Guj mega energy park to attract Rs 1.5-lakh cr investment, says PM Modi

The upcoming hybrid renewable energy park in Kutch district is expected to attract an investment of Rs 1,50,000 crore and create employment opportunities for 1 lakh people, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Tuesday.

Modi, who was on a day-long visit to Gujarat, was speaking after virtually laying foundation stones for three big projects in Kutch district, which borders Pakistan, from a function at Dhordo village.

These projects are - a 30,000-megawatt capacity hybrid renewable energy park along the Indo-Pak border at Khavda, a desalination plant at Mandvi, and a milk processing and packaging unit at Anjar.

The hybrid energy park, being touted as the biggest such facility in the world, will be capable of producing 30,000 megawatts, or 30 gigawatts, of electricity using both solar panels and wind farms, installed in one place.

Spread over 72,600 hectares of wasteland, the first of its kind energy project is expected to play a major role in fulfilling India's vision of generating 450 gw (4,50,000 MW) of power by 2030.

"It will come up in more than 70,000 hectares of land, an area equal to the size of countries like Singapore and Bahrain.This park will be bigger than India's biggest metro cities. It will produce power using the energy of the Sun and the wind," said Modi while speaking on the occasion.

The mega project will not only help in better utilization of a vast patch of the desert but also in securing the land border, the PM said.

"This project will attract an investment of Rs 1,50,000 crore and create employment opportunities for 1 lakh people," he said.

Both farmers as well as the industry will benefit from this project, which would also reduce pollution. It will help us in stopping 5 crore tonnes of carbon dioxide from entering into the atmosphere every year, which is equal to planting 9 crore trees, said Modi.

He said India now ranks fourth in the world in terms of producing renewable energy and the country's installed solar generation capacity has risen 16 times in six years.

The second proposed project is a 100 MLD desalination plant, coming up near the coastal town of Mandvi, to convert sea water into freshwater.

Modi said the plant, once functional, will provide 10 crore liters of water to a population of 8 lakh living in Mandvi, Mundra, Lakhpat Abdasa, and Nakhatrana villages of Kutch.

The third venture is a fully automated milk processing and packaging plant of Sarhad Dairy at Anjar.

The upcoming dairy plant will have a processing capacity of Rs 2 lakh liters per day.

Sarhad Dairy played a vital role in transforming the lives of cattle rearers of Kutch. Now, milk of this region need not be sent till (state capital) Gandhinagar for processing. This plant is capable of processing 2 lakh liters of milk per day, said the prime minister.

It will save transportation cost of cattle rearers, said Modi. 

(IMAGE CREDITS: PTI)