One of the world's largest - 648 MW Solar power plant at Kamuthi, Tamil Nadu

The 4000 acre Kamuthi solar park in South Tamil Nadu 

One of the world's largest solar power plant, the 648 MW plant, comprising 2.5 million solar panels employing 8500 people in a  record time of 8 months, spread over 2500 acres of land ( at a rate of 3.85 MW/acre of land) in Kamuthi, Ramanathapuram dist, South Tamil Nadu is promoted by the Adani group at an investment of about $750 million.

Watch the National Geographic special ..

Tamil Nadu (Southern part of India) gets a daily solar irradiance of 5.6 - 6 KWh/sq.m and gets clear 300 sunny days a year. Recently National Geographic gave a 30 minute peep into the largest solar power house on planet earth at Kamuthi .. Click here for details..

Airports are super critical applications and more so if it is an international one. The first and only 100% solar energy powered international airport in the world in Kochi, Kerala is yet to be challenged by any of the nations in the world. The Kochi airport is just 12 MW in comparison. The Bangalore and Hyderabad airports are also slowly going the solar route. The Adani Kamuthi solar park is three times the size of the solar power plant of 200 MW in the Gobi desert North China.

The greatest advantage South India has in terms of solar energy is that for almost 300 days in a year, there is solar energy incident in South India. If we just harness 1% of this total solar energy, it can meet the complete energy needs of the country.

With the powerful incentivised Central govt push, particularly by the PM Modi, to the solar energy drive of 20,000 MW (20GW) by 2020 and 100 GW by 2025 AD, India is clearly poised to give innovative energy leadership to the world in renewable, sustainable, low carbon footprint energy resources to meet the growing energy needs of 1.25 billion people of India, yearning to be the most vibrant and advanced nation of the world by 2035 AD.

The world's largest solar park till now has been in California San Luis Obispo County, Topaz project, with 550 MW capacity and 9 million solar panels, built by First solar with a 16.8% module efficiency.. (Click on link here..).

The power generated at the Kamuthi park will be bought by the Tamil Nadu State Electricity Board at a rate of Rs 7.01/KWh for a period of 25 years.

By 2020 AD, National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) will have the largest solar energy plant in the world, the 2000MW plant in Pavagadda, near Tumkur in North Karnataka, South India, which will be three times the size of the Kamuthi plant. Click for details here ..

With the re-emergence of the two oldest global civilizations of 6000 years, India and China along with the nascent and puny 240 year old US, will these three great nations of the contemporary world with their energy independence wipe out the Arab stranglehold of the world through oil ? US is already the worlds largest fossil oil producer, through shale oil, a non renewable resource.

Here is a model 17 MW solar plant developed by Tata Solar Power systems in Mithapur, UP 

George ..

Ref : https://cleantechnica.com/2015/07/06/adani-group-set-648-mw-solar-power-tamil-nadu/

PS : The list of the top solar plants is given here    The Tengger desert solar park in China with 1500 MW is the largest solar plant as of 2018 April. By December it will be overtaken by Pavaguda solar park near Tumkur which will be a 2000MW plant. (2 GW). Kurnol solar plant, 1000MW covers an area of 24 sq.km. The Saudi solar park costing $200 billion will be funded by Japanese venture capital firm SoftBank would cover an area of 5000 sq.km and should be ready by 2030. (updated on 9 May 2018).