Diu becomes first Union Territory to run on 100 percent solar electricity

March 10, 2018 10:11 AM | Skymet Weather Team

Diu has become the country’s first energy surplus Union territory and a model for an effective way of harnessing solar energy.

[yuzo_related]

Diu has made rapid progress in solar power generation in three years. As per reports, 42 square kilometers is the total area of the Union territory and the solar power plants have been installed in over more than 50 acres.

Diu daily generates a total of 13 megawatts of electricity from solar power generating facilities in which 3 MW of energy is produced by rooftop solar plants and 10 MW by other solar power plants.

About three years ago, the union territory consumed electricity supplied from the power grid owned by the Gujarat government, which resulted in huge line losses. However, the electricity loss has reduced significantly as the local power company has started generating electricity from solar energy plants.

As per media reports, the executive engineer of Daman and Diu stated that the 56,000 residents of the union territory were solely dependent for water and electricity on the Gujarat government. Therefore, the administration decided to set up solar plants across Diu.

He also mentioned that the territory produces 10.5 MW of electricity which is more than its consumption. During the peak time also, the demand reaches up to 7MW only.

In fact, the monthly bills have reduced by 12 percent due to the solar power. As soon as solar plants came in to action, the Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission for Goa and the Union territories made changes in the price slab. Now, for 1-100 units of electricity Re 1.01 per unit is charged.

IMAGE CREDIT: IamGujarat.com

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