Tata Power to set up 100 MW captive solar power plant for Viraj Profile Private Limited

Tata Power Renewable Energy Limited, a subsidiary of Tata Power, on Thursday said it has collaborated with stainless steel manufacturer Viraj Profile Private Limited to set up a 100 MW captive solar plant. The plant will be developed by Tata Power at Nandgaon at its Nasik site and it will power Viraj Profile Private Limited's Tarapur plant.

With this, Viraj will become one of the first Stainless Steel Long Products manufacturing companies in India to use solar energy to run its manufacturing plant. With the commissioning of this plant, Viraj Profile's dependability on non-renewable power resources will be reduced by approximately 50 per cent, Tata Power said in a statement. The project will get commissioned by July 2023, it said.

Tata Power Renewable Energy Limited has created a special purpose vehicle (SPV) - TP Nanded Limited, which will undertake the construction, operation and maintenance of this captive solar power plant. The plant is expected to generate about 200 MUs of energy and offset approximately 170.43 million Kg of CO2 annually. As per captive generation rules, Tata Power will own 74 per cent of the generation while Viraj Profile Pvt Ltd will own the remaining 26 per cent. The power generated will be used for captive consumption by Viraj Profile Pvt Limited's Tarapur Plant.

"We are pleased to announce the establishment of our new SPV to construct a 100 MW solar power facility for Viraj Profile Private Limited. We believe that this will also inspire other energy-intensive sectors to join the movement for sustainable energy and shift their operations and services to clean energy sources," said Ashish Khanna, CEO, Tata Power Renewable Energy Limited. "This project is another step in TPREL's ongoing efforts to build green and renewable energy solutions throughout India," Khanna said.

Tata Power Renewable Energy Limited has been India's No. 1 Solar Rooftop EPC player for the last eight years. It has a portfolio of more than 9.7 GW of ground-mount utility-scale solar projects and over 1.2 GW + MW of rooftop and distributed generation projects across the country. Tata Power is also one of the largest solar manufacturers in India; it operates a world-class manufacturing unit in Bangalore, with a production capacity of 1,100 MW of modules and cells. The company has also recently signed an MoU with the Tamil Nadu government to set up 4 GW solar cell and 4 GW solar module manufacturing plant in the Tirunelveli District.

J P Garg, President, Viraj Profiles Pvt. Limited, said, "We are glad to partner with Tata Power. Our alliance will work as a catalyst in achieving our sustainability goals toward carbon neutrality. Viraj is one of the first stainless steel long products manufacturing companies in India, which will use Solar Energy to run its manufacturing plants and operations. This Solar Power project will supply 50 per cent of our monthly electricity requirement."