Union Minister of New and Renewable Energy Dr
Farooq Abdullah on Friday laid the foundation stone of a 10 MW biomass
power project here. The projects is being set up by Green Planet
Energy Pvt Ltd at a cost of Rs 68 crore. Punjab Deputy CM Sukhbir
Badal was also present on this occasion.
Dr Abdullah congratulated the Punjab government
for taking initiatives in exploring new and renewable sources of
energy and described the plant as another step taken by the state
towards meeting the Centre’s target of producing 20,000 MW power from
new and renewable energy sources by 2022 under its Solar Mission. The
Union minister also highlighted the need to tap maximum resources of
new and renewable energy considering the ever-rising pollution.
Earlier in the day, he inaugurated a 14.5 MW
biomass power plant at Channu village in Muktsar district.
The minister pointed out that in our culture
five natural elements— sun, wind, fire, earth and water— were known as
life elements, and now his ministry has launched a campaign to draw
clean energy from all these five elements to make the country power
surplus.
Speaking about future plans in the new energy
sector, Dr Abdullah said his ministry was targeting to produce 1,300
MW power from new energy sector within the next three years.
Sukhbir said Punjab had already produced 300 MW
in the renewable power sector and was aiming to increase it to 700 MW
by 2011.
The deputy CM said the Binjon biomass power
plant will provide employment to over 1,500 people, besides ensuring
additional income to farmers of the region to the tune of Rs 10,000
per acre through sale of biomass and agro-waste. The project will
utilise 400 tonnes per day of cotton stalks, mustard stalks, paddy
straw, eucalyptus, poplar wood chips and local biomass wastes,
including cattle dung.
Badal added that 29 such plants would be
operational all over Punjab in the next 18 months and each plant would
buy agricultural waste to the tune of Rs 30 to 40 crore from farmers
in the 30 km radius of plants.
