Tata Power Solar Systems, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Power, has commissioned a floating solar power project in Kayamkulam, Kerala on a 350 acre water body, backwaters area, having an installed capacity of 101.6 megawatt peak.
Tata Power Solar has built a platform on the water body to make the entire solar plant float on water. This project is the first one in the floating solar photovoltaic (FSPV) through power purchase agreement category, said the company.This plant boasts a floating inverter platform having a 5 megawatt capacity. The large-scale installation and commissioning of this 101.6 megawatt power capacity solar plant project is completed and operational. The entire project is anchored to the waterbed of Kerala backwater using 134 cast pile foundations that are bored to a depth of 20 meters underwater to support the central monitoring and control stations (CMCS) and the 33/220 kilovolts switchyard. All this was done by dredging soil strata underwater, wherein the high groundwater was also a deterrent.
The entire array involving floats and solar panel modules had to be towed for 3 kilometers on a sea-linked national waterway, which was 15 meters deep, exposing the solar modules to high winds and gushing tides often reaching a height of about 3.5 meters. To operationalize the project, Tata Power Solar's execution team synchronized the 33/220 kilovolts air insulated substation (AIS) with 220 kilovolts existing gas insulated substation (GIS).
A power purchase agreement has been signed with a PSU client, wherein the entire power generated from this plant will be used by Kerela state electricity board (KSEB). All the solar modules used in this plant were safely transported, unloaded, and stored on a limited parcel of land for about 35 days by Tata Power Solar. In its construction stages, the plant also housed a team of 350 personnel who were tasked with speeding up the project as per contract agreements.
With the completion of this floating solar project, Tata Power Solar will not only reduce carbon emissions but also exhaust the unutilized area atop a water body to generate energy. This project is also one of the first by Tata Power Solar to be monitored and tracked by 24x7 CCTVs for added security and malfunction detections. With the commissioning of this project, the company's total utility-scale solar project portfolio touches 9.7 gigawatt power.
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The company said that despite of the arduous challenges of variable water depths, high sea tides, and severe water salinity concerns, this project was completed within the stipulated period.
Dr. Praveer Sinha, CEO and MD of Tata Power Company said, "The commissioning of India's first and largest floating solar project is an innovative and incremental step toward meeting India's sustainable energy goals. We are incredibly proud of our team's unrelenting efforts in delivering this unique solar project that floats atop a large waterbody."
Ashish Khanna, President of Renewables at Tata Power Company added, "We are thrilled to commission India's largest floating solar project of 101.6 megawatt power in Kerala's backwaters. The installation exhibits our determination toward timely project delivery, smooth execution skills, and well-synchronized team effort. This project reinforces Tata Power Solar's commitment to leading India's transition towards a greener future and achieving our collective vision of realizing 500 gigawatt of energy through solar power by 2030."
Tata Power Solar is one of India's largest integrated solar companies.
Tata Power Company is one of India's largest integrated power companies and together with its subsidiaries and jointly controlled entities, has an installed/managed capacity of 13,635 MW. The company has a presence across the entire power value chain - generation (renewable, hydro and thermal power), transmission & distribution, coal & freight, logistic, trading and consumer-facing solar rooftop and electric vehicle charging businesses.
On a consolidated basis, Tata Power Company reported 28% rise in net profit to Rs 503.11 crore on 15.4% increase in net sales to Rs 11,959.96 crore in Q4 FY22 over Q4 FY21.
Shares of Tata Power Company rose 0.22% to Rs 208.30 on the BSE.
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