Chhattisgarh Inaugurates Country's Biggest Solar Energy Plant

• 15 Feb 2024

Why in News?

Chhattisgarh has inaugurated the country’s biggest solar energy plant with a battery energy storage system located near the Dhaba village in the Rajnandgaon district.

• It is established by the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) and Chhattisgarh Power Distribution Company provides a capacity of 100 megawatts.

Key Points

• This solar plant ensures that there will be electricity even during the night generating over five lakh units per day.
  • This will reduce 4.5 lakh metric tons of carbon emission and boost green energy.
• The on-grid solar power plant set-up by the Chhattisgarh Renewable Energy Development Agency (CREDA) is a significant step towards sustainable energy.
• The plant was established on 1st February, 2024. It features a 100-megawatt solar plant equipped with 2,39,000 bifacial solar panels which is producing electricity from both the sides.
• The plant is expected to generate power for the next seven years using solar energy.
• The decision to establish the first solar park in the Bairam hill area of the Rajnandgaon district was taken by the Chhattisgarh government to maximize the use of these hilly terrains for solar power.
  • The project began in 2016, with the first phase covering five villages and 181.206 hectares and the second phase including four villages and 196-217 hectares.

Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited (SECI)

• It was set up in 2011 to facilitate the implementation of the National Solar Mission (NSM) and to achieve the targets set forth by it.
• SECI was initially incorporated as a section 25 company (Not-for-profit) under the Companies Act, 1956. In the year 2015, it was converted into a Section-3 company.
• SECI is a Schedule- A Central Public Sector Undertaking (CPSU). It is the only CPSU dedicated to the development of the Renewable Energy (RE) sector in India and its scope of activities covers all RE sources.