Areva joins Reliance to set up solar power plant

New Delhi, April 13 (IANS) Areva Solar, France-based Areva's subsidiary, has bagged a contract by Reliance Power to build Asia's largest concentrated solar power installation.

"Areva Solar, an Areva subsidiary, has been awarded a contract by the Indian group Reliance Power Limited to build a 250 megawatt (MW) concentrated solar power (CSP) installation in India, which will become the largest in all of Asia," the company said in a statement.

"The project will help advance India's goal of adding 20,000 MW of solar energy by 2022. It will result in the avoidance of approximately 5,57,000 tons of CO2 emissions per year compared to a similar sized coal fired power plant," it added.

Under the contract, Areva will build two 125 MW CSP plants using its compact linear fresnel reflector technology, and will provide construction management services for the project.

The first phase of the project is under construction, with a target commercial operation date of May 2013. The solar power plants will be located in Rajasthan.

"We will leverage our best-in-class experience to help make India and Reliance global solar industry leaders. Following our success in the French wind offshore sector, this contract reinforces the AREVA strategy in renewable energies," said Luc Oursel, chief executive officer, Areva.

This project further strengthens and diversifies Areva's low-carbon energy hub in India.