The Hindu 26.04.2013
Jayalalithaa unveils power projects worth Rs. 20,000 crore
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Thursday
unveiled a slew of power and infrastructure projects, including a Rs.
7,000-crore underground power station with a capacity of 2,000 MW at
Sillahalla in the Nilgiris district. Making a
suo motu
statement in the Assembly, she said objective of unveiling these
projects, totally worth around Rs. 20,000 crore, was to restore Tamil
Nadu to its position as a power-surplus State.
Ms.
Jayalalithaa said the Sillahalla project would be implemented in two
phases and it would take eight to ten years for completion.
Sillahalla
is a tributary of the river Kundah, and in the first phase a dam with a
height of 98 metres and a capacity of 2.25 thousand million cubic feet
of water will be constructed. Then it will be linked with
Avalanche-Emerald reservoirs through a 2,750-metre tunnel.
In
the second phase, a power station will be set up, taking advantage of
the 1,500-metre height difference between the proposed Sillhalla plant
and the Pillur dam.
The Chief Minister said that
after generating electricity, the water would reach Pillur dam through a
tailrace tunnel. An approach tunnel would be created for the water to
reach the underground power station.
Stressing the
need for creating infrastructure to distribute the power generated
through new projects, Ms. Jayalalithaa said a plan had been conceived at
a cost of Rs. 5,000 crore. The Japan Bank for International Cooperation
would release a loan amount of Rs. 3,572 crore and the project would
help in streamlining the power distribution in Chennai.
Besides,
five new sub-stations with a capacity of 400 KW, corridors would be set
up with financial assistance of Rs. 2,750 crore from the Japan Bank for
International Cooperation. The sub-stations would come up in Guindy,
Koratur, Manali and Ottiyambakkam in Chennai and Karamadai in
Coimbatore.
Similarly, 14 sub-stations with a
capacity of 230 KW would be set up in Alandur, the third main road in
Ambattur, Chennai Central, Raja Annamalaipuram and TNEB headquarters in
Chennai and Tirupur and Karuvalur in Tirupur district, Kinnimangalam in
Madurai, Kumbakonam in Thanjavur, Poyyur in Ariyalur, Purisai in
Tiruvannamalai, Chavvashpuram in Virudhunagar, Shenbagaputhur in Erode
and Kancheepuram. The total cost for creating these sub-stations is Rs.
822 crore.
Ms. Jayalalithaa said the Power Grid
Corporation of India was setting up a sub-station with a capacity of 765
KW in Thiruvalam in Vellore for the purpose transmission of power among
southern States. Tamil Nadu will set up a 400 KW sub-station at a cost
of Rs. 1000 crore to get more electricity from other States.
She
said this year alone 10 sub-stations with a capacity of 400 KW, 16
sub-stations with a capacity of 230 KW, 19 sub-stations with a capacity
of 110 KW and 11 sub-stations with a capacity 33 KW would be set up.
To
overcome the power crisis, the government has decided to procure power
through case-1 bidding. In the first phase, 1000 MW electricity will be
procured since October for 15 years.