India opens its first solar-powered electric bus depot
In collaboration with the Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC), GIZ has transformed the electric bus depot in Althan, a locality in the southwestern part of the city. The solar-powered electric bus depot is part of a pilot project to demonstrate the circularity of electric mobility.
SMC operates the Althan electric bus depot entirely using energy generated by a 100 kW solar power plant with a daily output of 400-450 kWh, says a report from ANI. 28 refurbished batteries with a combined energy storage capacity of 224 kWh store the energy generated by the solar panels.
Local newspaper Divya Bhaskar estimates the solar power plant will supply the electric bus depot with 100,000 kWh of clean energy annually. The solar panels, their inverters, and the second-life batteries required a small investment of 15 million rupees (approximately 155,000 euros) and GIZ funded the whole project. The solar panels carry a 25-year warranty, the inverters a five-year warranty, and the refurbished batteries an eight-year warranty.
Surat is one of the most progressive cities in western India when it comes to embracing new technologies. Last year, the city replaced all the diesel buses on all 13 BRTS routes with electric models to make public transport cleaner, DeshGujarat reported.
As a city with a population of more than 4 million people, Surat is eligible for subsidies on public transport electric buses under the PM E-Drive scheme India launched in October last year. “Of our 1,100 buses, 450 are now electric, and by 2027 we plan to convert them all,” Surat Municipal Commissioner Shalini Agarwal told Bloomberg in December.
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