SAIL sets up solar power generation unit at Rourkela Steel Plant

Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP), a unit of  Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), has set up one megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) power generation unit inside the plant premises at a cost of Rs 6.68 crore. The system, which is in the final stage of commissioning, is expected to generate minimum 1.479 million units of solar energy per annum, RSP said in a statement on Tuesday.

In April this year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had visited Rourkela in Odisha to inaugurate the second modernization project of RSP. The  4.5 million tonne modernisation project of RSP has been built with an expenditure of about Rs 12,000 crore.

The company is also installing other facilities for production of green energy. Two five kilowatt (KW) rooftop solar PV power generation systems have already been installed and seven more such systems are in the pipeline.

RSP is also in the process of setting up a 15 MW hydropower project on the downstream of Mandira Dam in collaboration with Green Energy Development Corporation of Odisha (GEDCOL). 

With an aim to expand the capacity of its RSP unit, SAIL in November had sought Odisha government's support for its raw material requirements in the coming days. "We have plans to invest Rs 30,000 crore to Rs 35,000 crore for expansion of RSPs capacity from 4.5 million tonnes per annum to 10 million tonnes per annum by 2025-26. Therefore, we require adequate iron ore and seek support of the Odisha government," SAIL Chairman CS Verma told reporters last month.