The Indian Government has announced that it has signed an agreement to build the country’s first offshore wind power project off the coast of Gujarat. The 100 MW project will act as a demonstration for possible further expansion of offshore wind capacity in India.
The Memorandum of Understanding to set up a Joint Venture Company for the purpose of undertaking this offshore wind project was signed on Wednesday by India’s Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, National Institute of Wind Energy, and a consortium of partners.
Shri Piyush Goyal, India’s Minister for Power, Coal and New & Renewable Energy, was on hand to witness the signing, and described it as a great opportunity in the development of renewable energy resources in the country.
The Indian Government will provide subsidy for surveys and studies, as well as obtaining clearances involved for the implementation of the project.
According to the press release published by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, this demonstration project “will certainly provide enough learning to move into this sector by taking up similar viable projects in [the] future.”
Shri Piyush Goyal also noted that, given the country’s 7,600 kilometre long coastline, the opportunities for scaling up such a market “are humongous.”
In the same press release it was mentioned that India is preparing the announcement of a Draft National Offshore Wind Energy Policy, which will provide a “conducive environment for harnessing offshore wind energy” including the construction of the first offshore wind project.
With 22 GW of onshore wind capacity already installed, India’s plans to expand offshore is worth learning from.
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