US-based solar module manufacturer First Solar has announced commissioning of two solar projects totalling 130 MW in the southern states of India through its Indian subsidiary, First Solar Power India Pvt. Ltd.
The company declared commercial operations of 80 MW solar PV project in the state of Andhra Pradesh and 50 MW solar PV project in the state of Telangana. With these projects the cumulative operational capacity owned by First Solar in India has increased to 150 MW.
The projects comprises of 1.4 million First Solar modules and are together expected to generate enough electricity to power approximately 227,500 local households annually and would offset 204,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions each year.
Power generated from these projects will be purchased by the local utilities Southern Power Distribution Company of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana State Southern Power Distribution Company under 25 year long-term power purchase agreements.
“After achieving a recent milestone of 1 GW of PV solar capacity footprint in India, we are delighted to add 130 MW of utility-scale solar power to the grid, growing our portfolio of operational solar assets to a cumulative capacity of 150 MW,” commented First Solar’s Country Head for India Sujoy Ghosh.
First Solar has been active in the India market since before the inception of the National Solar Mission. Earlier this year, the company had announced that its cumulative solar power module shipment to India has crossed 1 GW and it has become the first thin-film solar panel manufacturer to achieve this feat.