Five kilowatt rooftop solar power plant inaugurated in Manipur

Our Correspondent

Imphal, May 28 (EMN):  An inaugural function of a grid connected rooftop solar power plant was conducted at the Community Hall of Uripok Ahanthem Leikai Development Organisation in Imphal on May 28 Monday. The power plant has a power-generating capacity of five kilowatts.

During the event, Manipur’s Deputy Chief Minister Yumnam Joykumar Singh said that the renewable sources of energy should be opted as an alternative to meet energy requirements in the state. Stating that non-renewable energy sources like fossil fuels would be exhausted after some decades but renewable sources like solar energy will last long for decades, he said, with the increasing population, energy consumption level has also been increasing day by day. ‘To meet such energy requirements, solar energy which can be generated using abundantly available sunlight should be encouraged,’ he added.

Informing that the project which is jointly taken up by Manipur Renewable Energy Development Agency (MANIREDA) and Manipur State Power Distribution Company Limited will definitely help in providing energy requirements in the state, he felt. Once street lighting is completed, it will be helpful in controlling crimes and such related activities. He appealed people to cooperate with this initiative to encourage solar energy generation in the state.

MANIREDA director L Manglem Singh also spoke on the importance of solar energy in helping to provide energy requirements in the state. He said, under the project, 70 per cent of the total cost for installation will be borne by MANIREDA. Only the remaining 30 per cent will be borne by the individual, the company, or firm who had applied for the work. He urged people to cooperate with MANIREDA and also asked them to apply through website for installation of solar power plants.

According to official sources, the state requires 167 megawatt during its peak power demand in Manipur. The per capita energy consumption of Manipur on March 2016 was 290 Kwh.