Team News Riveting
Having thrown open its vast surplus land on projects for setting up industrial parks, state-owned National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) would not acquire new land for green-field thermal plants.
Rather, the country’s largest coal-fired power producer would look for reducing its carbon footprint through aggressive renewable energy pushes. By 2032, state-owned NTPC plans to add 32 GW of renewable generation capacity to its portfolio through organic and inorganic routes
“We have taken the decision not to acquire any further land for green field thermal projects in near future and the focus will be on reducing the carbon footprint,” NTPC chairman Gurdeep Singh said in a statement to the shareholders at a recently concluded AGM.
NTPC had earlier decided to set up a separate green focused subsidiary in a move to transform itself into a renewable player. Of the 32 GW of renewable generation capacity planned, non-fossil fuel-based generation capacity will make up nearly 30 per cent of its portfolio, which, at present, is less than 10 per cent.
The company had planned a short term target to reach 10 GW of renewable capacity up to 2022.
“In order to get access to large tracts of land for RE projects, discussions are in progress with state governments of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh for allocation of land parcels for setting up of renewable projects. These would be developed under Ultra Mega Renewable Energy Power Parks scheme of the government of India,” the company chairman informed the shareholders.
In a key initiative to promote Make in India and give a boost to the Government’s vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat, NTPC Ltd has invited expression of Interest (EoI) from Energy Intensive Industries for setting up manufacturing units within its plant premises.
The manufacturing plants for which the EOI had been invited include Bulk Chemicals – Ammonia, Urea, ChlorAlkali, Gypsum and Gypsum products, Geopolymer, Cooling and Heating Solutions, Aluminium, mineral processing (ceramics, tiles, pottery, brick, glass etc.), metallurgical and metal industries (foundries, forging, alloys, heat treatment, steel rerolling, etc.).
