Andhra Minister Lokesh to inaugurate 600 MW solar projects in Kadapa on May 22

Andhra Pradesh IT Minister Nara Lokesh is scheduled to inaugurate SAEL Limited's 600 MW solar power projects in Kadapa district on Friday, marking one of the state's largest renewable energy developments.

The minister said that the projects, SAEL Solar MHP1 and SAEL Solar MHP2 have been commissioned in a record 11 months with an investment of nearly Rs 3,000 crore.

''Lokesh is scheduled to inaugurate SAEL Solar MHP1 and SAEL Solar MHP2 in Kadapa district tomorrow,'' an official release said.

The integrated solar facility spans over 2,400 acres and is expected to strengthen Andhra Pradesh's position as an emerging clean energy investment destination.

The two 300 MW projects, operated by SAEL Solar MHP1 private limited and SAEL Solar MHP2 private limited, commenced commercial operations earlier this year, with MHP1 commissioned on January 30 and MHP2 on March 13.

The projects deploy more than 12 lakh TOPC on bifacial solar modules, most of which were assembled at SAEL's manufacturing facilities in Punjab and Rajasthan, the release said.

Power generated from the facility will be supplied to the national grid under a 25-year power purchase agreement with solar energy corporation of India.

The projects are expected to avoid nearly 11 lakh tonne of carbon dioxide emissions annually while generating local economic activity.

During the construction phase, over 1,000 workers were engaged directly and indirectly, with nearly 80 per cent drawn from local communities, it said.

The projects are expected to provide long-term economic opportunities to farmers through structured land lease arrangements extending close to 25 years, it said.

The solar projects were executed under SAEL's integrated EPC and operations and maintenance framework with support from the Andhra Pradesh government and local authorities in facilitating land use, approvals and grid connectivity.

The inauguration assumes significance as Andhra Pradesh advances implementation of its Integrated Clean Energy Policy 2024, under which the state aims to attract investments worth Rs 10 lakh crore across renewable energy, storage, green hydrogen, transmission and manufacturing sectors by 2029.

Lokesh is expected to highlight the state's vision of positioning Andhra Pradesh as a renewable energy hub through faster industrial execution and investor-friendly governance.

The company is also expected to explore additional investments in Andhra Pradesh in renewable energy and agriculture waste-to-energy projects.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)