By
IPA Special Correspondent
CHANDIGARH: Giving a major fillip to
its efforts to check stubble burning and boost the renewable energy sector, the
Punjab Government led by Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Monday
signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Virgo Corporation for a Rs 630 crore
Biofuel project, for which technology will be provided by the US giant
Honeywell.
Virgo will use the technology to
extract bio jet fuel from rice husk to set up a Rapid Thermal Processing plant,
which will provide over 150 direct and 500 indirect jobs.
The project would pave the way for
potential future collaborations in terms of investments, technology transfer
etc. between Punjab and the US, an official spokesperson said after the signing
of the MoU in the presence of Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh and US
Ambassador to India Kenneth I. Juster. Virgo’s MD Kanav Monga was present on
the occasion.
The Chief Minister said the project
would go a long way in containing the environmental pollution due to stubble
burning, besides supplementing the income of farmers by helping turn the
unmanageable agro-waste into raw material for producing bio fuel. He pointed
out that every paddy season, the state generates nearly 20 million metric
tonnes of paddy straw, which would be scientifically utilized for manufacturing
bio fuel.
Captain Amarinder Singh hailed the
project as a landmark that would be instrumental in generating renewable
energy, besides solving the state’s stubble burning issue. With the shift
towards renewable energy, Punjab would also augment its power generation
capacity with a commitment for a cleaner future, he added. Besides
incentivizing the farmers to sell their crop stubble in lieu of burning it, the
project would support the government’s requirements for national bio-fuel
blending targets as well as important air quality initiatives, such as the
National Clean Air Programme (NCAP), said the Chief Minister.
Reiterating his firm commitment
towards environmental sustainable development goal and facilitating projects of
similar nature in Punjab, the Chief Minister said that Invest Punjab had been
proactively working to steer similar projects. He pointed out that German
company Verbio had got initial site clearances for setting up a BioCNG
facility, while the public sector Navratna HPCL got land & was in process
of obtaining site clearances for setting up of Bioethanol facility. Further,
land has been allotted to Indian corporate giant Mahindra & Mahindra for
setting up of a Bio CNG facility in the state.
US Ambassador Kenneth I. Juster said
that the project for which the MoU had been signed was of critical importance
as it demonstrated how collaboration towards a common vision could bring
sustainable solutions and positive change. When companies and governments are
willing to come together, share resources and expertise, and develop new and
innovative approaches, the potential benefits to the society can be truly
phenomenal, he added.
Notably, the MoU was the outcome of
concentrated efforts from Invest Punjab, the Government of Punjab and the US Embassy’s
Foreign Commercial Service (FCS). Matchmaking from US Embassy’s FCS allowed for
the identification of a specific US technology to transform left-over crop
stubble from Punjab’s rice paddies into bio-fuel and the effective partnership
from both governments connected the US and Indian business partners. Virgo
Corporation and US technology partner Honeywell had signed a MoU, to develop
the project after initial introductions by the US Embassy FCS team & Invest
Punjab.
Prominent amongst others present on
the occasion were Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal, Media Advisor to CM
Raveen Thukral, Chief Principal Secretary to CM Suresh Kumar, Chief Secretary
Karan Avtar Singh, Advisor Investment Promotion Major B.S. Kohli, ACS
Investment Promotion Vini Mahajan, CEO Punjab Bureau of Investment Promotion
Rajat Agarwal and representatives from Virgo Corporation and Honeywell,
including Virgo Group Chairman Kanwal Monga, Mike Bannach, Col. Channa and
Dharmesh Mahajan.
(IPA Service)
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