The government of India has set a target of 292 gigawatts (GW) of installed solar energy capacity. According to estimates, 292 GW capacity would require at least six lakh hectares of land, which is close to impossible given India’s dense population.
It is because of the scarcity of land and hurdles related to land acquisition that a number of central public sector undertakings (CPSUs), private companies, and state government-run companies are now looking at floating solar projects to meet their renewable energy (RE) targets.
Floating solar, or floatovoltaics, are solar panels mounted on a buoyant structure on a body of water, typically a reservoir or a lake. As per rough government estimates, floating solar photovoltaic (PV) power plants can be 15-30 percent more expensive than land-based ones. But they have about 10 percent more generating capacity than land-based PV systems. This is because floatovoltaics can achieve higher efficiencies as the water cools the panels.
Now that the Indian government has fixed a target of bidding for 50 GW of renewable energy capacity every year until about 2030 for four CPSUs under the power ministry, the focus is now on RE projects that can be executed faster. In land-based solar projects, land acquisition not only takes the longest time but also leads to project delays.
In June, the Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) extended its scheme for the Development of Solar Parks and Ultra Mega Solar Park Projects till FY26 and even widened the scope of solar parks to include floating solar and hybrid power.
Moneycontrol takes a look at the CPSUs that are going big on floating solar projects.
Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Ltd (RUMSL)
The world’s largest floating solar power project, with a capacity of 600 MW, is being built in Madhya Pradesh. The ambitious project is being executed at the Omkareshwar dam in Khandwa district by Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Limited (RUMSL), a joint venture (JV) company of Madhya Pradesh Urja Vikas Nigam Limited (MPUVN) and Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI).
On August 18, the first block of 0.5 MW and 0.4 MW solar modules under Phase 1 of the project was launched. The entire first phase (278 MW) is scheduled to be completed by November this year. Phase 2 of 322 MW will be taken up after the completion of Phase 1.
NTPC Ltd
Currently, NTPC has the largest floating solar portfolio in India at 262 MW. In 2022, the CPSU commissioned four floating solar projects, including the two largest installations in India ― Ramagundam (Telangana) - 100 MW and Kayamkulam (Kerala) - 92 MW. Besides, it has commissioned two smaller units at Kawas in Gujarat (23 MW) and Auraiya in Uttar Pradesh (20 MW).
At present, the 100 MW Ramagundam project is India's largest floating solar PV project, with 4.5 lakh ‘Made in India' solar PV modules.
According to NTPC’s Chairman and Managing Director Gurdeep Singh, the company has also signed up for a project with the government of Uttar Pradesh to establish a floating solar project on the Rihand reservoir with a capacity of up to 1 GW.
NHPC Ltd
Hydropower giant NHPC Ltd is going to build 500 MW of floating solar projects in different water reservoirs in Odisha. The CPSU has also signed a promoter’s agreement with Green Energy Development Corporation of Odisha Limited (GEDCOL) to form a JV company for the same. The company has identified a 300 MW floating solar project at Rengali reservoir, Odisha, for implementation of the first Phase 1, and the EPC contract for the same is under tender process.
Besides, NHPC has invited a tender for an EPC contract for setting up a 50 MW floating solar project at West Kallada, Kerala, after receiving consent from the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB).
NLC India Ltd
NLC India Ltd (NLCIL), a lignite and coal mining PSU under the Ministry of Coal, has decided to set up floating solar projects totalling 100 MW.
"We already have a floating solar plant on a pilot scale. Now we have decided to add at least 100 MW capacity in and around the water bodies of Neyveli (Tamil Nadu). Besides, the district administration of Cuddalore has approached us for a feasibility study of having a floating solar plant in the biggest lake of the district," said Prasanna Kumar Motupalli, CMD, NLCIL.
"Land scarcity, and even if identified, its acquisition, is going to remain the key challenge in India’s target of having 500 GW renewable energy capacity by 2030. So, we have to explore such types of possibilities where we can install more capacity in floating solar. It will also help in reducing the evaporation of water from lakes and reservoirs," he said.
A few other CPSUs, such as SECI and SJVN, are also setting up floating solar projects or inviting bids for them. SECI intends to build a 100 MW floating solar project at the Getalsud Dam in Ranchi, Jharkhand, but its first tender did not garner much response and was cancelled. It has now floated a second tender for the same. SJVN is an EPC contractor for 90 MW of the 600 MW Omkareshwar floating solar power project, and it is also building a 15 MW floatovoltaic system at the Nangal pond in Himachal Pradesh’s Bilaspur.
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