India Hosts the World’s Largest Renewable Energy Park – 5 Times Bigger Than Paris

Khavda is the world’s largest renewable energy park, utilizing a combination of solar and wind energy. The area was initially accessed by a small aircraft in December 2022, when Adani group head Gautam Adani visited the region. It is an arid, saline area with minimal vegetation and no nearby habitation, making it an ideal location for a renewable energy park due to its high solar radiation and strong wind speeds.

Adani Green Energy Ltd plans to invest approximately Rs 1.5 lakh crore to generate 30 megawatts of clean electricity at Khavda in Gujarat’s Kutch. They have already commissioned 2 GW of capacity and plan to add 4 GW in the current fiscal year and 5 GW every year thereafter. The airstrip at Khavda is used to ferry group executives from Mundra or Ahmedabad a few times a week, and pilots rely on visual aids and navigation systems for landing and takeoff.

The energy park is just one kilometer from the international border with Pakistan and is managed by the Border Security Force. Despite the challenges presented by the environment, the Adani group is building accommodation for 8,000 workers, aiming to generate 81 billion units of electricity at Khavda. The planned 30 GW at Khavda will consist of 26 GW of solar and 4 GW of wind capacity.

Adani Green Energy Ltd’s existing operational portfolio comprises 7,393 MW solar, 1,401 MW wind, and 2,140 MW wind-solar hybrid capacity. The area has high solar irradiation and strong wind resources, but frequent sandstorms necessitate regular cleaning of solar panels. The land at Khavda is leased from the government to the Adani group for 40 years, and extensive studies and infrastructure development were conducted before the construction began in 2022.

The development effort included constructing roads, drainage, desalination plants, reverse osmosis plants, and laying optical fiber cables for connectivity. This ambitious renewable energy project is part of the Adani group’s broader plan to generate 500 GW of electricity from non-fossil sources by 2030 in India, with the goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2070.