Godawari green energy solar thermal power India

The context

India is the world’s second largest country by population, beaten only by China – and it is rapidly catching up. As its developing economy strengthens further and rapid population growth continues, India’s energy needs are rising. While the share of renewables in India’s energy mix is growing, coal still accounts for over half of its electricity production.

The project

Located in Jaisalmer District in North India’s Rajasthan State, this large-scale solar thermal power project helps satiate India’s growing energy demands. The 50 MW-capacity solar thermal plant uses parabolic trough technology to generate almost 119,000 MWh of clean energy for the Combined Regional Grid annually, further diversifying India’s electricity mix away from fossil fuels.

The benefits

On top of supplanting fossil fuels with clean electricity to reduce emissions, the project proponent commits 2% of Carbon Emission Reduction (CER) sales to community welfare and sustainable development projects. The social benefits of this include local employment opportunities that alleviate regional poverty, as well as better roads and improved basic infrastructure. The project also contributes to the transfer of environmentally sound, state-of-the-art thermal solar power generation technology in India, and encourages further investment in the renewables industry.

		60 local people hired from surrounding communities to assist with upkeep of facilities, increasing local income levels to help alleviate regional poverty
		118 866 MWh of renewable energy generated on average annually for India’s Combined Regional Grid
		109 people currently employed in management, sales, technician work and administration, who receive extensive training in project technology
		Solar thermal‘parabolic trough’ technology transferred to India; an environmentally sound, state-of-the-art technology
		113 160 teqCO2 reduced on average each year