World’s largest coal mining company and government owned Coal India Limited recently announced the second phase of its solar power expansion plan.
According to media reports, the company announced plans to set up 600 MW solar power projects across four states. The company had earlier stated plans to set up 1 GW of solar power capacity across the country. During the first phase the company will set up two solar power projects of 100 MW capacity each in the state of Madhya Pradesh.
The 600 MW capacity will be set in the states of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal and Maharashtra. The capacity will be allocated through reverse auctions and tenders for have already been issued by the Solar Energy Corporation of India.
The 1,000 MW solar power target announced by Coal India is part of its ’green commitment’ to the government. The company shall have this capacity operational by 2019.
Another major coal mining company in India – NLC Limited – is also aggressively working on setting up solar power projects. Last month, the company announced that it started construction work on its third solar power project.
The construction of this project is part of company’s ambitious plan to establish 4,000 MW of solar power capacity in the states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, Telangana and Rajasthan. These projects would be implemented under the National Solar Mission scheme announced by the central government.