Our Responsibility to the Environment encompasses various aspects like resource use, GHG emissions, water and waste management, wildlife and biodiversity conservation, environmental management and renewable energy production. Our various group companies have initiated different plans accordingly.
We at the ATHA Group are extremely invested in understanding and improving our environmental performance. Given the fact that we work in the mining and steel and power sector, we have decided to measure our environmental impacts in terms of our GHG emissions, water consumption and material consumption. We have also invested heavily in the renewable energy sector and have solar power projects in six Indian states (Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana and Tamil Nadu). As of now the group has a total of nine solar projects spread over India. The total asset sums up to capacity of around 400 MW. As a company we have set ourselves the ambitious target of generating 1000 MW of renewable energy by year 2022.
According to the International energy association, the worldwide demand for electrical energy is growing every year and energy consumption will increase by more than 60% over the next 20 years. The threat to the environment caused by the rise in emissions is a serious issue on global political and economic agendas.The International Energy Agency (IEA) has forecast that by 2030 renewable energy can account for over a quarter of energy consumption worldwide. Other experts estimate that it could even reach the figure of 50% by 2050.
In the Paris Agreement India has committed to an Intended Nationally Determined Contributions target of achieving 40% of its total electricity generation from non-fossil fuel sources by 2030.India is one of the countries with the largest production of energy from renewable sources. According to 2027 blueprint, India aims to have 275 GW from renewable energy, 72 GW of hydroelectricity, 15 GW of nuclear energy and nearly 100 GW from “other zero emission” sources. In the quarter ending September 2019, India’s total renewable electricity capacity (including large hydro) was 130.68 GW. This represents 35.7% of the total installed electricity generation capacity in the country, which is around 366 GW. The government target of installing 20 GW of solar power by 2022 was achieved four years ahead of schedule in January 2018, through both solar parks as well as roof-top solar panels. India has set a new target of achieving 100 GW of solar power by 2022. Four of the top seven largest solar parks worldwide are in India including the second largest solar park in the world.
The solar power portfolio capacities of the group are provided in the table below:
| Location | Capacity | COD Since | PPA (CounterParty) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rajasthan | 10 MW | 25-02-2013 | NVVN |
| Rajasthan | 10 MW | 31-03-2015 | SECI |
| Madhya Pradesh | 10 MW | 09-06-2015 | MPPMCPL |
| Madhya Pradesh | 20 MW | 15-09-2016 | MPPMCPL |
| Telangana | 15 MW | 05-12-2016 | TSPCDL |
| Karnataka | 10 MW | 11-02-2017 | MESCOM |
| Madhya Pradesh | 10 MW | 31-03-2017 | MPPMCPL |
| Maharashtra | 50 MW | 15-07-2017 | SECI |
| Karnataka | 20 MW | 16-10-2017 | BESCOM |
| Tamil Nadu | 100 MW | 24-09-2019 | TANGEDCO |
| Tamil Nadu | 100 MW | 24-09-2019 | TANGEDCO |
Atha group has set its eye on the solar energy sector as its growth engine going forward. Higher demand for solar energy, triggered by concerns about global warming and energy security will catapult the solar industry to a new level in the next 10 years. Approximately, 18% of the new electric generation capacity worldwide will be from PV, which will then begin taking its rightful place in the sun: as a major contributor of secure, carbon-free, emission-free, water-saving energy.