The project, tagged as one of the largest foreign direct investment (FDI) into the state, will also be a landmark project as the cost of power generation is likely to be 70 per cent less — around Rs 20,000 crore — than the conventional cost of generation, say sources close to the development. The project envisages an integrated solar city wherein all the raw materials including glass and panels will be produced by them, bringing down the cost substantially, said a senior government official. The cost of generation for thermal energy is about Rs 10-11 per unit. However, according to estimates of Clinton Foundation, the power produced in the solar city will cost around Rs 4 per unit, going by the scale of the project and technology advancement they have on hand.

In a 3 year project, the RSA is exploring the idea for personal carbon trading, originally described by David Fleming in 1996. CarbonLimited is bringing together expertise from the commercial, social and financial sectors to subject ideas about personal carbon trading to rigorous analysis. The project has so far been investigating how a personal carbon trading scheme might function, as well as analysing its potential social and economic impacts.