Solar Panel Plant in Ladakh, India

India is afflicted with a problem of making big infrastructure announcements without actually executing them. The economy has cratered as most large projects in the power, roads and ports sector remain mired in delays. These delays are due to cumbersome rules and regulations most of which do not make sense anyway. So when the government announced a 5000 MW solar panel plant in Ladakh, I remained skeptical. Ladakh lies thousands of meters above sea level near the Himalayan range. While there is plenty of barren land and sunshine, the idea of building a large power plant is a logistical nightmare.

Couple that with India’s famously inefficient and corrupt bureaucracy, even the 20 year time frame looks too small to me. I am not sure whether the power plant planners even factored the cost of building a power transmission line to that place. Note Ladakh has very little population, so most of the power will have to be evacuated to other places. While the 5000 MW solar plant as the largest one on earth makes good headlines for the government, the plant will remain a pipedream. Note India is planning to build four giant solar panel plants which will be funded and built by government owned companies. Indian PSUs are notorious for their corruption and sloth. They are extensions of the government comprised of self-serving worker who care 2 hoots about building a project on time and budget.

Read all about Solar Power in India.

DNA 

Though no time line has been given, the power project once completed will not only meet the local demand but can make Jammu and Kashmir a power surplus state. Experts said surplus power could be sold to other states as well. “India has 5000 megawatt hydro power projects. It will be the first solar power project with 5000 megawatt capacity,” said Singh.