India-based clean power outfit ReNew Power has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) for round-the-clock (RTC) electricity supply, the first-of-its-kind in India.

The 25-year PPA is with the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), a government-owned entity.

The hybrid project will be designed to operate at an 80% average annual plant load (PLF) factor and will have a minimum capacity utilisation factor of 70% monthly.

ReNew Power said it anticipates the 400MW RTC project will require 900MW of wind capacity, 400MW of solar supplemented by battery storage, because a typical solar/wind firm power renewable energy project in India has a lower PLF depending on site and technology selection.

ReNew Power will set up this capacity through wind and solar farms across Karnataka, Maharashtra and Rajasthan.

Total project costs are expected to be $1.2bn,

ReNew Power chief executive Sumant Sinha said: “With the signing of this PPA, ReNew Power and the Indian renewable energy sector has taken a historic step towards addressing intermittency of renewable power generation.

“We are pleased to sign this agreement which allows us to provide a value-added product to the electricity grid and offers us a competitive advantage for all such future bids.

“The government's bold vision and ReNew's technological ingenuity and execution prowess will ensure that this project will soon start feeding stable, clean and low cost power into the grid.

“I am confident, that this is the beginning of a new era in the renewable energy sector.”

SECI managing director Shri JN Swain said: “This PPA is a significant step forward to not only meet the 175 GW renewable energy target of India but also usher in a dispatchable renewable energy regime in the electricity sector.

“This is also a momentous occasion for SECI as under this single project, 400MW renewable energy RTC capacity will result in the deployment of 1300MW of wind and solar capacity and a large-scale battery storage system in the country.

“With this project, procuring utilities would get round-the-clock electricity supply from renewables at a very affordable rate while meeting their RPO targets.

“Innovative projects like this will be the future of renewable energy in the country.”