Indian Railways bets on solar and wind power! Three more stations go green to save on electricity bills
Central Railways has turned to using 100% energy efficient LED lights at its railway stations and service buildings. 3 new ‘green’ stations where solar panels have been installed are Roha, Pen and Apte stations of Central Railways
3 more railways stations of the Central Railway zone are now being powered by wind and solar energy.
Indian Railways takes a big step towards clean energy and energy conservation! As part of its mission to utilise cost-effective renewable energy, three more railways stations of the Central Railway zone are now being powered by wind and solar energy. According to a press release issued by Central Railways, the zonal network has already turned to 100% energy efficient light-emitting diode (LED) lights at its railway stations and service buildings. The three new ‘green’ stations where solar panels have been installed are Roha, Pen and Apte stations on the Panvel-Roha route of Central Railways. The aim is to bring down energy consumption bills by a huge margin.
The power requirement at these three railway stations is met by solar panels and wind mills, generating green energy. All the three railway stations have solar water coolers with a storage capacity of 150 litres each. While the Roha station has a solar water pump of 3 HP capacity, the Apta and Pen stations have solar water coolers with a storage capacity of 150 liters each. These stations have also been provided with energy efficient BLDC ceiling fans.
The details of energy generated at each of these stations are as follows:
- The Roha station
The Roha station has a 15 KWp solar power panel installed, generating around 65-80 KWh power on a daily basis. Earlier, the electrical load of the Roha station was 21 kW while the present load is only 11.81 kW. This has resulted in 80% energy being saved, with the use of solar power. The yearly saving in terms of money value will be Rs. 3.54 lakh at the Roha station. - The Pen station
The Pen station has a 5 KWp solar power panel installed and 7.2 KWp solar and wind mill, generating around 60-70 kWh power on a daily basis. The load of 14 kW at the station has come down to 7.65 kW. This has resulted in 80% energy being saved, with the use of solar and wind power. The yearly saving in terms of money value will be Rs. 2.19 lakh at the Pen station. - The Apta station
The Apta station has a 5 KWp solar power panel installed, generating around 25-30 kWh power on a daily basis. The load of 8.52 kW has come down to 4.38 kW with 80% energy being saved. The yearly saving in terms of money value will be Rs. 3.26 lakh at the Apta station.
The energy data at these railway stations are monitored on a real time basis through building energy management systems (BEMS).
The Asangaon station of Central Railways on the Mumbai suburban railway network has had the distinction of being the 2nd station of the Indian Railways network to become a green station where all the energy requirements are met by solar and wind mill generated power. It was followed by Jumapatti, Water pipe, Aman Lodge and Matheran railway stations by resorting to more energy efficient ways.
Across the Indian Railways network, renewable energy is increasingly being used to reduce the carbon footprint. Guwahati railway station under NFR Railway and the Katra railway station under Northern Railways are some commendable examples of using solar power to meet energy needs.
Source: financialexpress
