Exclusive | Ahmedabad-Mumbai Bullet Train Project Goes Solar; Sabarmati Station to Have Rooftop Panels With 'Charkha'

The Ahmedabad-Mumbai high-speed rail project is going solar with ‘Grid Connected Rooftop Solar Projects’ planned for various stations, starting with the rail terminal to come up at Sabarmati.

The proposed structure at Sabarmati station will see solar panels on the roof of the station with a proposed ‘Charkha’ symbol and solar panels also on the side of the building with the iconic symbol of the Salt March by Mahatma Gandhi and his followers in 1930.

Sabarmati was one of the abodes of Gandhi and the high-speed rail corridor will start from Sabarmati with a rail terminal there. A 700 kWp (kilowatts peak) plant is planned, connected to a grid.

The National High Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRCL) invited tenders on Thursday for the solar project at Sabarmati station, saying the project will be awarded under the RESCO model for a period of 25 years.

“The generated solar power may be utilized for captive application and the surplus power may/may not be fed to the grid. NHSRCL aims to reduce the fossil fuel-based electricity and make buildings self- sustainable from the point of electricity consumption, to the extent possible,” the tender document says.

The size of project shall be minimum 700 kWp and will be connected to grid. “The bidder may propose plant with higher capacity considering the panels with higher output,” the document mentions.

Under the RESCO model in the document, a renewable energy service company will develop, install, finance, operate as well as own and the rooftop solar project and will supply the generated solar power to NHSRCL and to the grid.

The Indian Railways is also working on providing rooftop solar panels at railway stations across the country with the aim of becoming ‘net zero carbon emission’ by 2030.

The government had last year told Parliament that it has installed 95.67 MW of rooftop solar systems to date at 835 railway stations across the country and awarded 248.46 MW of solar capacity. This is part of India’s aim to reduce greenhouse emissions and achieve its renewable energy targets as promised in global climate forums.

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