Solar power to make Noida Metro India’s greenest
The 29.7km Noida Metro corridor will be India’s greenest when it becomes operational a little over a year from now with a capacity to generate enough solar power to run not only all 21 stations but also its offices and train depot.
The practices being followed are similar to those Delhi Metro is employing in Phase-3 and some of its existing stations, but Noida Metro will stand out as India’s most environment-friendly Metro project because the entire corridor will homogenously use solar power, right from its head office to parking lots and footbridges.
Noida Metro has set a target of generating 12MW of solar power daily, its managing director Santosh Yadav said on Tuesday. For that yield, it is installing solar panels on the rooftops of all stations, footbridges, its main office building, the depot and parking lot boundary walls. “We will also apply for a diamond rating for our buildings by the Indian Green Building Council (IGBC),” Yadav said. “Metro’s total power consumption can be reduced further with better engineering practices, sleek design, recycle and reuse.” Yadav said solar power will run lights, fans, elevators, escalators and air-conditioning systems at its stations and offices. The conventional power connection will be used as a supplementary source if required or as backup if there is a glitch, officials said.
Metro officials estimate the corridor’s total power consumption, excluding the electricity required to run the trains and some other crucial operational facilities, will be less than the 12 MW solar power the corridor collectively generates. If there is a surplus, Metro will route it to the conventional power grid and claim a rebate on its power usage, cutting operational costs.
“Each of the stations will be powered by its own green energy. Rooftops of stations will have solar panels and the buildings will fitted with LED bulbs. The two sub-stations that will supply power for trains running on the corridor will also support solar panels,” Yadav said.
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