Andhra Pradesh is seeking to emerge as the country’s leading renewable energy state as Suzlon’s new wind projects mark a fresh phase in the State’s clean energy journey, Minister Nara Lokesh said after laying a foundation stone in Anantapur. He said Suzlon built a strong wind energy ecosystem in the State over two decades and stressed the importance of local manufacturing and job creation.

Suzlon’s Anantapur facility has an annual manufacturing capacity of around 1,260 megawatt (MW) and provides direct employment to about 1,200 people, more than 70 per cent of them locals. The company has created over 2,000 green jobs across Andhra Pradesh and skill centres at Uravakonda and Vijayawada prepare engineers and technicians for the sector.

The projects under way have a combined renewable energy capacity of 1,325 megawatt (MW), involve an investment of around Rs 100 billion (Rs 100 bn) and are expected to generate more than 4,000 direct and indirect jobs. Suzlon already has about 1,600 megawatt (MW) of installed capacity in the State, with another 2,700 megawatt (MW) under development and nearly 1,300 megawatt (MW) of new wind projects in the Anantapur region.

The State is emphasising integration of wind and solar power with energy storage and building a major data centre ecosystem with a proposed capacity of six point five gigawatt (GW), which the minister said could create demand for nearly 25 gigawatt (GW) of renewable energy to power digital infrastructure. Andhra Pradesh has set a target of 175 gigawatt (GW) of renewable capacity and is working to develop green hydrogen, green ammonia and green data centres. The government is promoting 22 industrial clusters across energy, electronics, pharmaceuticals, automobiles, chemicals, fisheries and manufacturing to support the transition and around 12,000 youngsters, including 25 per cent women, are being trained for green energy jobs under the partnership with Suzlon.