Metro to generate solar power from station rooftops

Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has made plans to generate 20MW of solar energy from the rooftops of its stations and office buildings by the end of 2017. While this is a fraction of the total consumption of 148MW, it is expected to take care of several power requirements at stations.

DMRC will also be able to keep a tab in real time on how much solar energy its rooftop projects are generating, what is the consumption and how much excess solar energy is being sent to the grid through a web portal. It can also track the changes in generation due to weather conditions.

The web portal is one of DMRC's plans to expand its renewable energy generation over the next few years. Though the portal is for internal use now, it will be made public later, officials said.

Officials at the national conference on 'Green Metro Systems' at Metro Bhawan on Friday said the stations are currently generating about 7MW. "About 30-40% of our total operational expenditure is on power. There is enough reason for us to move to renewable energy. DMRC consumes about 3% of Delhi's total energy," said an official.

The on-ground stations can meet most of their energy needs with solar, but the underground stations need about 1.2MW each for lighting and other needs.

Mangu Singh, DMRC's managing director, stressed on the importance of adopting green technologies. "We are continuously striving to make Delhi Metro more energy efficient. Its power consumption can be reduced further with better engineering practices, sleek design, recycle and reuse," he said.


Experts Comment:

This is good initiative by DMRC.As in article it is discussed that 3% of electricity consumption is by DMRC.

By becoming self sufficient,it will surely help the capital of India. Also, DMRC has made long term PPA with upcoming India's largest solar plant in Madhyapradesh.

It will also help to achieve Solar target of 100 GW.