Adani Green Energy Limited (AGEL), India’s largest and one of the world’s leading renewable energy (RE) companies, has operationalised cumulative capacity of 1,000 MW solar energy at the world’s largest RE park at Khavda in Kutch in Gujarat. With this, AGEL has achieved operational capacity of 9,478 MW. AGEL expects to achieve 45,000 MW RE goal by 2030.
AGEL delivered 1,000 MW in less than 12 months of commencing work at Khavda. This involved installing approximately 2.4 million solar modules. AGEL, according to an official communique, is committed to contribute to India’s goal of achieving 500 GW non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030.
Kutch houses the world’s largest RE plant of 30 GW spread across 538 sq kms of land, five times the size of Paris. The project is expected to be completed in the next five years and will create over 15,200 green jobs.Once complete, it will be the planet’s largest power plant regardless of the energy source.
The region witnesses ~2,060 kWh/m2 of high solar irradiation and one of the best wind resources in India, with speeds of ~8 meters per second.
Over the last 5 years, Adani Green conducted geotechnical investigations, seismic studies, a centrifuge study by Cambridge, resource assessment and land studies, Environment and Social Impact Assessment (ESIA), Environmental and Social Due Diligence (ESDD), and a detailed feasibility study, amongst several others, before embarking on the development of this site.
The comprehensive infrastructure development effort included the construction of ~100 km roads, 50 km of drainage, establishment of desalination and 3 reverse osmosis (RO) plants with a total capacity of 70 cubic meter per hour to meet the drinking water requirements of the project staff, laying optical fiber cables for 180 km for connectivity, and concrete batching plants. In addition, a township has been created to accommodate over 8,000 staff and workers, equipped with medical facilities, a shopping complex for daily necessities, banking services and leisure activities.
Leveraging the proven project execution capabilities of Adani Infra, technological expertise of Adani New Industries Limited (ANIL), operational excellence of AIMSL, robust supply chain, AGEL is set to replicate its success in building and operating India’s first and the world’s largest wind-solar hybrid cluster at Jaisalmer.
Innovative solutions are being deployed at Khavda to integrate sustainable practices. AGEL has committed to deploy waterless cleaning robots for the entire solar capacity to address dust accumulation on panels to increase the energy output and help conserve water in the arid Kutch region. This will enable AGEL’s water neutrality goals aligned to United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 6.
The communique added that the Khavda plant is a testament to AGEL’s sustainable progress and unwavering resolve to accelerate India’s clean energy transition and enhance social and natural capital in the region.
Adani Green Energy Limited (AGEL) is India’s largest and one of the leading renewable energy companies in the world, enabling the clean energy transition. AGEL develops, owns, and operates utility scale grid-connected solar, wind and hybrid renewable power plants.
With a locked-in growth trajectory up to 20.8 Gigawatt (GW), AGEL currently has an operating renewable portfolio of over 9 GW, the largest in India, spread across 12 states. AGEL is credited with developing several landmark renewable energy power plants, the latest being the world’s largest wind-solar hybrid power cluster of 2,140 Megawatt (MW) in Jaisalmer, Rajasthan.
The company has set a target of achieving 45 GW by 2030 aligned to India’s decarbonization goals. AGEL is focused on leveraging technology to reduce the Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) in pursuit of enabling large scale adoption of affordable clean energy. AGEL’s operating portfolio is certified ‘water positive for plants of more than 200 MW capacity’, ‘single-use plastic free’ and ‘zero waste-to-landfill’, a testament to the company’s commitment of powering sustainable growth. It must be noted that Adani Group is committed to leverage its’ state-of-the-art Energy Network Operation Centre (ENOC) platform with Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning integration to enable real-time automated operation and monitoring of the plant.
AGEL’s execution partner Adani Infra is developing several innovative solutions that are being piloted at Khavda. For example: to address the unique soil strata, Adani Infra deployed underground stone columns to enhance the soil strength that was developed with global collaboration with involvement of both domestic & international institutions of higher learning. Specialised corrosion resistant coatings are being used for solar module mounting structures and switchyard equipment for long-term protection of the plant and equipment in the highly corrosive environment. AGEL is actively engaged in community development initiatives across several villages, focusing on education, health, women empowerment, water conservation, and enhancing community infrastructure as part of its ESG efforts. This demonstrates AGEL’s holistic commitment to enhancing the social and natural capital in the region.
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