Giridhari Executive Park tells their story of installing the largest residential solar plant in South India in an effort to become a green Community.
The Sun has been worshiped since eternity; it has also been considered as a source of Vitamin-D energy to boost our health. In this fast-paced lifestyle, little do we realise that it is one of the best sources of energy to lighten up our lives with almost zero cost, zero pollution, and no harmful greenhouse gases.
Why Solar Power?
This project was started as a Green Initiative to be self-sufficient and sustainable with respect to the society’s electricity consumption and reducing the CO2 footprint for a greener society. The first thing Giridhari Executive Park had to decide, was on the capacity.
The Journey So Far:
A Hot idea and a Bold Vision!
For many of us, when the idea of Roof-Top Solar power generation came up, we were confused, curious and interested to explore the idea. But all we had was second-hand information about the benefits and how huge the investment would be. However, we were fortunate to have a committed team of believers and passionate people in our community to help us spread the vision and gain clarity on what it means in terms of our investment, cost-benefit analysis and our views and plan on return on investment.
As a community, the idea was proposed to set up a separate Solar Project standing committee as a task force to work through all the aspects of envisioning, planning, design, implementation and operations. We were racing against time as we needed to get the project sanctioned before March 31st, 2019.
The in-house team did an exceptional job of setting up concept clarifications sessions by solar power vendors, published a FAQ and actively helped the members to gain clarity. They also evaluated multiple vendors, operational models (RESCO vs CAPEX), possible funding options and support models. A Project Report plus Supplementary Project Report were placed before the General Body of GEPOWA which assented to go ahead with funding and implementation of the project through voting.
Despite the ambiguity and uncertainty in understanding the entire plan, we had a majority vote to go ahead with the recommended options and the work swiftly commenced in April 2019. With many skeptics around, not everyone was sure that work would be completed so that we can start reaping benefits. But by the sheer commitment and dedication of the task force, we started realizing the benefits in a phased manner. A couple of roof-tops out of the eight block terraces were operationalized by May’19 and we started generating solar power and we were connected to the state power grid.
End of June’19, the entire project was complete, and we started seeing the benefits right away through reduced electricity bills. Inauguration of the project and its dedication function was held on 27th July 2019 wherein Telangana State Minister for Labour & Employment and the local MLA graced the occasion.
Details of the Project :
PV Modules : 325Wp (2200 no’s)
Cell Technology : Polycrystalline
Modules supplier : RenewSys India Pvt Limited
Mounting : Fixed Tilt (170 South facing)
Inverters rating : 27 kW (26 no’s)
Inverter Make : Fronius
DCDB/ACDB : SIEMENS make (IP65 protection with SPD)
Lightning Arresters : 2 no’s (ESE type advanced LA’s)
More Love For The Sun And Savings
In little over 3 months since work commenced, we have one of the largest solar roof-top generation setup in our Executive Park community. The generation capacity is 715 kWp which is more than 50% of our current consumption. And the community is overjoyed and looking forward to reaping the cost savings that are steadily accruing. We are looking forward to love sun more than ever with new cooler sun-glasses that we can buy from the savings.
This project received wide coverage in Print and Electronic Media. Neighboring communities and visitors to Executive Park have been curious to know about this Rooftop Solar project. Overall as a part of this vibrant and diverse residential community, we can confidently say that this is a bold and big step towards generating pollution-free, clean and sustainable energy for the overall benefit of our community residents and contribute towards a greener earth. We hope other residential communities take a leaf out of our story and make a bold step towards a sustainable and self-reliant power.
Rise High Awards is back in 2020 to Recognise & Reward MCs, Community Staff, Residents, etc. who have shown exemplary courage to achieve excellence in gated community management despite the challenges of the Pandemic. Nominate your Community Heroes here by January 10, 2020.