Vena Energy, the renewable energy arm of the Vena Group and a prominent green energy provider in the Asia-Pacific region, has signed India’s first load-following Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI). The agreement is for a capacity of 100 megawatts and falls under the Firm and Dispatchable Renewable Energy (FDRE) scheme, which was launched in June 2023.
The FDRE scheme is designed to ensure reliable and consistent renewable power supply through various configurations, including assured peak power, round-the-clock (RTC) energy, and load-following delivery as specified by electricity distribution companies (DISCOMs). While previous agreements under the FDRE scheme have covered RTC and peak power delivery, this is the first time a load-following PPA has been signed in the country.
A load-following agreement requires the power producer to match electricity generation with the hour-to-hour demand pattern of DISCOMs, making renewable energy more dependable and suitable for integration into the grid. To achieve this, the project will combine wind and solar energy with battery energy storage systems, allowing it to deliver a consistent and responsive energy output throughout the day and night.
According to Monika Rathi, Head of India at Vena Energy, this marks a major milestone for the company in India. It is Vena Energy’s first fully integrated renewable energy project in the country that includes wind, solar, and storage technologies. She emphasized that this achievement reflects the company’s strong technical capabilities and its commitment to supporting India’s transition to clean and dependable energy.
Monika Rathi, said in a statement, “The project highlights Vena Energy’s expertise in delivering complex and reliable clean energy solutions for India’s sustainable growth. It also reinforces our ability to manage both pay-as-you-produce and firm and dispatchable PPAs, demonstrating our capabilities across the full spectrum of renewable energy contracts.”
The 100 MW project is expected to generate approximately 380,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) of wind power and 133,000 MWh of solar power in its first full year of operation. This combined output will be sufficient to power around 487,000 households across India. Additionally, the project is estimated to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by about 488,000 tonnes annually and save nearly 380 million litres of water each year when compared to traditional thermal power generation methods.
