• Project size: 3MW DC / 2.5MW AC
• Module technology: Polycrystalline modules
• Plant area: 15.65 acres
• CO₂ displacement: 2835 tonnes annually
• No. of modules: 12,000
• Estimated energy generation: 4.05 million units annually

"Andhra Sugars believes in sustainable business and hence we opted for solar in our power usage. We appreciate Tata Power Solar’s professionalism and thank them for completing the project in record time.”
- Mr. P Narendranath Chowdary, Managing Director, Andhra Sugars Limited

Project Overview

The Andhra Sugars Limited, one of the largest Industrial houses in Andhra Pradesh, has always focused on using locally available renewable resources to produce value added products, generate employment and upliftment of rural India. With an aim to promote renewable energy, the company has already established wind farms in the states of Andhra Pradesh & Tamil Nadu, and was looking to take a step forward.

Wanting to try a different approach to fulfill its renewable energy purchase obligations (RPO) for their captive consumption, it was time to go solar for Andhra Sugars at their Chemicals & Fertilizers Division at Kovvur in Andhra Pradesh.

Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) is the obligation mandated by Central/State Regulatory Commission, mandating a certain percentage of electricity generated / consumed to be from renewable sources.

Challenges and Solutions

Andhra Sugars had more than 15 acres of land space available to develop a solar power plant. After a detailed site survey, Tata Power Solar’s engineering team proposed development of a 3 MW solar power plant. While Andhra Sugars only needed to generate 0.5% of the total energy from renewable sources as per the obligation, they looked to further their green targets by opting for a significantly higher share of their energy sources to be powered by solar resulting in optimal utilization of the available area. The 3 MW plant, built as part of the first phase, contributes to more than 15% of their Kovvur plant’s power requirements.

With a very short timeline of 45 days in hand to commission the plant, the Tata Power Solar team immediately got into action and started preparing the site for installation. Site leveling and marking were carried out within the first few days, followed by pile auguring and installation of the module mounting structures. Since installation was in a low lying area and on a filled-up soil, the structure foundations were custom designed to prevent waterlogging from causing any damage to the system. The installation, with the transmission and distribution facilities in place, was completed well within the timeline.

Safety being a focus area and a subject very close to our heart, Tata Power Solar ensured that there were zero incidents reported during the entire installation & commissioning.

The trendsetting system is equipped with the latest inverters, temperature and irradiance sensors to increase efficiency of the project along with data loggers for remote monitoring and real-time support. The system is capable of exporting any excess power to the grid.

Tata Power Solar has become synonymous with India's most preferred solar developer with proven capability in design & commissioning of projects. An expert in solar technology with an unblemished record to deliver on-time and within budget are credentials that makes Tata Power Solar the preferred name for organizations looking to include solar in their energy portfolio as part of the Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO).

Project Overview

UltraTech Cement, as part of the Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) program, needed to source 0.5% of its energy from renewable energy sources. Under RPO program, Government mandates the minimum percentage that large power consumers need to purchase from renewable energy (RE) source and has been put in place promote the renewable energy sector.

Tata Power Solar helped UltraTech meet this obligation by the design & commissioning of 25 solar power stations of 100 kWp each at its 6 facilities across 5 states in India within a record time span of 5 months. The biggest challenge which comes with such a scale of implementation is the project management across the multiple sites to make sure the project gets delivered as per requirements and within the scheduled time. Also, different locations come with its custom requirements that required Tata Power Solar to custom design the foundations and structures to suit the different site conditions.

This project is a feather in the cap of Tata Power Solar achievements because of the expansive scope and the challenge of delivering it in such a short span of time.

Tata Power Solar successfully completed a 10 MW solar power plant commissioned by Jindal Aluminum Ltd (JAL) in Chitradurga, located 230 km from Bengaluru, Karnataka. Executed in a record timeframe of 4 months from the day the land was made available in January 2012, through this project Tata Power Solar demonstrated leadership in high-efficiency solar power systems and built Karnataka’s largest solar power plant till date. The project resonates of the ingenious design and an engineering team that managed to complete this project in record time by providing a flawless execution and accounted for challenges for a formidable project of this size.

