DMRC to generate solar energy through pedestrian overbridges

To generate clean and cheaper energy, Delhi Metro has decided to install solar panels on the roof of pedestrian overbridges. The energy generated will be used at stations.

The two first projects will be 250-metre overbridge at Kalkaji station on the soon-to-start Botanical Garden-Janakpuri West line in the phase 3 expansion of the rail network.

To save energy and costs, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has started solar energy generation with plants at Dwarka Sector 21, Anand Vihar, Pragati Maidan, Metro Enclave, Yamuna bank station, Yamuna bank depot, Faridabad RSS, ITO, Ajronda depot and the Faridabad metro stations.

It has also signed an agreement with the Rewa Ultra Mega Solar which will provide 35 million units of solar power for the phase 3 network.

“The solar panels on the FOB connecting the old and new Kalkaji Mandir stations will produce 229kw of power. The FOB at Ajronda in Faridabad has also been taken up. Eight FOBs on the Faridabad section will be considered for installation of solar panels on FOB,” said a DMRC spokesperson.

The FOB solar panels in Faridabad with 25 Kilowatt (KW) power generation capacity will produce 225 KW power in total.

Solar power plants have been installed at all the stations of the Faridabad corridor and Ajronda Depot with a total generation capacity of 1.9 Mega Watt peak (MWp).

“In view of space constraints, Metro engineers have constructed an elevated stabling shed at Kalkaji. We will install the solar panels in such a way that it provides shelter to the trains and generate power simultaneously,” the spokesperson said.

By March 2018, Delhi Metro has a set a target of generating 31 MWp of solar power. As per its solar policy, DMRC plans to generate 50 MWp of solar power by 2021.