Norwegian energy giant Statkraft has opened its first large-scale solar plant in India as it targets long-term growth in the South Asia country.
The 76MW/120GWh Nellai solar project is located in the southern state of Tamil Nadu and will generate enough electricity to power more than 500,000 Indian homes, Statkraft said in a media statement.
It has been developed under the ‘Indian Group Captive-model’ where Statkraft’s customers own a minimum share of 26% of the plant and buy the electricity produced via long-term power purchase agreements (PPA).
Belectric’s Indian division was responsible for the construction of the site and will also deliver the operation & maintenance (O&M) services for the first three years.
Oslo-headquartered Statkraft said it had ambitions to ramp up its renewables operations in India through “focusing on the development of greenfield solar projects at utility scale”.
“Nellai is the first project in realising this business objective and supports our strategy to strengthen our industrial presence in the solar segment and grow our customer-oriented business,” said Statkraft executive vice president of international power, Jürgen Tzschoppe.
Statkraft’s portfolio in India currently stands at 215MW and it is actively pursuing green hydrogen opportunities in the country through a collaboration with Aker Horizons.
In October last year, Statkraft released a report that urged for greater action on decarbonisation to meet climate targets, put renewables at the centre of any strategy and placed huge importance on the role of green hydrogen in the energy transition.