Shree Cement, a cement manufacturer based in Kolkata, plans to build 106 MW of solar power projects to meet the captive power needs of its various cement manufacturing facilities.

By the third quarter of 2022, the proposed capacity is likely to be added. Internal accruals will be used to invest around Rs 5 billion in these solar projects. By reducing its carbon footprint and reliance on fossil fuels, the company hopes to maximise the use of clean energy in its operations.

Previously, the company had secured net metering connectivity for a 1.99 MW captive rooftop solar power project in Jharkhand with a 132 kV voltage supply. To cut power costs and go green, large power consumers are leaning toward power procurement from open access solar projects.

Since most industrial facilities lack sufficient roof space to generate solar power, they have opted for the group captive and captive model.

Last year, Orient Cement, a subsidiary of the CK Birla Group, announced a Rs 40.5 million investment in AMPSolar Systems Private Limited to build a 13.5 MW solar project for captive power generation.

Mahindra & Mahindra signed a power purchase agreement with ReNew Sunlight Energy, a subsidiary of ReNew Green Energy Solutions, in July to purchase solar power as a captive consumer from its open-access project.

Renewable purchase obligations (RPO) for industrial consumers are also increasing, and obtaining power from open access solar projects has become a necessity. Most states, on the other hand, have revised annual open access charges via one-year tariff orders, making these charges unpredictable beyond a year.

According to Mercom's India Open Access Solar Market India Update Q1 2021, open-access solar installations in India totalled 419 MW in the first quarter of 2021, bringing the total solar installations in the open-access market to 4.3 GW in March.

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