Business

Shahi Works Towards Powering Its Operations With 100% Renewable Energy

India's largest apparel manufacturer and exporter, Shahi Exports Pvt. Ltd., is working towards powering its operations with 100% renewable electricity. The company has set up two solar power plants of 32 MW and 52 MW capacities each in Karnataka which caters to 65% of its electricity requirements. Shahi set up 8.57 MW wind energy plant in Maharashtra. Combining energy generation through process steam turbines, wind, and solar plants, 77% of electrical energy consumption across Shahi is carbon-neutral. Thus avoiding 103,000 MT of GHG emissions. This emission reduction is equivalent to saving 70,000 MT of coal reserves used in a thermal power plant annually to generate the same amount of electricity. Shahi Exports had started exploring clean energy and energy conservation solutions in 2013. The company's Environmental Sustainability team was given the task of identifying major electricity consumption sources in its factories and textile mill in Karnataka. Thus, T8 lamps were replaced with LED lightings in all its 50 factories and mills, leading to 50% power savings, and reduction in average indoor temperature by 2.5 °C. The Karnataka Government too has been proactive in increasing the quantum of solar energy the state, and implemented a number of investment friendly policies for the same. As per the KERC (Procurement of Energy from Renewable Sources) Regulations, 2011 and the amendments enacted in the year 2014-15, any consumer having electricity demand exceeding 5 MW, and using non-renewable sources, must procure renewable electricity through a power purchase agreement or generate renewable electricity for self-consumption. For Shahi Exports, it was a combination of its commitment and favorable regulatory policies in Karnataka which resulted in the development of its renewable energy power projects.