With expressways coming up across the state, the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) will now also be recognised for solar energy generation. A solar energy project at Karjalad in Washim and at the Mehkar Interchange in Buldhana district on the Hindu Hridaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Maharashtra Samruddhi Highway has been commissioned. With this, the Samruddhi Highway has become the country’s first pilot project in solar energy generation.
According to MSRDC officials, more than 2.5 crore vehicles have travelled on the 701-km-long expressway connecting Nagpur and Mumbai. The corporation had set the goal of generating solar energy alongside enabling fast travel since the planning stage of the Samruddhi Highway. A plan has also been finalised to implement a 204 MW (megawatt) solar power project at various interchanges of the highway, and steps are being taken towards that end.
In the first phase, the installed capacity of the solar power project at Karjalad taluka in Washim and Mehkar taluka in Buldhana is 9 MW. Of this, 3 MW at Karjalad and 2 MW at Mehkar started generating electricity on Monday. Through solar energy, the corporation has secured a new source of income in addition to toll revenue.
This electricity will be sold under an agreement signed in 2022 between Mahasamruddhi Renewable Energy Ltd, a special purpose vehicle of MSRDC, and Mahavitaran. The corporation, which participated in the tender process under Mukhyamantri Saurkrishi Vahini Yojana-1, has agreed to sell power at a rate of Rs 3.05 per unit.
“This is an important step in the corporation`s journey. There are plans to implement solar power projects not only on the Samruddhi Highway but also at the interchanges of other proposed highways. Carbon credits will also accrue to the corporation through solar energy generation, and the profit will be used to raise loans for infrastructure projects,” said MSRDC`s Joint Managing Director, Manuj Jindal.
According to MSRDC sources, solar generation will help the corporation earn Rs 18 lakh every month and more than Rs 2 crore annually.
