India - Vestas RRB to add 100 MW of wind energy to this more and more energy thirsty country

Vestas RRB India, an independent power producer (IPP) based on wind energy, will generate an additional 100 MW of power before March 31, 2005 by setting up wind farms in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, its managing director Rakesh Bakshi said today.Vestas RRB, an Indo-Danish joint venture, now generates 350 MW of power through its wind farms in seven states in the country including Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Kerala.

"We will be adding another 100 MW before this fiscal ends," Bakshi told PTI in an interview, adding that a small portion of the new addition will also come from Maharashtra. From Tamil Nadu alone, where Vestas RRB has its wind farms near Kanyakumari and Kayathar in Tuticorin, the company generates about 300 MW of wind power. India’s first major private sector commercial IPP of its kind, based on wind energy aggregating 15 MW, was established by Vestas RRB in 2000. "Tamil Nadu is much ahead of other states in recognising the importance of renewable energy like wind power," he said. More than 50 per cent of the 2800 MW of wind energy produced by the country comes from the wind farms in Tamil Nadu, Bakshi pointed out.

Stating that India has huge potential for wind energy, Bakshi said at present renewable energy constitutes a mere 3.5 per cent of the country’s power generation of 110,000 MW. India promoter RRB Consultants and Engineers Pvt Ltd holds the majority 51 per cent stake in Vestas RRB. Vestas Wind Systems, Denmark, holds the remaining 49 per cent.