Dog days have arrived, and while the city’s residents are wilting under the relentless sun, power managers in the State too, are feeling the heat.
With the demand for power expected to cross 13,000 MW in the next few days, Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (Tangedco) officials are pinning their hopes on meeting the demand through generation from wind energy.
Senior Tangedco officials said the power situation in the State, currently in crisis, will improve only if generation from wind picks up. “Generation from windmills is high between May and October. We are hoping it will come through for us this year. It is somewhat risky, as there have been instances when there has been no generation and we have had to scramble to buy power,” said an official.
At present, the power demand in the State is 13,000 MW, while the generation is only 10,000 MW. Chennai’s demand alone is around 3,000 MW.
“Wind power generation touched 2,000 MW earlier this month, but it dropped soon after. On Tuesday evening, the generation was only around 1,000 MW,” said an official.
He said the main reason for the fluctuation in generation was because of the low pressure areas over southern Tamil Nadu. “In the next few days, wind generation is expected to pick up. This will improve the power scenario to a certain extent,” he added.
Thermal power projects, including the ones in Vallur, Mettur and north Chennai are also expected to help tide over the crisis. “These projects are expected to provide a substantial amount of power in the coming months. As of now, we receive only a small amount of the power they generate,” said an official. Officials also said that once the Kudankulam nuclear power project is commissioned later this month, the State would receive at least 925 MW from it. “This will be a boon for us. All we hope for now is that plant is commissioned on time without any hassles,” said an official.