Project overview

JAL mandated Tata Power Solar to commission a 10 MW solar power plant under the Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) scheme. To provide a sustainable source for energy to Jindal, one of the industry’s renowned manufacturing company, that solely relies on conventional grid connected source of energy for their end-to-end manufacturing posed two-fold challenge – solving for site complexities coupled with a smart plant design. This plant located in Kalamarahalli, near Chitradurga, about 230 km from Bengaluru, Karnataka, has a site classified as complex by terrain due to high wind pressure and a rocky non-agricultural land that is difficult to work with. Tata Power Solar engineering team developed a plan to most efficiently convert the 51 acres of rocky non–agricultural terrain to a solar carpet, making this the first and largest EPC project for Tata Power Solar in the state of Karnataka. The project was executed in a record timeframe of 4 months from the time of land acquisition to be commissioned in June 2013.  The solar power plant produces over 18,000 MWh (more than 10 million units) of power per year that is enough to power over 70,000 Indian homes.

The energy generated from the plant is used by JAL for their captive energy needs and the surplus energy is sold to KERC (Karnataka Electricity Regulatory Commission) to help meet community energy needs.

Project Overview

Radha Soami Satsang Beas (RSSB) is a non-profit philosophical organization with its headquarters in Beas, Punjab. It is based on the spiritual teachings of all religions. Radha Soami Satsang Beas Educational and Environmental Society (RSSB-EES) is a charitable organization based at Dera Bhai Jamal Singh, which operates multiple charitable initiatives in the field of environment and education. In line with their vision and the Punjab government’s grid connected rooftop solar policy in place, RSSB-EES decided upon installation of a solar power plant on idle rooftop space, available over the Satsang sheds.

Solution

Tata Power Solar took up the engineering, procurement and construction of a 16 MW solar rooftop project for R.S.S.B. Educational & Environmental Society (RSSB–EES). Built across 8 sheltered venues in a single premise, the project is the largest solar rooftop plant in the world, set up in a single phase and will produce more than 150 lakh units of electricity annually.

Highlights of the project

Safety

As a ‘live and functional’ site, with lakhs of devotees at the premises, special focus was given on quality and stringent safety practices.

• The project clocked 2 lakh safe man-hours, without any incident during the commissioning.
• Innovative procedures were implemented to mitigate risks associated with installation on fragile asbestos roofs, this being one of the largest asbestos based roofs in India, ensuring zero breakage of asbestos.
• With one of the highest roof installations in India, at 7-meter-high roofs, along with 15 years old roof-sheets made of asbestos & aluminum, safe walkways were included in the site design for planned future maintenance and ease of access.
• The installation was carried out with advanced electronic equipment, safety-nets & lifelines providing a secure environment to the workmen.

Engineering

With 46,000+ modules installed on 1.621 million sq. ft. of roof sheds, the engineering application for this project was complex due to many factors:

• Scale of the project
• Varied structures & varying purlin sizes
• Dual roof type (asbestos & metallic aluminum), wherein asbestos roof is characterized as a fragile roof type and asbestos being a hazardous substance
• Temperature variations
• High wind speed
• Ease of maintenance

Given the delicate nature of asbestos and age of roofs, our team strategically custom-designed the structures to transfer the load onto the structure from the brittle roof type. Lifetime analysis of our design was done by a third party auditor, to ensure integrity of the structures with the existing rooftops.

All drilling of the mounting holes was in perfect symmetry for leakage proofing and making a picturesque location.

Keeping in mind the temperature variations in the region, an additional spacing was strategically designed as a ventilation gap between the modules & the roof, enabling a 1-2-degree reduction in temperature. For the first time: ‘underdeck insulated J sheet roofing’ has been used as insulation to break the heat from top, keeping the interiors cooler.

Dichromatic coating has been applied on the mounting accessories making it corrosion free and giving it a longer life.

Execution & cost optimization

The project was envisioned with best-in-class technology, meticulously planned and executed with attention to detail. Our experience of executing large scale projects & foresight helped us in commissioning the project without any major cost escalations.

• We have implemented the best in class material like IP65 outdoor inverters, optimizing the space utilization and saving cost on developing additional infrastructure.
• For space and cost optimization, all DC components were installed on the roof and AC components were installed on the ground. The project boasts state-of-the-art outdoor inverters and HT panels along with a spare UPS system with provisioning of AC’s and extended back-up hours at each inverter location for powering yard and auxiliary systems.

Quality

Maintaining standards is of utmost importance, when the minimum serviceable life of the installations is 25 years. To achieve this, the material & the equipment used in the project were standardized at the initial stage itself. A working prototype was first developed & executed, based on its success the final implementation was carried out.

Globally bankable Tier-1 multi-crystalline modules were used in the project to deliver high performance & low degradation for a sustained 25-years energy generation.

