Hyderabad: The Hyderabad Growth Corridor Limited (HGCL) has decided to set up solar panels on the roof of the 23-kilometre covered cycling track on the Outer Ring Road (ORR) in an attempt to shift towards a greener mode of power.
An official HGCL, which is a wing of the HMDA, said that they aim to generate 13 MW (megawatts) of power, which would be able to power around 9,000 LED streetlights located along the 158-kilometre ORR. Land on either side of the ORR has been designated as a growth corridor, and the HGCL oversees it.
The project, which is expected to take three months to complete and cost `99,70,45,089, will help save `1 crore in monthly power bills, officials said.
The HGCL has invited bids for the project for interested agencies to operate and maintain the panels for a five-year period.
The initiative was earlier envisaged to be set up on a Resco (renewable energy service company) model, wherein an operator invests the total initial capital and maintains it for 25 years, providing the government power at a discounted price.
A senior HGCL official said that photovoltaic power plants would be set up, which would “not only be a leap towards green energy for the HGCL, but also be a means of self-reliant and economical energy by capitalising on the abundance of solar energy.”
The official said that the rooftop panels would come up between the Nanakramguda and TSPA junctions, Jayabheri and Kokapet-Edulanagulapally junction, detailing that 16 kilometres of the 23-km cycle track will host solar panels.
The cycle track, which is also under construction, comprises an 8.5-kilometre stretch between Nanakramguda and TSPA and a 14.5-kilometre stretch between Narsingi and Kollur.
The cycle track will come along the service road of ORR, between the main carriageway and the city-side service road. Food courts, surveillance cameras, drinking water facilities and bicycle repair shops would come up for the track, the official said.
Project Highlights
Rs 99.7 crore is the project cost
13 MW of power to be generated
23 km is the length of the cycle track
Rs 1 crore to be saved per month in power costs
5 years is the maintenance period for agencies
9,000 LED streetlights along ORR to be powered
