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NEW DELHI: JSW Renewable Energy Vijayanagar Ltd, subsidiary of JSW Energy, has commenced operations at its 225 MW solar plant in Vijayanagar, Karnataka.
The project is part of the earlier announced 958 MW solar and wind projects signed with JSW Steel under the group captive scheme, as per a company statement.
"This solar project has commenced operations in a record time of less than 12 months despite several headwinds like Covid-19 related disruptions, elevated commodity prices, and global supply chain outages," it said.
The company is also constructing 2.25 GW of greenfield renewable energy capacity, in pursuit of reaching 10 GW capacity by FY25, and 20 GW capacity by FY30, entirely driven by renewables.
Prashant Jain, joint managing director and chief executive, JSW Energy, said, “Commencement of operations at the 225MW solar plant within the scheduled timelines is a key landmark for the company and testament to its world-class project execution capabilities. In the coming months, we remain upbeat to commence operations of our under-construction pipeline of 2GW wind projects, in phases.
JSW Energy has set an ambitious target of a 50% reduction in its carbon footprint by 2030 and achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 by transitioning to renewable energy. It aims to have 20 GW capacity by 2030, with the share of renewable energy increasing to 85% of total. Around 2.25 GW of renewable energy projects are currently under construction, wind projects of 1.26 GW tied with SECI, are expected to be commissioned in the next 12 months.
With the commissioning of these projects, the company’s total generation capacity will increase to 7 GW, with renewable energy share amounting to about 55%.
The company is expeditiously securing resources of more than 20GW capacity in various resource rich states. It is evaluating opportunities for expansion into emerging energy businesses of hydro pumped storage, battery energy storage, green hydrogen and energy products and services.
JSW Energy began commercial operations in 2000, with the commissioning of its first 2x130 MW thermal power plants at Vijayanagar, Karnataka. Since then, the company has steadily enhanced its power generation capacity from 260 MW to 4,559 MW having a portfolio of thermal 3,158 MW, hydel 1,391 MW and solar 10 MW, ensuring diversity in geographic presence, fuel sources and power off-take arrangements.
The emphasis on renewable energy comes as India is trying to boost its clean energy programme. At the COP-26 summit in Glasgow, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said that India would achieve net zero carbon emission by 270.
JSW Energy shares on the BSE closed at ₹327.50 apiece, down 3.4% from previous close.
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