Ahmedabad, March 16 (IANS) Adani Green Energy, India’s largest renewable energy firm, on Sunday said it is committed to achieving net water positivity by FY2025-26, reducing its freshwater consumption across all operations.
The company has already achieved water positivity across operational locations with above 200 MW capacity in FY23 and aims to implement robotic cleaning to prevent using freshwater for solar module cleaning at all upcoming locations.
The renewable energy sector needs significant water for tasks such as solar panel maintenance.
Adani Green Energy, India’s largest renewable energy company with over 12.5 GW operational assets, leads in water stewardship.
The company’s roadmap to realising the goal of achieving water sustainability encompasses several strategic initiatives, like rainwater harvesting, water conservation and community engagement.
The company said it has notably decreased its water use intensity and contributed to replenishing water resources in regions facing water stress, such as Khavda, Jaisalmer and Kutch, among others.
Last year, the company avoided 347,310 kilolitres of water through robotic cleaning, equivalent to the water consumption of 1.58 million households.
About 43.5 per cent of Adani Green Energy’s total operating capacity has successfully integrated robotic technology for cleaning photovoltaic (PV) modules.
“With ISO 14001:2015 certification, Adani Green Energy has a robust system to monitor and manage its water consumption. This achievement lays a solid groundwork for its broader goal of reaching net water-positive status across all operational locations by FY2025-26,” said the company.
Adani Green Energy aims to reduce the need for water-cleaning solar PV modules by adopting waterless robotic cleaning methods. As of FY24, 4,760 MW of its solar power plants, accounting for 43.5 per cent of its total operating capacity, have successfully integrated robotic technology for cleaning photovoltaic (PV) modules.
To eliminate the use of plastic bottled water to fulfil drinking water requirements, Adani Green has implemented a technology that harvests water from humidity in the air using green technology.
This innovative solution provides fresh, hygienic, and clean drinking water that conforms to international water safety standards while eliminating the use of plastic and reducing carbon footprints.
“A proof-of-concept (POC) was conducted at our Solar Plant in Andhra Pradesh with a water generation capacity of 100 LPD (litres per day) along with a water cooler, yielding significant savings and a payback period of five-six years. This technology may be replicated after analysing the success rate,” the company informed.
Pond rejuvenation and enhancing ponds’ water holding capacity is a comprehensive project aimed at increasing the ground recharge capacity and enhancing the water level. As part of this initiative, Adani Green Energy de-silted and rejuvenated 35 in FY24 resulting in water level enhancement achieved benefiting 36,000+ people residing in villages.
AGEL’s operating portfolio is certified ‘water positive for plants of more than 200 MW capacity’, ‘single-use plastic free’ and ‘zero waste-to-landfill’, a testament to the company’s commitment to powering sustainable growth.
–IANS
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