13 GW renewable energy project will benefit J&K: LG

Srinagar, Oct 20: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha Friday said that the 13 gigawatts (GW) renewable energy project approved by the cabinet on Wednesday would benefit Jammu and Kashmir.

An official spokesman in a statement issued here quoted the LG while addressing a news conference here as saying that the 13 GW renewable energy project would greatly benefit J&K, apart from other parts of the country.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on Wednesday approved the project on the Green Energy Corridor (GEC) Phase-II – Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS) for 13 GW Renewable Energy Project in Ladakh.

The project will also be connected to the Leh-Alusteng-Srinagar line to provide clean energy to J&K.

The LG said that the J&K administration was committed to providing an uninterrupted and reliable power supply to the people.

“The prestigious project would ensure round-the-clock power availability,” he said.

Sinha said that the project will offer an alternative source of power to the valley through the existing 220 kV Leh-Alusteng-Srinagar Transmission System, reducing dependence on hydroenergy generation, which diminishes during the winters.

He said that the power transfer from Ladakh to Kashmir would improve the power situation in Jammu region as well because the power transfer to Kashmir from the existing central sector grids – 400kV Kishanpur and Jatwal – situated in Jammu would be proportionally reduced.

The LG said that this reduction would free up tied capacity at these grids, thereby improving availability in Jammu throughout the year.

He said that the transmission line for evacuating power would run through Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to Kaithal in Haryana, integrating with the National Grid and interconnection to Ladakh’s existing grid and the 220kV Alusteng Grid in Ganderbal district of Kashmir through Leh-Alusteng-Srinagar line, to provide power to J&K.

Sinha said that the 220kV Alusteng Grid in Ganderbal district had been further connected to the 220kV Zainakot Grid.

“Additionally, there is upcoming connectivity linking the 220kV Mirbazar Grid to the Alusteng Grid which is expected to be completed shortly. Keeping in view the proposed connectivity of RE generation in Ladakh with 220kV Grids of Kashmir, it can be said with certainty that the power transfer from Ladakh will positively impact the entire Kashmir valley, improving power availability round-the-year, especially during power deficit winter months,” he said.

The LG said that the 13 GW RE projects were equipped with 12 GW Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) which would ensure round-the-clock power supply to J&K, based on the capacity of the transmission system laid between Ladakh and Kashmir.

“Kashmir is situated at the tail end of the Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS), through which power from various thermal and nuclear generators located across different parts of the country is transmitted to the Kashmir region. The power supply from the said Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) supported renewable energy generator, located near Kashmir, will mitigate the low voltage conditions experienced during winters in the valley due to the decrease in hydro generation,” he said.

Sinha said that the RE projects in the Ladakh region would provide greener energy with reduced carbon footprints and will help to protect the fragile environment of Kashmir and Ladakh regions.

“Further, the availability of RE Power through the existing 200kV Leh-Alusteng-Srinagar line will create redundancy in the transmission system in Kashmir and will help to mitigate the sufferings during disasters. J&K has proposed to lay a new 400 kV Transmission line from Ladakh to Kashmir which will be the third source at 400 kV level to the valley apart from 400 kV Kishenpur-Wagoora and Samba (Jatwal)-Amargarh Transmission Lines. The new 400 kV line will provide much-needed redundancy in power to the valley and will cater to the future load growth which is evident after industrialization,” he said.

The LG said that J&K might plan to install additional transmission lines to draw more power from these RE projects, as per the requirement and feasibility.

He also talked about the winter preparedness of the J&K administration.

Sinha said that the administration was working with utmost sensitivity to meet the peak power demand during winter.

“We are in a better position in terms of snow clearance equipment and machines. The uninterrupted supply of ration, medicine, and other essential amenities is being ensured,” he said.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE OF 13 GW RENEWABLE ENERGY PROJECT

Ladakh has a very high solar insolation and is an appropriate site for setting up Gigawatt scale solar generation capacity.

Prime Minister, during his Independence Day Speech on August 15, 2020, announced the setting up of a 7.5 GW Solar Park in Ladakh.

After an extensive field survey, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) prepared a plan to set up 13 GW Renewable Energy (RE) generation capacity (9 GW Solar plus 4 GW Wind) along with a 12 GWh Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) in Ladakh.

To evacuate this huge quantum of power, inter-state transmission infrastructure shall be created.

Given the complex terrain and adverse climatic conditions in Ladakh, state-of-the-art Voltage Source Converter (VSC) based High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) system and Extra High Voltage Alternating Current (EHVAC) systems would be deployed under the project.

The project would contribute to achieving the target of 500 GW of installed electricity capacity from non-fossil fuels by the year 2030.

The project would also help in developing the long-term energy security of the country and promote ecologically sustainable growth by reducing carbon footprint.

It would generate large direct and indirect employment opportunities for both skilled and unskilled personnel in power and other related sectors in the region.

INTER-STATE TRANSMISSION SYSTEM GEC PHASE-II FOR 13 GW RE PROJECT IN LADAKH

The transmission line for evacuating this power would pass through Himachal Pradesh and Punjab up to Kaithal in Haryana, where it would be integrated with the National Grid.

An interconnection is also planned from this project in Leh to the existing Ladakh grid to ensure a reliable power supply to Ladakh.

It would also be connected to the Leh-Alusteng-Srinagar line to provide power to J&K.

Keeping in view the complex terrain and defence sensitivities, Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (POWERGRID) has been nominated as the implementing agency for this project.

The total estimated cost of the Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS) Green Energy Corridor (GEC) Phase-II is Rs 20,773.70 crore [excluding Interest During Construction (IDC)].

The Detailed Project Report (DPR) and the cost estimates have been prepared by POWERGRID.

The project would entail setting up 713 km [or 1268 circuit km (ckm)] of transmission lines and 2×5000 MW capacity of High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) terminals – one each at Pang (Ladakh) and Kaithal (Haryana).

The project would pass through the difficult mountainous terrain of high altitude and extreme climatic conditions – temperature going as low as minus 45 degrees Celsius and heavy snow (maximum standing snow of approx. 5-6 metres).

To counter the sub-zero temperature of the region, a special kind of steel would have to be used in towers and their associated accessories.

The transmission system would also be passing through avalanche zones and, thus, state-of-the-art technology would be used to establish a first-of-its-kind system in the world in such topography.

The 13 GW RE capacity would be a combination of 9 GW Solar and 4 GW Wind.

This capacity is proposed to be combined with 12 GWh of Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), which would result in the round-the-clock supply of power to the tune of 33,630 million units per annum.

The proposed transmission is of 5 GW capacity, which would be sufficient to transmit the above power and it has been designed in such a way that capacity utilisation of the line would be 76 percent upon integration of BESS on the generation side.

POWERGRID would complete its FEED study by December 2024 and would thereafter award the contract by March 2025.

The project would be completed in 5 years from award of work.

Accordingly, the project timeline is proposed as 7 years from FY 2023-24 to FY 2029-30.

FINANCIAL IMPLICATION

The project is targeted to be set up by FY 2029-30 with a total estimated cost of Rs 20,773.70 crore and Central Financial Assistance (CFA) at 40 percent of the project cost which is Rs 8309.48 crore.

With the 40 percent grant support, the levelised transmission tariff would come down from Rs 0.88 per unit to Rs 0.55 per unit of power.