Vikram Solar to build India’s first floating solar power plant
12 Aug 2014
Meanwhile, Vikram Sola Pvt Ltd, an Indian panel maker, won a contract to build India's first floating solar power plant on a lake in eastern India.
The 15-kilowatt pilot plant would be built by December atop a 1,400-square-foot platform anchored to the lake bed next to Kolkata's New Town Eco Park
S P Gon Chaudhuri, a member of the governing body of the West Bengal Renewable Energy Development Agency, said land acquisition for solar projects remained a big problem at present, but water bodies were available in plenty.
The project would evaluate whether installing a solar plant above water bodies could boost generation by cooling the panels, as excessive heat cuts the efficiency of solar modules.
The project would also examine the effects of corrosion and evaporation from the lake, he added.
The project is being financed by the ministry of new and renewable energy, which would cost about Rs2 million to build and require another Rs2 million for research, Chaudhuri said.
He added, the 20,000 KWh of electricity generated annually would be sold to the grid at Rs8.9 a unit.