HAU to install 1-MW solar power plant

Tribune News Service

Hisar, November 2

To conserve the environment, Haryana Agricultural University (HAU) will soon ensure functioning of electrical appliances through solar energy.

A university spokesman said a power purchase agreement had been secured between HAU, Sukhbir Agro Energy Limited and Haryana Renewable Energy Development Agency.

Under this, one MW solar power plant will be installed in the university. The entire cost of setting up the plant will be borne by the company. This will save the university more than Rs 65 lakh annually and the university will get electricity at about Rs 3.33. After the solar power plant is set up, the university will generate 13.70 lakh units of electricity annually.

Vice-Chancellor Samar Singh said setting up a solar power plant was an important step towards environment protection. It will be installed on the roofs of all buildings of the university and after this the rate of electricity per unit to the university will also be reduced because so far the cost of electricity per unit from Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam is about Rs 6.40.

The PPA was signed in the presence of the VC, Estate Officer and Chief Engineer Bhupendra Singh, Sub Divisional Officer Somvir Gehlavat and Sukhbir Agro Energy Limited CEO Khalid Nadeem and Deputy Manager Anil Yadav. University’s Estate Officer and Chief Engineer Bhupendra Singh said this would be for the first time that such a solar power plant was being installed on a government building in the state as the electricity generated from this plant would cost Rs 3.33 per unit. “Earlier, wherever government buildings had solar power plants, the electricity rate per unit has been expensive,” he said.

He said the company would take care of these plants and for the next 25 years it would run and maintain the plants. On completion of the 25-year period, the plant would become the university property.