Bhubaneswar:
Realising the huge potential of generating power from renewable energy, the Orissa government on Wednesday said they will electrify at least 2,000 villages by using solar energy or other non-conventional methods.
The villages would be provided with electricity facility by March 2012, officials said adding that a decision in this regard was taken at a high-level meeting chaired by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Tuesday evening.
The state has already completed electrification of 395 villages by using solar power, while work in the rest of the villages would be completed by March 2012, they said.
"The state is undertaking measures to generate energy from solar, wind and bio-mass," a senior official of science and technology department said.
The state government had identified 22 places across Orissa suitable for the generation of wind power.
According to estimates, the state is capable of generating 800 MW of electricity from wind power.
"Private investors will be roped in for generation of wind power," the official said adding that about 300 MW power could also be generated by using bio-mass.
Meanwhile, the state has already sanctioned nine projects to generate electricity by using bio-mass.
"The state's first bio-mass electricity generation unit will come up at Dhenkanal very soon," the official said.
Besides these, the official said that the state had also estimated generation of another 360 MW of power from micro, mini and small hydel projects.
The Orissa Renewable Energy Development Agency (OREDA) had taken up two small hydel projects at Keonjhar and Mayurbhanj districts for generation of 150 MW of power.
These small projects were eco-friendly and could be established without loss of forest cover and zero displacement, he said.