India to set up solar power park in Sri Lanka

India to set up solar power park in Sri Lanka

July 26, 2020   06:09 pm

India plans to build a solar power park in Sri Lanka as part of a strategy to project its presence in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), two people aware of the development has told Indian media.

Leveraging its solar expertize, India’s largest power generation utility NTPC Ltd plans to set up this project in the island nation under the aegis of International Solar Alliance (ISA).

The move comes amid a growing Chinese presence in the Indian Ocean Region, which India considers its sphere of influence. Further flexing its muscle, the Indian Navy on Monday conducted joint exercises in the Bay of Bengal with the US Navy, which sailed in with an aircraft carrier battle group led by the USS Nimitz.

“We are looking at setting up a solar park in Sri Lanka,” said a senior Indian government official requesting anonymity.

State-run Ceylon Electricity Board has an installed power generation capacity of around 35.8 gigawatts (GW). India has been working on improving the energy infrastructure in Sri Lanka.

Petronet LNG Ltd had earlier announced its plans of setting up a liquefied natural gas terminal in Sri Lanka.

India is also exploring laying an overhead electricity link with Sri Lanka as part of efforts to create a new-energy ecosystem in the South Asian neighbourhood. China is already one of the biggest investors in infrastructure projects in Sri Lanka.

The solar park is NTPC’s second foray after Colombo scrapped a proposal to set up a $500 million coal-fuelled power project in Trincomalee over environmental concerns in 2016.

Queries emailed to the spokespersons of NTPC and India’s ministry of new and renewable energy remained unanswered.

With an installed capacity of 62.91 GW, NTPC’s Sri Lanka solar move is one of several such contracts being pursued to help build 10 GW solar capacity in ISA member countries.

Green energy projects now account for more than a fifth of India’s installed power generation capacity of 370 GW.

Source: livemint

Disclaimer: All the comments will be moderated by the AD editorial. Abstain from posting comments that are obscene, defamatory or slanderous. Please avoid outside hyperlinks inside the comment and avoid typing all capitalized comments. Help us delete comments that do not follow these guidelines by flagging them(mouse over a comment and click the flag icon on the right side). Do use these forums to voice your opinions and create healthy discourse.

Most Viewed Video Stories

LIVE🔴Ada Derana Prime Time News Bulletin 6.55 pm

LIVE🔴Ada Derana Prime Time News Bulletin 6.55 pm

Iran's President Ebrahim Raisi visits Sri Lanka to bolster ties, inaugurates Uma Oya project

LIVE🔴Ada Derana Lunch Time News Bulletin 12.00 pm

Two dead as cops return fire at armed men inside defiant three-wheeler

Sajith says ready for public debates with Anura and NPP's economic council (English)

Collaborative discussions needed to devise suitable education system - President (English)

Railways General Manager H.M.K.W. Bandara passes away (English)

Army appoints investigation panel to probe deadly Fox Hill crash (English)