Largest Solar Battery Project By SECI Commissioned in Chhattisgarh

Largest Solar Battery Project By SECI Commissioned in Chhattisgarh

Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited (SECI), under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, has commissioned India’s largest Battery Energy Storage System (BESS). The project was inaugurated by PM Modi on February 24. The 40 megawatts (MW) / 120MWh BESS with a solar photovoltaic (PV) plant which has an installed capacity of 152.325 megawatt hour (MWh) and dispatchable capacity of 100MW AC (155.02 MW peak DC) is located in Rajnandgaon, Chhattisgarh.

The energy would be purchased by the state of Chhattisgarh, thus contributing to meeting the peak energy demand of the state using green electrons and also towards its renewable purchase obligations. The project utilises battery storage for storing solar energy when the sun is shining and using it later during hours of peak demand in the evening, to meet the electricity demand in the state. The project has deployed bifacial modules, which reflect the light from the ground, thus generating more electricity than monofacial modules, hence setting a new standard for large-scale renewable energy projects.

Through a tripartite land-use permission agreement among the Energy Department of the Government of Chhattisgarh, Chhattisgarh State Power Distribution Company Limited (CSPDCL), and SECI, 451 acres of wasteland across 9 villages in Tehsil Dongargarh and Dongargaon, District Rajnandgaon, Chhattisgarh, have been repurposed.

The project ensures overall power stability and reliability by ensuring an efficient evacuation of power through a 132 kilo-volt (kV) double-circuit double-string transmission line to Chhattisgarh State Power Transmission Company Limited’s (CSPTCL) 220/132 kilovolt (kV) Thelkadih substation, facilitating seamless integration into the existing power grid, according to the press release.

SECI’s long-term power purchase agreement with the state electricity distribution company (CSPDCL) underscores the economic viability of the project and support for such renewable energy endeavours. The project has been constructed with funding from the World Bank and Clean Technology Fund under Innovation in Solar Power & Hybrid Technologies Project as well as leveraged financing from domestic lending agencies.