Milky Mist Dairy Food has commissioned a 10 MW solar power plant at Arasanoor, taking its solar capacity at the location to 25 MW. The company said total investment in the Arasanoor solar capacity stands at Rs. 1.1 bn, following the commissioning of an earlier 15 MW plant at the site.

The company began investing in renewable energy in 2016 with a 2 MW solar plant. Its renewable energy portfolio now includes 5 MW at Chithode, 9 MW at Kavilipalayam, 25 MW at Arasanoor and 2 MW of wind power at Kayathar, giving it an aggregate capacity of 41 MW. Renewable sources now meet the company’s total power requirements.

The solar installations have been developed on arid and open land considered unsuitable for effective farming. The 25 MW Arasanoor facility is expected to generate approximately 2 mn units of renewable electricity annually for the company’s integrated manufacturing facility at Perundurai and its milk chilling centres. It is also expected to help avoid about 16,000 t of carbon emissions each year.

Since 2016, Milky Mist has invested close to Rs. 1.97 bn in renewable energy generation plants. These facilities have cumulatively generated approximately 210 mn units of power, equivalent to about Rs. 1.65 bn in value. The company said its solar plants have an operating life of about 28 to 30 years and are expected to generate around 1.4 bn units over their lifecycle, potentially reducing carbon dioxide emissions by about 1.35 mn t.

Milky Mist also uses steam turbine technology, a methane gas purification plant and effluent treatment operations for captive power generation. The methane is purified and converted into compressed natural gas, while biomass supports boiler operations. Chairman and Managing Director T Sathish Kumar said the new plant formed part of the company’s long-term effort to improve energy self-sufficiency, expand sustainable manufacturing and maintain power neutrality as operations grow.