Sep 4 2010
Shriram Group, a Chennai based company known for its diversified business activities, has fixed up its plans to exploit the wind energy power in overseas countries.
The company is planning to organize its wind power production facilities in Sri Lanka and Eastern Europe through Orient Green Power (OGPL), its associate company. The company has signed its final agreement with the board of investments in Sri Lanka during early part of this month and this agreement will enable to the company to avail tax concessions and other related incentives.
According to T.Shivaraman, CEO & MD of OGPL, the company has acquired 87% of the shares in Power Lanka a newly formed wind power company while the balance of shares is held by its local partner. The company is planning to start the 10.5 MW wind power project at Puttankulam, a key wind power location with a prime load factor of more than 28% at a cost of 80 crores shortly. The company has signed a power purchase agreement with Sri Lankan Government for a period of 20 years. Since the company does not subsidize its clean energy productions the produced energy can be sold at market price. The wind turbines required for the project will be supplied by Shriram Leitner, a different company of the group. The company also has plans to start another 100 MW wind farm in the coming years in Sri Lanka.
The company has recently acquired 52% stakes in Vjetroelektrana Crnobrdo a Croatian based company through its another auxiliary company Orient Green Power Europe (OGPE) and got permission to build and operate a 10.5 MW wind power project. The balance stakes of the company is being held by its local partner Tecoi. The proposed wind project is to be located in Sibenik considered to be one of the best wind power locations in the country. The average wind speed at a height of 50 M is estimated as 8 m/s and the company has potential produce over 3000 MW.
OGPE is planning to install 1.5 MW Leitwind turbines for the wind project costing around e16 million. The company is also developing a 60 MW wind farm in the same location. Other wind farms currently developed by the company include a 20 MW wind farm in Hungary and another 18 MW wind farm in Czech Republic at Detrichov near Brno. Total cost of all these project is estimated as e2.2 million.