Shree Cement Reneweable Power Capacity Reaches 1GW

Shree Cement Reneweable Power Capacity Reaches 1GW

Shree Cement, the third-biggest cement producer in India, announced that it has achieved 1,000 MW of installed power capacity through the commissioning of a 19.5 MW solar power plant at its Andhra Pradesh operation.

“The one GW (Gigawatt) capacity includes a mix of solar, wind, thermal and waste heat recovery power plants, showcasing Shree Cement’s diversified approach to meeting the electricity demand for cement production,” the company, Shree Cement said in a statement.

“Looking ahead, an estimated capex of Rs 1,000 crore is planned in FY25 for installation of additional renewable energy capacity,” it stated.

The company has made an investment of Rs 4,000 crore to expand the renewable portfolio, which now accounts for nearly half of the installed power capacity.

This includes the installation of 36 MW of wind power in Rajasthan, 34 MW of waste heat recovery capacity in Karnataka and Rajasthan, and 132 MW of solar capacity in five states: Jharkhand, Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Uttarakhand.
Reaching this level of power capacity portfolio guarantees us enough electricity to fuel our expansion initiatives as well as our current cement output. “We intend to provide the excess electricity to both the central grid and the states,” stated Managing Director Neeraj Akhoury.

A recent report by REN21 found solar manufacturing to be concentrated geographically in just five countries, which are estimated to produce more than 90% of the global capacity for producing solar modules. These countries are namely reported to be, China which leads with around 80% of overall solar PV manufacturing capacity, followed by Vietnam, India, Malaysia, and Thailand. The report highlighted Energy crisis of the previous year continued to abate, with the world witnessing a remarkable boom in solar photovoltaics (PV) and a significant surge in energy investments. Global additions to renewable power capacity increased an estimated 36% in 2023 to reach around 473 gigawatts (GW), a new record for the 22nd consecutive year.2 Solar PV drove the increase and accounted for three-quarters of all renewable power capacity additions in 2023.