Rewa project: PM says import dependency on solar power equipment needs to end

• The Prime Minister said that the Rewa project will make the entire region a major hub for pure and clean energy in the decade

• He said solar energy would be a major medium for providing the energy needs of an aspirational India in the 21st century

New Delhi: Inaugurating Asia's largest solar power plant in Madhya Pradesh's Rewa on Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi stressed on the importance of self-reliance in the solar power sector. "We must work towards reducing our import dependency on solar panels and related equipment. We need to speed up our production capacity of solar modules… and solar batteries should be made in India. We need to speed up all work in these areas," Modi said as he launched the 750-MW solar power plant in Rewa.

The statement comes in the backdrop of tension with China along the Line of Actual Control and just days after the government announced it would not import power equipment and technology from China and Pakistan. 

Rewa will make MP region a hub for pure, clean energy: PM

The Prime Minister said that the Rewa project will make the entire region a major hub for pure and clean energy in the decade. He said very soon Madhya Pradesh would be the main centre of solar energy in India, as major projects are in progress in Neemuch, Shajapur, Chattarpur and Omkareshwar. The biggest beneficiaries of this would be the poor, the middle class, the tribals, the farmers of Madhya Pradesh, he said.

Prime Minister said solar energy would be a major medium for providing the energy needs of an aspirational India in the 21st century. He described solar energy as one which is "Sure, Pure and Secure." Sure because of the continuous supply of energy from the sun, pure as it is environment friendly and secure, because it is a secure source for our energy needs," said Modi. He also termed such solar energy projects as a true representation of Aatmanirbhar Bharat.

What is special about Rewa solar project?

Spread over 1,590 acres, Rewa solar power project was the first solar project in the country to break the grid parity barrier. Compared to prevailing solar project tariffs of approx Rs 4.50/unit in early 2017, the Rewa project had achieved historic results — the first-year tariff of Rs 2.97/unit with a tariff escalation of Rs 0.05/unit over 15 years and a levelised rate of Rs 3.30/unit over the term of 25 years.

The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, whose vast urban train network depends on reliable electricity, runs 60 percent of its operations from the electricity sourced from Rewa solar power project. The project has three solar power generating units of 250 MW each on 500 hectare, taking the total output to 750 MW on 1,500 hectare.

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