Commonwealth Games 2010 to be 'solar powered' by Reliance; commissions India’s first 1MW solar PV power plant

NEW DELHI, INDIA: The solar energy initiative of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), RIL Solar Group, has successfully implemented and commissioned India’s first 1MW solar plant on the roof of the Thyagaraj Stadium in New Delhi.

The Thyagaraj Stadium, developed by the Government of Delhi, is planned to be a model green stadium and will host Netball in the upcoming Commonwealth Games.

RIL Solar Group has also implemented power plants in the R K Khanna Tennis Complex as also solar LED street lights and garden lights in the Commonwealth Games Village. With these, RIL Solar Group has installed 100 percent of the solar PV power generating equipment for the Commonwealth Games 2010. The entire solar initiative is one of the major initiatives to compensate for CO2 emissions to be released through the game.

RIL Solar Group installed and commissioned the country’s first 1MW solar plant in a record duration of less than three months. The power plant is expected to generate around 1.4 million units of electricity per year. It would cater to the power requirements of the stadium and the surplus would be fed to the grid at 11KV.

The solar power generated through 1 MW solar PV power plant at the Thyagaraj Stadium is expected to result in emissions reduction of more than 1200 tonnes of CO2 per year.

The Group has also implemented three 2.6 KWp solar PV power plants on the roof of individual tennis courts in the R K Khanna Tennis Complex, which will play host to the tennis event during the games. Further, there are 34 back-up solar PV systems of 3 KWp each along with 180 solar LED street lights and 500 garden lights in the Commonwealth Games Village which will house athletes, coaching and support staff.

Commenting on the achievement, Mukesh Ambani, chairman and managing director, Reliance Industries Ltd. said: "We have always believed that the renewable energy space is a natural extension of our strengths in the conventional energy platform. The nature of technical expertise and project execution demonstrated in developing the solar power infrastructure is a defining achievement for our Solar Group.

"We will continue our efforts in research, understanding and scaling up the deployment of these environment friendly sources of energy. Reliance Industries is privileged and honored to work with the Government of Delhi and Organizing Committee and be an integral green part of a show case event like the Commonwealth Games 2010."

Some of the salient features of the 1MW solar PV plant at the Thyagaraj Stadium include:
* A kalzip type roof that minimizes the use of mounting structures in the system.
* A total of 3,640 no of 280Wp modules with one of the highest efficiency of 14.1 percent have been used in the project.
* The entire system has been installed within a roof-space of 10,000 sq. m. (2.5 acres).
* The inverters and power evacuation systems used in the project are the best in class and have been executed by partnering with leading global companies to ensure best quality and results.

Among the other initiatives of RIL Solar include:
* 5 MWp R&D Solar PV plant at Khimsar, Rajasthan.
* 50 kWp roof-top PV plant with back-up at Judicial academy, Chandigarh.
* Electrified villages in various states including Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and the North East.
* 42.5 KW roof-top project to come up at HAREDA, Haryana.
* Installed solar powered ATM Machines in rural areas.
* Powered telecom towers (BTS) with solar power.