The new wind energy policy got nod from the state cabinet today, state energy minister Saurabh Patel said in a statement.
As per the new policy, procurement price of wind power has been pegged at Rs 4.15 per unit. This tariff would be applicable for next 25 years.
In order to promote green energy, in the new policy, the government has proposed exemption from electricity duty to wind power producers. The policy further proposes that power producers could use the wind power for captive consumption in their own units in the state. For this the they will have to pay the wheeling and transmission charges.
Also, if the power is to be used for captive consumption in more than one unit of the wind power producer, they will have to pay Rs 0.05 per unit more besides the wheeling and transmission charges.
After captive consumption, as per the new policy, power companies can sell the remaining units to government transmission company at Rs 3.52 per unit, which is 85 per cent of the actual tariff of Rs 4.15 per unit. The power producers will also have the option to sell their wind energy to third party after paying the necessary wheeling and transmission charges.
To set up wind power generating units the government proposes to allot wasteland in interior regions of the state under the new policy.
After announcing the new policy Patel said that while non-conventional energy form 2-3 per cent of total power produced in other states, Gujarat generates 10 per cent of the total power produced in state from such non-conventional sources.
"The present installed wind power generating capacity in India was 19,000 Mw of which 3,147 Mw is produced in Gujarat itself," Patel said. The new police has been formulated as the present policy period ends this year, he added.