Tata Power Solar Systems, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Power, has commissioned 101.6MWp floating solar project in Kayamkulam in Kerala – India’s largest such project to date.
Built on a 350-acre water body, backwaters area, the installation was completed within the stipulated period, despite the arduous challenges of variable water depths, high sea tides, and severe water salinity concerns faced throughout the project’s construction duration.
Tata Power Solar built a scaffolding 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, according to the company.
The plant boasts a floating inverter platform having a 5MW capacity. The large-scale installation and commissioning of this 101.6MWp capacity solar plant have been the fastest in the FSPV category, with ready a Commercial Operation Date (CoD) certification, which means the project has been nodded as complete and operational, Tata Power Solar said.
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.
Praveer Sinha , CEO and MD of Tata Power, 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.”
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).
Ashish Khanna , president of renewables at Tata Power, added: “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 500GW of energy through solar power by 2030.”
With the commissioning of this project, the company’s total utility-scale solar project portfolio touches 9.7GWp.
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