July 21, 2020 | 12:06 am
THE AYALAS’ energy arm is set to
debut in India with a new energy project to boost its renewables portfolio in
the Asia and Pacific region.
AC Energy, Inc. on Monday announced
that its joint venture with Hong Kong-based UPC Renewables Group is building a
140-megawatt (MW) solar farm in the desert state of Rajasthan.
The Sitara Solar project, which is
estimated to cost around $68 million, will supply power to Solar Energy Corp.
of India. It won the supply contract with the state-owned firm via a
competitive bid at 2.48 Indian rupee per kilowatt-hour, fixed over a 25-year
period.
The solar facility is expected to go
online in the first quarter of 2021.
AC Energy President and Chief
Executive Officer Eric T. Francia said the company is keen to join the Indian
energy market, citing it as “one of the world’s largest and fastest growing
markets for renewable energy.”
India has set an “ambitious target”
to jack up its clean energy capacity to 175 gigawatts (GW) over the next two
years, 100 GW of which will come from solar, 60 GW from wind, 10 from
bio-power, and 5 GW from hydropower.
AC Energy promises to bring new
technologies and “best” practices to India, arousing its potential for
renewable energy while helping it reach its energy goals, said AC Energy
International Chief Operating Officer Patrice R. Clausse.
The solar project is seen to cut 2.4
million tons of carbon dioxide during its life cycle, according to Pranab Kumar
Sarmah, chief executive officer of UPC-AC Energy Solar, the two firms’ 50-50
joint venture.
“This is our humble contribution to
help India reach its renewable energy goal,” the official added.
UPC-AC Energy Solar is aiming to
build more than 1 GW of clean energy projects across Asia in a few years.
Moreover, UPC Renewables Chairman
Brian Caffyn said the upcoming solar facility will contribute a “significant”
part of AC Energy’s renewables capacity target, which is expected to form half
of its 5,000-MW total target capacity, or 2,500 MW, by 2025.
Among the recent joint projects put
up by AC Energy and UPC Renewables is the twin wind project in Vietnam with a
combined capacity of 60 MW. The project, located in the Soc Trang Province, is
touted to sport the biggest wind tower in the country.
Just last week, AC Energy revealed
it is building another energy project in Vietnam, claiming it as the biggest
wind farm in the country with 210-MW capacity. The project is being done in
partnership with AMI Renewables Energy Joint Stock Co. — Adam J. Ang
No comments:
Post a Comment