Operating efficiency

The plant has maintained an average 10% surplus energy generation, with a surplus generation range of 3.5% to 19.9% as per seasonal variation, during last 6 months. The average plant load factor has been 18.1%, with a maximum of 20.3%.

The plant delivered an average uptime of 99.7% during the last few months of operation, against a committed uptime of 98%. We have implemented a central SCADA system, enabling real-time monitoring of the solar power plant.

We have also implemented synchronized module cleaning system - improving the cumulative performance of the entire block. In order to have a negligible downtime due to a component failure or malfunction, the necessary spares are managed by using hub & spoke model, maintaining the availability at all times.

Benefits

With Tata Power Solar’s experienced project management and execution capabilities, the project was executed within the defined timeline, leading to on-time commissioning of the plant.

The plant will produce more than 150 lakh units of power annually and all the solar power plants at the site cumulatively offset over 19,000 tonnes of carbon emissions every year.

The grid connected system, equipped with net metering can feed surplus electricity to the grid under the Punjab government’s grid connected rooftop solar projects scheme.

Tata Power Solar has used proven technology and best-in-class equipment to ensure long quality life of the solar power plant. The solar modules come with a 25 years’ warranty and reliability of India’s largest solar player, backed by Tata Group.

The solar power plant currently provides employment to 10 people from the local community, who maintain the plant on day-to-day basis. During the course of installation & commissioning, this local manpower was trained on installation, operation & maintenance of a solar power plant, enabling them with skills for their lifetime.

Project Overview

HMR Institute of Technology & Management is a leading private Engineering College located in New Delhi, India offering both Management & Engineering courses. With its vision of going green, they were looking for a trusted partner to start their renewable journey.

Tata Power Solar commissioned a 146 KW rooftop system at HMR institute. The institute now runs completely on green energy, with 100% of its energy requirements fulfilled by solar. The institute also leads the students towards Green Technologies by giving them access to live solar projects.

Benefits

• The solar rooftop system fulfills institute’s 100% energy requirement
• Live solar projects for the college students
• Utilization of un-used roof space
• Largest Solar Rooftop installation in the education sector in Delhi – NCR

Impact

The rooftop solar system generates 2,04,000 units of electricity annually and will offset 3,679 tonnes of carbon over next 25 years.

• Project size: 100 MW
• CO₂ offset: 110,000 tonnes annually
• Project type: Utility Scale
• Project completion time: 3 months ahead of schedule
• Land area: 500 acres
• Annual energy yield: 160 million units (kWh)

100MW Solar Power Plant

“Given our ambitious target for green power, we were aware that our requirement of rigorous timelines and cost-efficiency was a challenging one. We thank Tata Power Solar for their experience and commitment in delivering this large scale project ahead of strict timelines.”
Mr. A.K. Jha, Director (Technical), NTPC

Project Overview

Aligning with the Government’s ‘Make in India’ mission and bringing together our core strengths in domestic manufacturing and EPC services over the last 25 years, this 100 MW plant is the largest project commissioned using domestically manufactured solar cells and modules by Tata Power Solar to date.

• Key highlights of the project were the innovative design of Balance-of-System (BoS) and cabling, along with optimized selection of evacuation systems.
• This 100MW solar power plant was completed in record 80% of stipulated timelines, and nearly 3 months ahead of the stringent schedule.
• World-class safety being the company’s strength, we delivered the plant with a robust safety management system and 1.3 million safe man hours put in.
• The 100 MW plant is expected to generate nearly 160 million units (kWh) of energy per year and help offset approximately 110,000 tonnes of CO₂ in the first year.

• India's largest carport in India, solarized by Tata Power Solar
• 2.67 MW plant spread across 20289.9 square meter area
• Offsets 1868 tonnes of CO₂ at Cochin International Airport

Location: Cochin, Kerala, India

Project Overview

Tata Power Solar commissioned 2.67 MW solar carport at Cochin International Airport. The project comprised of putting together 8472 solar panels on 27 carports spread over 20289.9 square meter of area. The entire solar plant is aimed towards reducing 1868 tonnes of CO₂ annually.

The grid-connected carport plant required high-level engineering and designing skills for assembling the massive carport structures. Additionally, advanced technology and design was of utmost importance to match and maintain the quality standards in place.

