ReNew Power has signed a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) to provide round-the-clock renewable power supply in India. A 1.3 GW hybrid renewable energy project will be set up, entailing an investment of approximately $1.2 billion by ReNew Power. The cumulative capacity will be set up as wind and solar farms at three locations – Karnataka, Rajasthan and Maharashtra. The hybrid capacity would generate 0.9 GW wind power and 0.4 GW solar power supplemented by battery storage. The project aims to operate at an 80 per cent average annual plant load factor with a minimum monthly capacity utilisation factor of 70 per cent.
The company quoted the lowest tariff of Rs 2.90 per unit as it won the project in May 2020 in a tender issued by SECI. Under the tender, the tariff has been stated to increase by 3 per cent annually for 15 years. For the remaining 10 years of the 25-year contract, the tariff will remain stable. The average tariff over the life of the project is expected to be lower than Rs 3.6 per unit. ReNew Power has also obtained the required approvals to connect the project sites with the grid.
The project is a step towards addressing the intermittency of renewable energy supply. Provision of round-the-clock renewable energy will encourage greater efficiency in renewable power transmission. This is also in line with India’s target to achieve 175 GW of renewable energy by 2022.