CHENNAI: Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Monday (August 31) announced power infrastructure projects worth Rs 55,628 crore, comprising transmission network upgrade, 1,600MW supercritical thermal power project in Thoothukudi, and distribution improvement works in Chennai, to meet the State's growing electricity demand.
Announcing the projects in the Assembly, Vijay said Tamil Nadu's growing economy and rising power consumption required world-class electricity infrastructure backed by advanced technology across generation, transmission and distribution.
Under the Tamil Nadu Transmission Improvement Scheme, 196 new substations will be established and 15,000 km of new transmission lines laid, while existing transmission lines will be strengthened.
The government will also establish a 2X800 MW New Supercritical Thermal Power Station at the Thoothukudi thermal power station (TPS) complex at an estimated cost of Rs 20,800 crore under the public-private partnership model.
Commissioned in phases from 1979, the Thoothukudi TPS has five coal-based units of 210MW each, with a total installed capacity of 1,050MW.
The government plans to gradually replace the existing units with supercritical plant to comply with environmental regulations applicable to coal-based thermal power stations. The new project will comprise two units of 800MW each.
The chief minister said Tamil Nadu had emerged as a leading State in renewable energy and was continuing to focus on wind and solar power as well as battery storage.
However, renewable energy sources were not available uniformly throughout the day. While technology to store surplus renewable power in batteries for use during night-time demand was being deployed, the existing infrastructure was not sufficient to meet power requirements at all times, he said.
Thermal power generation would, therefore, continue to be important to ensure uninterrupted supply during periods of high demand, the chief minister said, adding that investments in generation capacity were essential to meet the State's increasing power load.
The government also announced distribution infrastructure improvement works worth Rs 1,762 crore in Chennai. The works will include setting up 36 new 33/11 kV substations, installing new distribution transformers, and replacing damaged or ageing cables, conductors, pillar boxes, and circuit breakers.
These measures are aimed at strengthening Chennai's distribution network and addressing power disruptions caused by flooding during the monsoon as well as challenges arising from high electricity demand during summer.