Mr. V J Kurian, Managing Director, Cochin International Airport Limited, said "Cochin International Airport Limited became the first Airport in the world to be fully powered by solar energy during August 2015. It has now accomplished another milestone by implementing India's largest solar carport. We appreciate Tata Power Solar's professionalism and thank them for completing this project in a record time."

Mr. Ashish Khanna, ED & CEO, Tata Power Solar, said "It is a matter of great pride for us to be able to fulfil client's objective in meeting the requirement of solar panels and in the process setting up of India’s largest carport. The project is a benchmark in terms of engineering expertise utilized in terms of complexities encountered considering the high water levels in backfilled lands. The modular design has helped us to execute the project in a record time and we are looking forward to more of these initiatives being replicated in other airports and commercial establishments."

Benefits

• 46,700 tonnes of CO₂ offset in 25 years
• Idle space on carport roofs utilized for generating clean energy
• 11,000 units of power generated daily.

• PROJECT SIZE: 5.25 kW
• PROJECT TYPE: RESIDENTIAL
• ANNUAL ENERGY YIELD: 14,400 UNITS*
• NO. OF SYSTEMS: 32 SYSTEMS COMMISSIONED
• CO2 OFFSET IN 25 YEARS: 252 TONNES*

Project Overview

• Tata Power Solar implemented an integrated state-of-the-art rooftop solar systems for 32 row houses / villas constructed by a leading developer.
• We have designed and commissioned 5.25 kW solar power plants for each of these row houses.
• The solar system had to be installed on RCC roofs and the client specifically requested us not to drill any holes on the roof to prevent the possibility of leakages during the later course of time.

Lighting up Ladakh

Tata Power Solar as India's largest integrated solar solutions provider has rightfully earned the title on their core mantra of always maintaining the project timelines and executing within tight budgets. Always the first choice for the Government agencies when it comes to executing solar power projects, Tata Power Solar's unwavering commitment to the core values continue to lead and pave the way to harnessing the power of sun and enabling solar energy in the remotest of locations across India. The case study showcased here is a shining example of how Tata Power Solar has leveraged its capabilities to touch the lives of millions in the beautiful Leh valley who for centuries have struggled to have ready access to energy for basic necessities – be it light, hot water or electricity.

Project Overview

The local renewable energy agencies and MNRE recognized the villages that were devoid of any sustainable source of energy, partnered with Tata Power Solar to design solar power project that powered over 100 villages where grid connectivity was next to impossible.

To solarize these many villages sprouting between Leh and Ladakh spread over a wide region, posed an enormous gamut of challenges due to the weather, altitude and topography of the region. Tata Power Solar proposed microgrids as a solution to power cluster of villages as well as provide decentralized solar power system to villages in the remote area. During 2009-13, a total of 86 microgrids of 5kWp-115kWp, with an aggregate capacity of 1MW were installed across remote and inaccessible villages in both Leh and Kargil. The installation of these solar powered microgrids brought an irreversible change through the region with access to a sustainable source of energy. In addition to these microgrids, Tata Power Solar also commissioned lighting projects to over 300 villages spread across. As part of this, over 15,000 home lighting systems were installed, which include solar lanterns, home lighting systems and street lighting systems.

Empowering the tribal communities in Chhattisgarh

Tata Power Solar’s journey of enabling solar everywhere is incomplete without the chapter on Chhattisgarh. Located centrally in the dense forests of Chhattisgarh, the tribal community here continues to be a very isolated one that is rendered unreachable due to the lack of infrastructure. For an extended period of time, this place has continued to remain removed from the rest of civilization and all the while these tribal communities have been deprived of basic necessities with absolutely no access to power. Whether building a microgrid from scratch or retrofitting an existing diesel microgrid, we can assist you in developing an optimal solution for microgrid solar systems. Tata Power Solar led a campaign in this region to make solar available in over 400 villages with 10,000+ installations generating over 14,000 kWh of energy per year – making Chhattisgarh a monumental flagship project to reckon with.

Project Overview

Tata Power Solar, as part of the projects outlined above, has set up over 100 microgrids solar systems in a phased approach across the many villages spanning the Chhattisgarh forests. This project has posed many challenges such as the accessibility of these villages, acceptance by local community which Tata Power Solar was able to preemptively account for and solve. This has made this particular project a huge success and changed lives of the people in Chhattisgarh. Today it is a tale to tell.

The acceptance by the tribal communities made the successful implementation and execution of microgrid solar systems project by the Tata Power Solar an exemplary example of the flawless execution by the Tata Power Solar team.