mohan Reddy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh showed confidence that the state would become the number one in the country in the generation of green energy in the coming few years. Jagan Mohan Reddy virtually laid the foundation for three renewable energy projects with a total capacity of 5,314 Megawatts (MW) in Nandyal district.

The Chief Minister set these projects at Junuthala in Owk Mandal of Kurnool district (2,300MW solar park), Kandikayapalle village of Panyam Mandal in Nadyal district (700 MW solar and 314 MW wind) and Muddavaram in Bethamcherla Mandal of Nandyal district (1,000 MW solar and 1,000 MW wind) in collaboration with Greenko, ArcelorMittal Green Energy and Ecoren Energy respectively.

The Chief Minister said that the projects are a part of the state government’s efforts to promote renewable energy and make Andhra Pradesh a “power surplus” state. He also said that the projects will help to reduce the state’s dependence on imported coal and improve the environment.

The Chief Minister said these companies would invest Rs10,350 crore, Rs4500 crore and Rs11000 crore, respectively, providing employment opportunities for 2,300, 1,000 and 2,000 people. Meanwhile, the Andhra Pradesh Power Generation Corporation (APGENCO) also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Hydro-Electric Power Corporation (NHPC) in the Chief Minister’s presence. Jagan Mohan Reddy also said these projects were environment-friendly and would reduce dependence on fossil fuels. He also released a white paper on the opportunities for investments in the State in the green hydrogen sector.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister energy projects

“Pump storage power projects will help us produce power during peak hours and bring in a revolution in green energy which will control the world in the future and the State will become part of the green energy revolution,” the Chief Minister said. In all, 37 locations have been identified to start pump storage units to produce 41,00 MW and feasibility studies were completed on 29 projects for producing 33240 MW.

The MoU, the NHPC, in collaboration with APGENCO, will set up 1000MW and 950 MW pump storage units at Yaganti and Kamalapadu Respectively with an investment of RS10,000 crore in partnership. These units will provide jobs to 2,000 persons.

Besides providing jobs to locals, the companies will also pay a royalty of Rs 1 lakh to the State government for each MW generated and pay farmers, who have given their lands, Rs 30,000 per acre every year with a price escalation of five per cent every two years.

The state already produces 8,999 MW of solar and wind power. The government expects that an agreement signed with the Solar Energy Corporation of India to get power at Rs 2.49 per unit will help provide free power to farmers during the daytime for 25-30 years.

The agreement with SECI is a major step by the Andhra Pradesh government to promote renewable energy and provide free power to farmers. It is a win-win situation for both the farmers and the government. The farmers will get free power, which will help them to increase their income. The government will save money on electricity bills, which can be used for other development projects.

Energy Minister P. Ramachandra Reddy, Finance Minister B. Rajendranath, Deputy Chief Minister (Endowments) K. Satyanarayana, CS Dr. KS Jawahar Reddy, APGENCO MD KVN Chakradhar Babu, NREDCAP VC & MD S. Ramana Reddy, British Deputy High Commissioner Gareth Wynn Owen, Deputy Head Mission (UK Government) Varun Mali, Senior Advisor to UK Government Nishant Kumar Singh, NHPC Finance Director RP Goel, Greenko Vice President N. Seshagiri Rao, AM Green Energy Business Head Samir Mathur, Ecoren Energy CMD Y. Lakshmi Prasad and senior officials were present.

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