NCRTC signs pact for 110 MW solar plant to meet 60 pc of Namo Bharat corridor's power needs

New Delhi: The NCRTC has signed a power purchase agreement for a 110 MW solar power plant expected to meet nearly 60 per cent of the electricity requirement for the Delhi-Meerut Namo Bharat corridor, according to a statement on Saturday.

The solar plant, estimated to cost around Rs 450 crore, will be developed in Jaulan, Uttar Pradesh, and is expected to be commissioned within the next 24 months, it said. The plant will supply power through the Uttar Pradesh state grid to National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC's) substations in Uttar Pradesh and Delhi, and distribute it across the Namo Bharat corridor, it mentioned.

Under the agreement, NCRTC said it will procure electricity from the plant at a fixed tariff for 25 years.


The arrangement aims to provide greater predictability in energy costs and reduce the corridor's dependence on conventionally generated power.

Electricity accounts for around 30-35 per cent of the operational cost of the Namo Bharat corridor.

The NCRTC said the captive solar project is expected to reduce annual electricity expenditure by around 25 per cent. The project is also estimated to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 1.77 lakh tonnes annually and lower emissions of pollutants such as nitrogen oxides and sulphur dioxide, the statement said.

The Delhi-Meerut Namo Bharat corridor has seen a rise in ridership since the entire corridor was commissioned in February this year. Around one lakh passengers currently use the corridor every day, while cumulative ridership has crossed four crore passenger journeys, the NCRTC said.

The corporation said the corridor recorded its highest daily ridership of more than 1.68 lakh passengers on August 28, coinciding with Raksha Bandhan. NCRTC Managing Director Shalabh Goel, NIRL Director Finance and CMD-designate Prasanna Kumar Acharya, NCRTC Director Finance Namita Mehrotra and Director Electricals and Rolling Stock Mahendra Kumar were among those present at the signing of the agreement.

It was signed between the National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) and NIRL NCRTC Renewables Ltd (NNRL), a joint venture of NCRTC and NIRL, a wholly owned subsidiary of Neyveli Lignite Corporation, the statement said.

The project is being positioned as a renewable energy initiative for the country's regional rapid transit and metro systems and could provide a model for integrating captive renewable power into urban and regional transport networks, the NCRTC said.