CapitaLand Investment mulls 30 MW solar power farm in TN

CHENNAI: Global commercial real estate developer CapitaLand Investment is mulling to set up a 30 MW solar power farm in Tamil Nadu in its efforts to have green/sustainable buildings, said a top official.

The company is set to double its built-up space to about 40 million square feet by 2024-25 and also get into the data centre segment here, he also added.

“Nearly 30 per cent of our power needs are met through renewable sources, mostly solar. We are looking at the possibility of setting up a solar power farm with a capacity of 30 MW in Tamil Nadu,” said Gauri Shankar Nagabhushanam, CEO, Business Parks, India, CapitaLand Investment (India).

According to C Velan, Head, Chennai, the cost per MW of solar power will be about Rs 5.5 crore to Rs 6 crore.

Nagabhushanam also said the other option is to source from a solar power farm operator.

He declined to comment on the reports of CapitaLand acquiring L&T Realty’s commercial properties located in Bengaluru, Chennai and Mumbai on forward purchase basis.

Nagabhushanam said CapitaLand apart from developing and leasing out commercial real estate also go for forward purchase of assets whereby it will fund the development of a commercial property and would buy it some years later with the owner earning the lease rentals for during the intervening period.

Spread across the country CapitaLand is into development and leasing of business/IT parks, logistics warehouses, malls, residences, data centres.

Currently CapitaLand has about 26 million sq.ft. of commercial real estate and will be increasing that to 40 million sq.ft., by 2024-25, Nagabhushanam said.

On the funding of the projects, Velan said nationalised banks are now offering ‘green financing’ for green buildings at a lower interest rate apart from CapitaLand’s other sources of finance.

On the trend of work from home in the software sector, Nagabhushanam said at our client’s place in IT parks located in different cities nearly 60 per cent of the employees are back to office and the numbers will go up and hence demand for office space will increase.

CapitaLand has launched the 2.6 million sqft International Tech Park Chennai Radial Road (ITPC-Radial Road) project here to be developed in two phases.