Four wind projects get underway as part of Clean Development Mechanism initiative

Project initiatives under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), which will come into force next year following agreement on the rules at the Eighth Conference of Parties (COP-8) to the UN climate change convention held in New Delhi last month, are already underway in India. Of six projects selected from India as part of the Dutch government's CDM program, Cerupt, four are wind based. Vestas RRB India is building a 15 MW combined wind and biomass project (13 MW wind and 2 MW biomass) in Rameshwaram, Tamil Nadu. It is expected to save around 411,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide over a crediting period of ten years. "If the project is validated, the Dutch government may choose to buy credits from it," says Vestas RRB's Savesh Kumar. Final project implementation contracts are expected shortly. The three other wind projects are a 14.45 MW wind farm in Tamil Nadu, also by Vestas RRB, a 15 MW wind farm by Suzlon and 12 MW by Enercon, both being developed in Karnataka. World Bank environment director Kristalina Georgieva says the bank has signed an agreement with India's Infrastructure Development Finance Company to buy carbon emission credits worth up to US $10 million, generated through investment in CDM-eligible projects.