Off-grid solar

The selected bidders are required to install and commission solar-based water pumping systems in various villages and towns of Jaipur district. Bidding closes on November 5.

The hybrid solar plants (with battery bank) shall come up at 34 railway station sites in the 4 states of Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Assam and Bihar. Bidding closes on October 30.

A total of 476 tube wells are to be installed under four packages in districts under different divisions—Barpeta (100+80), Goalpara, Dhubri and Mankachar (151), and Kokrajhar (145). Bidding closes on November 1.

The aesthetically appealing 1 KWp, 3 KWp and 5 KWp artifacts can be installed at public places like beaches and parks to provide electrical power for different loads.

Bids are invited for design, supply, installation and commissioning of solar home cooking systems in five districts of different states (Meghalaya, Chhattisharh, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat). Bidding closes on November 8.

Research institutes have moved quickly to emulate the successes observed in a test installation at Jodhpur as India races to meet an ambitious target of doubling agricultural income by 2022.

Take-up has been slow considering the nation’s mammoth agricultural industry but, as a packed session on the topic at the recent REI show illustrated, attitudes may be changing in a nation which is already installing solar greenhouses.

A total of 168 expressions of interest were received by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy in the second round of PACEsetter Fund programme. Out of these, projects by the Society for Economic and Social Studies, Customized Energy Solutions India, The Energy & Resources Institute and Raghavendra Suntech Systems were chosen for the award of grants.

The projects—in various capacities ranging between 1 KWp and 25 KWp—are to be set up across the state. Proposals can be submitted till October 4.

A memorandum of understanding signed by the institutions was not solar specific but the use of PV modules for shading, especially in agriculture, can reduce water consumption and help halt the expansion of deserts.