Karnataka Govt Drops Solar Project in Five Villages Over Cost Concerns

Quick Summary

• The Karnataka government has decided to discontinue a project announced in the 2024-25 budget to set up 500-kilowatt (kW) micro grid solar units with battery storage in five backward villages, citing financial non-viability.
• The initiative aimed to make selected villages self-reliant in energy.
• Selected locations included Katenahalli (Tumakuru district), Arji (Kodagu district), Lingapura (Chikkamagaluru district), Jagalapete (Uttara Kannada district), and Antavaram (Kalaburagi district). Karnataka Renewable Energy Advancement Limited (KREDL) was responsible for implementing the project.
• KREDL stated that each unit would cost ₹7.94 crore, with an overall cost of ₹39.7 crore for five units, making the electricity generated too costly for Electricity Supply Companies (Escoms) over a 25-year period.
• Security guidelines requiring battery inverters to be turned off when no power is supplied from Escom would undermine the goal of energy self-reliance for these villages.
• this is the second major renewable-energy-related cancellation after a previously planned project to set up 2,500 EV public charging stations was also dropped recently.
• KREDL has informed about alternative plans involving new projects focusing on popularizing battery energy storage technology at Pavagada and Kalaburagi.

Indian Opinion Analysis

The decision reflects financial prudence but also raises concerns about achieving sustainability goals and boosting rural electrification thru renewable energy solutions. While KREDL’s reasoning highlights implementation hurdles like high costs per unit and technological limitations, it also underscores systemic challenges faced by large-scale renewable initiatives in India-specifically balancing innovation within fiscal constraints.

Dropping back-to-back green projects may signal caution regarding newer technologies like battery storage given their current limitations but could slow progress toward India’s broader clean energy ambitions if such issues persist.Exploring innovative funding models or scaling projects incrementally might enable better viability without entirely shelving such forward-thinking initiatives critical for long-term rural energy change.

Read more: Published – August 11, 2025 – IST