GAIL, BHEL Sign Pact for Development of Solar Power Projects
State-owned gas utility GAIL India Ltd has signed an agreement with Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL) for cooperation in the development of solar power projects. “GAIL shall be the project developer and BHEL shall act as an engineering, procurement, construction, and project management contractor,” the company said in a statement. BHEL shall also provide operation and maintenance services during the initial period upon becoming successful bidder. This development will help both the companies to leverage their competitive strengths to build a substantial portfolio in solar power projects. The memorandum of understanding aims at building a closer strategic partnership between the two Maharatna PSUs for jointly pursuing commercial solar power projects through participation in tariff/ Viability Gap Funding (VGF)-based competitive bidding process. GAIL is India’s biggest natural gas company with diversified interests across the value chain of trading, transmission, LPG production and transmission, LNG re-gasification, petrochemicals and city gas. It owns and operates a network of around 11,400 km of high-pressure trunk pipelines. It is working concurrently on multiple pipeline projects, aggregating over 5,400 km at an investment of about Rs 24,000 crore, to operate over 16,000 km by 2021. GAIL commands 75% market share in gas transmission and has a gas trading share of over 50% in India. GAIL is also expanding its presence in renewable energy like solar and wind. It has India’s secondlargest rooftop solar PV power plant at its petrochemical complex at Pata, Uttar Pradesh. BHEL is one of the few companies in the world, and only company in India, having the capability to manufacture the entire range of power plant equipment. It has also been in the field of design, engineering, manufacturing, installation, and commissioning of solar power plants over three decades and has a portfolio of more than 700 MW.
Source: www.livemint.com