Bengal to be one of three major solar power producing states: official

West Bengal is set to emerge a leader in solar power generation, along with Gujarat and Rajasthan, under the National Solar Mission (NSM).

The three states together will produce nearly 30 per cent of the 1,300 MW of solar power targeted by 2013 by the ministry of new and renewable energy, according to S P Gon Chowdhury, managing director of the West Bengal Green Energy Development Corp.

Addressing the media on the sidelines of a seminar on climate change in Kolkata on Monday, Chowdhury said the three states have asked the ministry to allot 345 MW solar power projects to them. "West Bengal has set a target of producing 110 MW of solar power by 2013, involving an investment of Rs1,500 crore by different companies," he added.

A total 15 MW of solar power currently being generated in West Bengal involving total investment of Rs800 crore over the last three years, Chowdhury said. He indicated that Gujarat and Rajasthan were expected to generate 130 MW and 100 MW of solar power respectively in three years.

The West Bengal government, he said, had targeted setting up of one lakh solar home lighting units in the state in two to three years under the centre-sponsored decentralised distributed generation scheme.

The state was also expected to manufacture solar modules capable of producing 500 MW of power by 2022, he said. The national target in this regard is 5,000 MW.