Tangedco begins work for gas based power plant

A consultant would be appointed to prepare a feasibility report for setting up a gas turbine combined cycle power project in or near the city, a senior Tangedco official said, adding that a bid has been floated in this regard.

In July, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami made a suo motu announcement in the assembly that the State government would install two gas-based combined-cycle power plants with a capacity of 730 MW each at a cost of Rs 5,000 crore, in a bid to equip Chennai to meet the ever-increasing demand for power and to ensure the provision of electricity infrastructure for the future.

Tangedco officials said that the consultant would determine the capacity of the gas plant based on the availability of land and the high efficient gas turbines. An official added that the consultant would study the gas turbine configuration with advanced class and latest technology machines.

The official said setting up the gas-based power plant would help evacuating the wind power to a large extent, as its generation can be ramp up or down in short time. “As we ramp up renewable power capacity, we don’t have similar compensating spin reserve like hydro capacity. Other sources of flexi generation is gas-based power plant. Although we have gas-based power plants in Tangedco as well as in private sector, there is lack of availability of domestic gas which is hurting us. Today, gas-based power plants are running at 50 per cent plant load factor,” the official lamented.