Delhi firm to generate power from solid waste in Shimla

Kuldeep Chauhan

TribuneNewsService

Shimla, February 9

After getting a nod from the National Green Tribunal (NGT), the Shimla Municipal Corporation (SMC) has sought permission from the HP State Electricity Regulatory Commission (HPSERC) to ink pact with Elephant Energy, a Delhi firm. The firm will sell electricity generated from the city’s solid waste to the HPSEBL.

Though the company is likely to sign a power purchase agreement with the board soon for which it has quoted Rs 8 per unit. The SMC has issued a letter of intent to sign the agreement with the company. Under the agreement, it will supply about 70 tonnes to 80 tonnes of solid waste every day to the proposed plant at Bhariyal near here.

The company will invest Rs 42 crore on the waste-to-green energy project at Bhariyal for which the SMC would make no investment, said Sanjay Chauhan, Mayor. “The NGT has given its go-ahead and we will supply about 70 tonnes of solid waste daily that is expected to generate about 2 mw of electricity”, he added.

He said the SMC was seeking the nod from the HPSERC to finalise the agreement with the company. But the state government had to take a final call, he added.

As per the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC), it is mandatory for the government to buy the green energy produced from the solid waste by the project at the rate of Rs 7.90 per unit, said officials. The company and the HPSEBL would thrash out the final rate, they added.

Company managers had visited the Bhariyal plant site for techno-feasibility study and found it ideal. Second, the company would bear the entire cost that had come in handy for the fund-starved corporation, said officials.

The SMC has also received two other proposals from Organic Recycling Systems, Mumbai, and from Zirakpur-based Green Tech Engineers.

But the MC prefers Elephant Energy because the MC need not spend a penny.

The SMC’s urgency to set up the plant is clear as it has been paying Rs 30 lakh every month to transport its waste to Chandigarh.