Southern India is offering subsidies to promote developments in solar-wind hybrid power plants as an alternative to conventional fossil fuel power sources.
The Tamil Nadu Energy Development Agency (TEDA) has ascertained several areas in Tamil Nadu state that are ideal for the hybrid power plants. The districts include Kanyakumari, Kayathar, Tuticorin and coastal areas of Ramanathapuram.
The union ministry of new and renewable energy will offer subsidy covering 75% of the project cost or 150,000 rupees ($3,350) per kW if the hybrid power plants were being installed in government buildings and public schools.
For individual installations, the subsidy would cover 50% of the project cost of 100,000 rupees ($2,230) per kW.
The TEDA would provide the necessary technical advice to interested applicants.
“With increasing use of solar and wind power for electricity generation, the state government, through TEDA, is looking to promote both these renewable resources as an inevitable alternative to conventional power sources,” says Syed Ahamed, deputy general manager of TEDA of Madurai region.
The solar-wind hybrid plants are capable of generating power round-the-clock.
Tamil Nadu is the country’s most successful state in terms of installed wind capacity, which accounts for more than 50% of India’s total installed capacity of about 11.5GW.
