New solar power plant at Ramnagar II soon, says Mitra

Kolkata: The state government has given a clearance to set up a 125 MW solar power plant at Ramnagar II in East Midnapore, which will not only add on to the power sector in the state, but also create several job opportunities for the unemployed youths of the region.

State Finance minister

Amit Mitra on Thursday announced the project at Nabanna, saying that it will change the scenario of the power sector in the state.

Calling the project a 'paradigm shift', Mitra said Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had conceptualised the project after German bank KFW submitted a proposal to the government during a business convention in Digha a couple of months ago.

"There is a piece of good news for our state. It is a paradigm shift in the power sector as we are moving to renewable energy. The proposed

project will be the largest in entire Eastern India and it will contribute to the alternative power generation sector," said Mitra.

He further added: "There is a 1,000 acre land at Ramnagar II, out of which 562 acre has got Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) clearance. It has been decided that the 125 MW solar power plant will be set up on 562 acres of land. The state government has given a green signal to go ahead with the project."

The new solar plant will help the state during the peak hours. It will help the Power department with stabilisation of power.

He also pointed out that the state already has 100 percent electricity and the additional power will be immensely beneficial.

The German bank would provide soft loan to the state government on "good terms" for this project.

The total cost of the project is Rs 750 crore. The bank will provide Rs 650 crore to the state for a period of 12 years and the remaining Rs 100 crore would be given by the state government. There will be no interest on the loan amount in the first three years.

Mitra also mentioned that the project would be implemented through EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) mode.

EPC is a form of contracting arrangement, where the EPC contractor is made responsible for all the activities from design, procurement and construction to commissioning and handover of the project to the end-user or owner.