Central Railway has played an important role in promoting the use of Green Energy for its Power requirements.

Central Railway has pioneered the concept of procurement of Power by Open Access Method on Indian Railways. Earlier Indian Railways met its Power requirements at high tariffs from State Electricity Boards or from DISCOMS (Distribution Companies).

Indian Railways, over time to reduce expenditure, adopted various strategies. A major part of it was Open Access, which allows direct power purchase from cheaper sources such as Power Exchanges, Generators or Bilateral Agreements leading to reduced costs.

Central Railway was the first Zone on Indian Railways to procure Power through Open Access in 2015 and has ensured a total saving of Rs.6005.42 crore right from 2015-16 to the present, beginning with a modest saving of Rs.161.20 crore in 2015-16 to Rs.690.47 crore in 2024-25.

The saving have been derived by comparing the actual power procurement cost under Open Access with the earlier procurement cost at Rs.8.69 per kWh (kilowatt hour).

*Key Benefits of Open Access*:

· Cost Reduction:- The shift to Open Access has significantly lowered the per unit cost of Power.

· Flexibility in Procurement:- Open Access enables procurement from different sources ensuring cost optimization.

· Market Based Pricing Advantage:- Purchasing power from energy exchanges at competitive market rates instead of fixed tariffs has led to substantial savings.

· Increased Reliability due to multiple sources.

· Reduced dependence on one particular source

Indian Railways is working in mission mode to become the largest Green Railways in the world steadily moving towards becoming a “net zero carbon emitter” by 2030 and Central Railway is playing an important role in achieving the same