BENGALURU: The Karnataka energy department is planning to make the most of solar power by making all IP sets in the state solar power-enabled before the onset of summer. This is being done to avoid waste of power. The department is planning to call tenders for the installation of solar panels within a month and the deadline to complete the tendering process and commencement work is two months.
In the meantime, the department has also entrusted Karnataka Renewable Energy Development Limited (KRDEL) to come up with a hybrid model of renewable energy storage batteries with the aim to generate more green energy.
The project gained momentum after PM Modi directed all states to tap solar energy for IP sets for agriculture and irrigation purposes.
Am energy department official told TNIE, “We have surplus energy generated on a daily basis. Most of this energy is from solar and wind sources. Now there is a need to utilise all this energy, as storage is a problem and the grids are also unable to handle the load. The IP sets will either be connected to panels or to a major unit. Tenders will be called in a month and work on setting up the panels will also start at the earliest.”
The department is also exploring possibilities of setting up small sub-stations to meet the needs of the farmers. It has also started an exercise to ensure that there is enough power supply to farmers through IP sets during day time -- when solar power generation is the maximum, three hours in the morning and three hours in the evening.
“By distributing the power generation and supply, we want to ensure that there is no wastage, there is no need for farmers to depend on the government for power supply and the load on the grid is also reduced,” the official said.
Many farmers in the state are working on setting up solar panels on their own to meet their power requirements, which is a costly affair. The energy department is also working on modules to utilise the existing panels in a better way.