Tamil Nadu Electricity Board to hike power capacity
15 July 2006
Chennai: Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) will set up a task force to identify the challenges faced by the wind energy sector in the State. The task force, which will comprise industry leaders, policy makers and energy experts, will prepare a comprehensive report on the state's wind industry in the next three months.
Delivering
the special address at the special plenary session of
the fifth Green Power 2006 international conference-cum-exposition
on renewable energy, organised by the Confederation of
Indian Industry (CII), the minister for electricity and
rural industries Arcot N Veerasamy said, Tamil Nadu is
one of the few states in India, which is self-sufficient
in meeting its power requirements. The TNEB is performing
exceedingly well with the board's transmission and distribution
loss of 18 per cent and billing and collection efficiency
of 99 per cent rated among the best in the sector.
On the power scenario in the state he said, "The
total installed capacity of TNEB is around 10,000 MW and
the installed capacity of wind energy of around 3,000
MW is 60 per cent of India's total wind energy capacity."
The peak load demand of 8,544 MW in Tamil Nadu is the
highest amongst the southern states.
According to him, the state will get 926 MW of power from the 2,000 MW Koodankulam atomic power project. He said that efforts are being taken to establish three 1,000 MW mega power projects at North Chennai under joint venture between National Thermal Power Corporation and TNEB, at Tuticorin under a joint venture between Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) and at Jayamkondam to be undertaken by NLC. "These projects are expected to be commissioned during the 11th Plan period. TNEB has plans to establish additional generating units each of 500 MW capacity in the existing thermal stations at North Chennai and Mettur."
He also said during 2006-07, the private sector is expected to commission wind farms to the tune of 500 MW.
Interestingly, the Green Power 2006 chairman Ramesh Kymal, wanted the government to follow a policy of charging the end consumer through a green cess while increasing the rates at which TNEB sources power from the windmill companies. He said the power price per unit should be Rs3.25 and the state government should impose a cess on all electricity consumers to form a green development fund to be utilised to develop green power in the state.
According to TNEB chairman Hans Raj Verma, the board procures power at Rs2.50 per unit where as the neighbouring states pays only Re1 per unit. "The board is taking necessary steps to sell surplus power to other states such as Punjab and Rajasthan through registered traders."
