3 Central Railway Stations Go Green as Indian Railways Bets on RE

The three stations where solar panels have been installed are Roha, Pen and Apte stations on the Panvel-Roha route of Central Railways.

The Indian Railways has taken another big step towards clean energy and energy conservation, as a part of its mission to utilize cost-effective renewable energy. According to a press release issued by Central Railways, three railways stations of the Central Railway zone belonging to the Mumbai division are now being powered by wind and solar energy.

The three stations where solar panels have been installed are Roha, Pen and Apte stations on the Panvel-Roha route of Central Railways. The aim is to bring down energy consumption bills by a huge margin. The zonal network has also already turned to 100% energy efficient LED lights at its railway stations and service buildings.

Roha station has 15 kWp solar power panels generating around 65-80 kWh power daily. Earlier, the electrical load of Roha station was 21 kW while the present load is only 11.81 kW, thus achieving 80 percent energy saving with solar power. The yearly saving in terms of money value will be Rs 3.54 lakh.

Pen station has 5 kWp solar power panel and 7.2 kWp solar and windmills, generating around 60-70 kWh power daily. The load of 14 kW at Pen station has come down to 7.65 kW achieving 80 percent energy saving and cutting down on expenses equalling Rs 2.19 lakh.

Apta station has 5 kWp solar power panel generating around 25-30 kWh power daily. The load of 8.52 kW has come down to 4.38 kW, achieving 80 percent energy savings. The yearly savings in terms of money value will be Rs 3.26 lakh.

All three stations have solar water coolers with a storage capacity of 150 liters each; while Roha has a solar water pump of 3 HP capacity. These green stations are provided with most energy efficient Brushless DC (BLDC) ceiling fans.