Cabinet approves Rs 12,000 crore Green Corridors-II for RE uptake in states
- IBEF
- January 7, 2022
The Union Cabinet approved the second phase of the Green Energy Corridor (GEC) on Thursday in order to accelerate the penetration of renewable energy in the states. The projects under this phase would be set up in seven states to help with renewable energy transmission.
The Green Energy Corridor (GEC) is a transmission infrastructure for renewable energy (RE) power projects. The state-owned Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL) built inter-state transmission projects during the first phase of the Green Energy Corridor (GEC), while some projects were awarded to private entities through competitive bidding.
The second phase will add about 10,750 circuit kilometres (ckm) of transmission lines and roughly 27,500 Mega Volt-Amperes (MVA) of substation transformation capability. The current phase is expected to cost Rs 12,031.33 crore (US$ 1.61 billion), with a Central Financial Assistance (CFA) of Rs 3,970.34 crore (US$ 533.5 million) covering 33% of the project cost.
While the first two phases were intended at transmitting 175 Gw of renewable energy, the next two phases will be aimed at realising 450 Gw of renewable energy this decade. Projects in this phase will strive to improve state grids' power transmission capacity.
According to the Centre, the scheme will facilitate grid integration and power evacuation of about 20 GW of Renewable Energy (RE) power projects in seven states, namely Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh.
"The scheme will also contribute to long term energy security of the country and promote ecologically sustainable growth by reducing carbon footprint. It will generate large direct & indirect employment opportunities for both skilled and unskilled personnel in power and other related sectors," said the Centre's note.
Leading private businesses reduced project costs by 40-50% in the last phase of power transmission projects connecting renewable energy zones to the national grid in 2019.
These projects would be among 44 new power transmission projects costing Rs 41,369 crore (US$ 5.55 billion) that were recently approved, according to this paper. This tranche of projects would evacuate close to 38 Gw of renewable energy from Western and Northern parts of the country.
Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.
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