4 solar energy parks to come up in erstwhile Anantapur district

Anantapur: Four solar energy parks with a capacity to produce 10,000 megawatts of solar power will be established shortly in four locations in the undivided district under the State government's latest Renewable Energy Export Policy.

The export policy is being ailed as the best renewable energy policy with a win-win situation for all the stakeholders.

The ambitious plan of the government is to set up solar plants of a minimum 500 mw capacity in an area of 2,000 acres, throughout the State in selective places which are identified as suitable for solar power generation.

It is intended to produce 120 gigawatts of renewable energy in 5 lakh acres. The objective is to produce 120,000 megawatts of power for exporting it to other States.

As part of the grandiose plan 1.20 lakh megawatts of power will be produced by private players investing something like Rs 700,000 crore throughout the state.

Hitherto, private players used to purchase land and set up power plants but according to the latest export policy, the Revenue department as well as New and Renewable Energy Development Corporation of AP NREDCAP will act as nodal agencies to facilitate leasing of both government and farmers' lands to the private developers for 30 years. Each farmer would get Rs 30,000 per acre per year as lease amount. Every 2 years there will be an increase by 5 per cent on lease charges. This would go on for 30 years which is the life of solar panels.

Interacting with The Hans India, the NREDCAP district manager M Kodandarama Murthy revealed that that it was planned to produce 10,000 megawatts in the undivided district. Already the process of identifying farmers who would voluntarily lease their lands had started. He said 10,000 acres in ayadurgam had been streamlined for leasing with farmers ready to enter into MoU with the developers. Similarly, local MLA Sridhar Reddy has come forward to convince farmers for leasing 15,000 acres in Puttaparthi. Raptadu MLA Topudurthi Prakash also is making arrangements to facilitate farmers to lease 5,000 acres of land from his side while Minister Usha Sri Charan is also ready to organise another 15,000 acres in Kalyandurgam constituency.

The next process involves identifying project developers in the new financial year. An estimated Rs 50,000 crore will be pumped in for the production of 10 gigawatts of solar power.

The Union government's Ministry of Renewable Energy is also establishing a central power grid station in Vajrakarur mandal in the district, so that power produced will be directly connected to the central grid station. Farmers are more than happy and consider it a boon for them as unlike the volatile situation in agriculture activity, the farmers are guaranteed decent income for the next 30 years.