In modern time solar energy is gaining footing and has become the buzz word of our day.
The beauty of this technology is that it generates power but has no moving parts and is also low on maintenance. However its implementation has its own set of challenges.
The moment you get a go ahead for a solar project the hunt for land acquisition starts. Since you need the land bank at a single place so as to set up the plant you have to buy the same from multiple parties as you generally do not get the required plot size with a single owner.
As soon as this deal is finalized you need to get into the land transfer/ conversion (if the need be), as their are multiple parties involved.
Then you need to secure “Right Of Way” for erection of transmission lines. This is especially true for private projects, as for government projects all of this is taken care off, by the government.
Since these projects are often located at remote site the transportation of material for Engineering and Construction is another major challenge. As the motorable roads are often missing and you need to transport heavy equipment.
Moreover you need to maintain a very cordial relationship with native population so as to ensure the safety of both project and personal. Often you need to accommodate the native population by way of jobs in the project execution and even at a later stage.
On-site payment for day to day function is also often a problem if the planning is not done in advance for cash in hand.
To sum it up every solar project comes with certain common set of problems and some are very unique to that particular project only. But ones the charging is done (commissioned) that is the sweetest time ;o)
A ‘Clean-Future Exclusive’ contributed by Kamal Marwah, a solar professional, with 300MW projects under his belt, currently in Vietnam for another one…