India’s Floating Solar Power Plants

India’s largest floating solar power plant is located in the state of Telangana. The plant’s capacity is 100 megawatts (MW) and it is spread over an area of ​​450 acres on the Ramagundam resorvoir in Peddapalli district. The floating solar power plant was inaugurated in January 2021 and was built at a cost of around Rs 423 crore ($57.6 million). It is expected to generate about 1.45 crore units of electricity per year, which is enough to power about 1 lakh homes.

The plant was constructed by the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC), one of the largest power generation companies in India.

The project is part of NTPC’s efforts to increase renewable energy capacity and reduce its carbon footprint. A floating solar plant is a one way solar power plant that is built on water resources like lakes reservoirs, or oceans.

Floating vs Traditional Land Based Plants

The first benefit of floating solar plants is that they user water bodies due to which the unused water bodies are get used, otherwise they remain unused.

Water bodies used in floating solar plants have high energy yield because the efficiency of solar panels has increased due to the reflection of the sun from the surface of the water.

Floating plants help in reducing rate of evaporation which is a common problem in dry climate regions.

Challenges with Floating Solar Power Plants

However, floating solar power plants also have some challenges which we must mention. Strong anchoring system is required because water current and waves are capable of impacting it.

Some Floating Solar Power Plants in India

• There is a 500 kW floating solar plant on the Banasur Sagar water reservoir in the state.
• In Andhra Pradesh, a 2 MW floating power plant has been set up on the Gandhipet reservoir.
• Kolkata Port Trust has established a 20 kW floating power plant on a water body inside the port premises.