India cabinet approves intrastate transmission scheme backing 20 GW of renewable energy capacity

Share

From pv magazine India

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has approved the Green Energy Corridor (GEC) Phase-II scheme for the Intra-State Transmission System (InSTS). The scheme is intended to add approximately 10,750 circuit kilometres (ckm) of transmission lines and approx. 27,500 mega volt-amperes (MVA) transformation capacity of substations with central financial support.

The transmission infrastructure created under the scheme will facilitate grid integration and power evacuation of approximately 20 GW of renewable energy (RE) power projects in seven states. The beneficiary states include Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh.

The total cost of the transmission system is estimated to be INR 12,031.33 crore (US$1.6 billion), with central financial assistance (CFA) covering 33% of the project cost, i.e., INR 3,970.34 crore (US$534 million). The CFA will help offset the intra-state transmission charges and thus keep the power costs down, ultimately benefiting the end users.

Popular content

The transmission system will be created over a period of five years, from financial year 2021-22 to 2025-26, helping the nation to achieve the target of 450 GW installed RE capacity by 2030.

This scheme is in addition to GEC Phase-I, which is already under implementation in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu for grid integration and power evacuation of approximately 24 GW of RE power and is expected to be completed by 2022. The scheme will add 9,700 ckm of transmission lines and 22,600 MVA capacity of substations with an estimated cost of INR 10,141.68 crore (US$1.36 billion) for transmission projects with a CFA of INR 4,056.67 crore (US$546 million).

This content is protected by copyright and may not be reused. If you want to cooperate with us and would like to reuse some of our content, please contact: editors@pv-magazine.com.