NTPC Ltd figures among the world's top 10 coal-based power generators but in less than two years it will have an impressive portfolio of 1,000 Mw of green energy, too. It is already one of the top green power generators among the conventional power companies in the country, and soon enough will turn out to be a classic case of a "polluting" company becoming "cleaner".

Some 110 Mw of solar power generation places it next to Reliance Power that has around 185 Mw renewable energy capacity with Tata Power (read Part IV of the series) topping the list in this category. Being a government-controlled entity, most of this change is driven by directives from the Centre. It is obligated to facilitate addition of another 10,000 Mw of clean power in the next five years. For NTPC, that has often faced barbs for having a fourth of India's coal power generation capacity of 169,118 Mw, venturing into green space is a calculated move.

Though a request for an official interaction with NTPC's officiating chairman on the company's green business did not get any response, its former chairman Arup Roy Choudhary says it helps "the political dispensation of the country to tell the global audience that our biggest power producer is also into solar energy". Roy Choudhary headed the company for five years starting August 2010, a period which coincided with the Union government's focus on solar power programmes.

The diplomatic gain in climate negotiations is, however, not the only trigger. Choudhary says branching into renewable is also part of the company's social commitment. Besides, it synergises the company's target with the global requirements on diversifying into greener energy sources.