BENGALURU: The Chinnaswamy Cricket Stadium in the city, which takes pride in being the first cricket stadium in the world to harness solar energy, has generated more than six lakh units of electricity in a year. The stadium authorities now plan to install more solar panels on the west end.
The solar power plant, set up a year ago, has also helped prevent the emission of 600 tonnes of carbon dioxide, the Karnataka State Cricket Association claims.
Currently, the solar panels are installed on the roof of the east end of the stadium. The stadium will now get solar panels at its west end with upgraded technology that can generate more electricity. The solar power the stadium has generated is enough to power 200 AEH (all-electric homes) using 3kw power annually.
Sources in KSCA said, “The association used to spend nearly Rs 1-1.2 crore on electricity. On an average, 16 lakh units of electricity was being used annually. The dependence on conventional sources of energy has come down and so has expenditure. We have started talks on getting the new panels.”
Official spokesperson of KSCA, Vinay, said, “We have generated 6,18,000 kW-h of power since its start in April 2015. The panels were installed at a cost of Rs 4.5 crore in just 50 days. It has reduced the dependence on conventional sources of energy by 40 per cent. The KSCA will save around Rs 48-50 lakh with this.”
Under BESCOM’s new Net Metering Solar Policy, KSCA can get Rs 9.56 a unit of electricity, but KSCA is yet to generate surplus energy.
An analysis on solar panels of Chinnaswamy Cricket Stadium, published by an Indo-German energy programme, suggested, “The feasibility analysis revealed that the east and west stand can be effectively utilised for solar PV plant installation. With some modifications in the structure and roofing sheets, it is possible to install solar photovoltaic power plants with a cumulative capacity of around 1.3 MW on the roof of east and west stands.”
KSCA Honorary Secretary Brijesh Patel confirmed that the rooftop of the west end of the stadium will be equipped with 1.3MW capacity solar panels. “This is a part of the social responsibility of KSCA. We also hope to get extra revenue by selling surplus electricity to BESCOM,” he added.