Samsung’s Bengaluru R&D Centre Switches to Solar Energy

Through ‘energy wheeling’, the solar farm adds the required power to the state electricity grid and SRI-B in turn, receives an equal amount of power from the local electricity grid.

Samsung’s R&D centre in Bengaluru (SRI-B) has switched to solar power to light up its campus situated in the country’s IT capital.

The campus which houses over 3,000 employees will source nearly 88 percent of its power demand from a solar farm in Kalburgi district in Karnataka, around 500 kilometres away from Bengaluru.

SRI-B initiated the process of going solar in March 2016 as part of its Go Green Initiative to increase usage of non-conventional energy sources for its campus. In December 2018, SRI-B, which is Samsung’s largest R&D centre outside Korea, adopted the green energy solution through a method called ‘energy wheeling’.

According to the arrangement, the solar farm owned and operated by Bagmane Green Power LLP has a tie-up with SRI-B. Through ‘energy wheeling’, the solar farm adds the required power to the state electricity grid and SRI-B in turn, receives an equal amount of power from the local electricity grid. Reducing transmission and distribution losses, thereby making it more energy efficient.

“Our switch to solar power is an embodiment of Samsung values of being a socially and environmentally responsible citizen. Through this initiative, we have not only reduced our dependency on conventional sources of energy but we will also have a positive impact on the environment by reducing our carbon footprint and passing on a greener planet to the next generation,” said Dipesh Shah, Managing Director, SRI-B.

Since December 2018, the R&D centre has drawn 8 lakh units of solar power, instead of depending on energy derived from traditional sources such as coal.