Telangana: Floating solar plant slowly moving towards reality in Lower Manair Dam
The Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) has already prepared the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for setting up a 300 MW solar plant on Lower Manair Dam
Hyderabad: As part of the plan of the State government to explore the possibilities of floating solar power plants in major reservoirs and pumped storage hydro-electric generation to meet the growing energy needs of the State through renewable resources, steps are being taken to set up a 300 MW floating solar plant on the Lower Manair Dam at Alugunur village of Thimmapur mandal in Karimnagar District.
The Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) has already prepared the Detailed Project Report (DPR) for setting up a 300 MW solar plant on Lower Manair Dam.
Delhi-based Power and Energy Consultants Limited was entrusted with the task of preparing a pre-feasibility study to set up a 300 MW floating solar plant on the water of Lower Manair Dam at a cost of Rs. 1,640.66 crore and DPR for setting up 500 megawatt (2X250 MW) floating solar plants on the Mallanna Sagar reservoir.
The company has reportedly sought permission of the State government to take up construction work on the reservoir.
While the entire reservoir has an area of 81 square kilometres, it is learnt that Singareni has prepared for setting up a plant in about 9 square km.
The DPR has been reportedly designed in such a way that even when the minimum water levels are maintained in the dam, the solar panels remain in the water. The LMD floating solar plant project is likely to cost around Rs. 3,000 crore.
Singareni commissioned its first floating solar power plant with 5 megawatt capacity last January. The floating solar power plant has been established with a cost of Rs.26 crore on the reservoir waters of the company’s 2×600 MW thermal power plant at Pegadapalli in Jaipur mandal of Mancherial district.
Local fishing communities fear that the installation of solar panels will disrupt aquatic ecosystems, reduce fish populations, and ultimately deprive them of their primary source of income and sustenance.
However, the officials claimed that as the solar plant would be set up only on 10 percent of the reservoir water area, there would be no difficulties in fishing.
