South Eastern Coalfields plans Rs 1,218 cr investment to set up solar projects

The Ministry of Coal, South Eastern Coalfields Ltd. (SECL), a coal-producing affiliate of Coal India Ltd., plans to create rooftop and ground-mounted solar power plants with a combined 600 MW capacity in the next years. The project is consistent with the business's plan to grow and diversify, attain "Net Zero Energy," and further the bigger "Panchamrit" objective, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared at CoP-26 and calls for achieving Net Zero Emissions by 2070. 

The SECL project is anticipated to cost more over Rs 1000 crore to develop. The ministry stated that some of these projects would be carried out in BOO (Build-Own-Operate) or RESCO (Renewable Energy Service Company) form.

SECL recently put into operation rooftop solar projects with a capacity of 580 kWp in the Johilla, Jamuna-Kotma, and Kusmunda Areas. SECL already has solar power projects totaling more than 180 MW in various stages of development scattered across Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. The highest capacity rooftop solar project in the entire company with a commissioned capacity of roughly 280 kWp is at Johilla Area. The project will produce roughly 4,20,000 units of electricity and reduce annual power costs by about Rs 21 lakh. The two biggest solar projects currently being built each have a 40 MW capacity.

By implementing 3000 MW worth of renewable energy projects by 2026, Coal India Ltd. hopes to achieve net-zero status. Recently, Coal India and Sutlej Jal Vidyut Nigam Limited (SJVNL) teamed up to look into suitable locations for pumped storage power (PSP) projects inside of its closed mines.

In FY 2022–2023, SECL made up about one-fourth of CIL's total coal production. In an effort to achieve net zero carbon emissions, the corporation is minimising the carbon footprint of the coal mining industry.